Breakdown of Hoe sneller de inflatie stijgt, hoe risicovoller het project wordt.
snel
fast
het project
the project
hoe
how
worden
to become
stijgen
to rise
de inflatie
the inflation
risicovol
risky
Questions & Answers about Hoe sneller de inflatie stijgt, hoe risicovoller het project wordt.
Does hoe literally mean "the" in this sentence?
Usually, hoe means "how". But when you pair hoe with a comparative adjective (sneller, risicovoller) in both halves of a sentence, the structure translates to "the ... the ...". You are literally saying: "How faster the inflation rises, how riskier the project becomes."
Why are the verbs stijgt and wordt placed at the very end of their clauses?
The hoe ... hoe structure usually treats both halves of the sentence as subordinate clauses. This means the normal word order changes and the conjugated verbs (stijgt and wordt) are pushed to the end of their respective clauses.
Why does the Dutch sentence use de inflatie when the English translation just says "inflation"?
In Dutch, abstract concepts and general nouns (like inflation, nature, or love) usually require a definite article (de or het). English often leaves the article out in these general cases.
How is the word risicovoller built?
It starts with the noun risico (risk). By adding the suffix -vol (full), it becomes the adjective risicovol (risky). Because the sentence requires a comparative (riskier) to work with the hoe ... hoe structure, we add -er to the end, resulting in risicovoller.
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