Breakdown of De chauffeur bezorgt de pizza aan hem.
hem
him
de pizza
the pizza
de chauffeur
the driver
aan
to (recipient)
bezorgen
to deliver (parcels, mail, home delivery)
Questions & Answers about De chauffeur bezorgt de pizza aan hem.
Can I just drop the word aan and say De chauffeur bezorgt de pizza hem?
No, if you remove the preposition, you have to change the word order. Without aan, the indirect object (hem) must come before the definite direct object (de pizza). The correct sentence would then be: De chauffeur bezorgt hem de pizza.
Why would a Dutch speaker choose the aan hem structure instead of just putting hem earlier in the sentence?
It is usually about emphasis. Placing aan hem at the end of the sentence draws more attention to the recipient. You would use this version to stress that the driver is delivering the pizza specifically to him (and not to his roommate, for example).
Could I use voor hem here instead of aan hem?
You could, but it completely changes the story! aan hem means the pizza is being delivered to him (he is going to eat it). If you use voor hem, it means the delivery is being done for him as a favor or on his behalf (perhaps he is the restaurant manager or the usual driver who called in sick).
Wait, I thought bezorgen had something to do with being worried?
You are likely thinking of the adjective bezorgd, which means worried, or the phrase zich zorgen maken (to worry). The verb bezorgen by itself simply means to deliver when talking about mail, packages, or food.
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