Breakdown of Vijf generaties geleden was de geschiedenis van onze familie heel anders.
zijn
to be
vijf
five
de familie
the family
heel
very
onze
our (de-words, plurals)
van
from (possession, starting point) / made of
anders
otherwise / differently
geleden
ago
de generatie
the generation
de geschiedenis
the history
Questions & Answers about Vijf generaties geleden was de geschiedenis van onze familie heel anders.
How does geleden work in this sentence?
Geleden translates to "ago" and always comes after the period of time you are talking about. Just like in English, you state the duration first (vijf generaties) and then add the time word (geleden).
Why is the verb was placed before the subject de geschiedenis?
This happens because of the Dutch V2 (verb-second) rule. The entire time phrase Vijf generaties geleden counts as the first block of information. To keep the verb in the second position, was has to come next, which pushes the subject (de geschiedenis van onze familie) to the third position.
Why do we say onze familie and not ons familie?
Because familie is a de word (de familie). In Dutch, you use onze for all de words and all plural nouns. You only use ons for singular het words.
Could I use erg anders instead of heel anders to say "very different"?
While erg and heel both mean "very" and are often interchangeable, Dutch speakers almost always pair heel with anders. Saying erg anders isn't strictly wrong, but it sounds a bit unnatural to a native ear.
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