Breakdown of Ik ben de bon kwijt. Desondanks moet u de schade vergoeden.
ik
I
zijn
to be
u
you (formal)
moeten
to have to, must
kwijt
lost
de schade
the damage
de bon
the receipt
desondanks
nevertheless
vergoeden
to reimburse
Questions & Answers about Ik ben de bon kwijt. Desondanks moet u de schade vergoeden.
Why does the second sentence say moet u instead of u moet?
Desondanks (nevertheless) is an adverb, not a coordinating conjunction like en or maar. Because it takes the first position in the sentence, the conjugated verb (moet) must come in the second position, pushing the subject (u) to the third position. This triggers the standard verb-second (V2) inversion rule in Dutch.
Is desondanks related to the word ondanks (despite)?
Yes! Ondanks means "despite," and desondanks translates to something like "despite of that" or "nevertheless." You use it as an adverbial connector to introduce a statement that is true in spite of what was just said.
Why does the first sentence use ben (am) to say "I have lost" instead of a form of hebben (to have)?
Why is vergoeden (reimburse) placed at the very end of the sentence?
The second sentence is driven by the modal verb moet (must). In a Dutch main clause, the conjugated modal verb takes the second position, and any other verbs in the clause, such as the main infinitive vergoeden, are sent to the very end.
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