Word
Sinds ze elkaar vertrouwen, is de situatie merkbaar beter.
Meaning
Since they trust each other, the situation is noticeably better.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Lesson
Breakdown of Sinds ze elkaar vertrouwen, is de situatie merkbaar beter.
zijn
to be
ze
they; she (unstressed form of zij) / them (object)
vertrouwen
to trust
elkaar
each other
Questions & Answers about Sinds ze elkaar vertrouwen, is de situatie merkbaar beter.
Why is the verb vertrouwen at the end of the first part of the sentence?
The word sinds (since) is a subordinating conjunction. This means it introduces a dependent clause and pushes the conjugated verb, vertrouwen, to the very end of that clause, right before the comma.
Why does the second part of the sentence start with is instead of de situatie is?
This is due to the verb-second (V2) rule. The entire first clause (Sinds ze elkaar vertrouwen) acts as the first piece of information in the sentence. Therefore, the verb of the main clause (is) must come immediately after the comma to take the second position, causing the subject (de situatie) and the verb to invert.
The Dutch sentence uses the present tense (vertrouwen). Could we use a past tense since the trust started in the past?
Because the trust is still ongoing, Dutch uses the present tense with sinds. English often uses a perfect tense here (Since they have trusted each other), but Dutch keeps it in the present to show the action continues today.
How is the word merkbaar formed?
It is built from the verb merken (to notice) and the suffix -baar (which works like the English suffix -able). Together they form merkbaar, which can be used as the adjective noticeable or the adverb noticeably.