Breakdown of De gemeente zegt dat de brug beter moet worden onderhouden.
zeggen
to say
moeten
to have to, must
worden
to become
de brug
the bridge
beter
better
dat
that (conjunction)
de gemeente
the municipality
onderhouden
to maintain
Questions & Answers about De gemeente zegt dat de brug beter moet worden onderhouden.
How does the present passive work with a modal verb in this sentence?
To say that something 'must be done', Dutch uses a modal verb (moet) plus the infinitive worden (to be) and a past participle (onderhouden).
Why are all three verbs (moet worden onderhouden) stacked at the very end?
The word dat (that) starts a subordinate clause, which pushes all verbs to the end. In a verb cluster like this, the conjugated modal verb (moet) usually comes first, followed by the infinitive (worden) and the past participle (onderhouden). You might also hear moet onderhouden worden — both orders are perfectly fine!
Why doesn't the past participle onderhouden get a ge- prefix?
The verb onderhouden (to maintain) has the inseparable prefix onder-. Verbs starting with inseparable prefixes (like be-, ver-, or onder-) do not get an extra ge- added to their past participle form.
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