Breakdown of Staan er zonnebloemen in de tuin? Ja, er staan er drie grote.
groot
big
drie
three
in
in
staan
to stand
de tuin
the garden
ja
yes
er
of them (with a number or quantity)
de zonnebloem
the sunflower
Questions & Answers about Staan er zonnebloemen in de tuin? Ja, er staan er drie grote.
Why are there two ers in Ja, er staan er drie grote?
They do two different jobs! The first er is the existential one, meaning "there" (as in "there are"). The second er is the quantitative one, which points back to zonnebloemen (sunflowers) because you are stating a quantity (drie). It translates roughly to "There stand of them three large ones."
Why does grote get an -e at the end if there is no noun after it?
Even though the noun (zonnebloemen) is omitted, the adjective still takes the same ending it would if the noun were there. Since it's drie grote zonnebloemen, it stays grote when used with the quantitative er. This -e ending on a standalone adjective is also exactly how Dutch expresses the English concept of "ones" (like "large ones").
Why does the second er come before drie grote?
The quantitative er prefers to sit right after the verb (or as close to it as possible in the middle of the sentence). It must come before the actual number and adjective, so you cannot put it at the end like er staan drie grote er.
Why use staan instead of zijn to say "there are" sunflowers?
In Dutch, plants, trees, and flowers are almost always described as "standing" (staan) rather than just "being" (zijn) somewhere, because they grow upright out of the ground.
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