Breakdown of Klopt het dat de stiefmoeder de prinses heeft moeten verstoppen?
hebben
to have
het
it
moeten
to have to, must
verstoppen
to hide
dat
that (conjunction)
kloppen
to be correct
de prinses
the princess
de stiefmoeder
the stepmother
Questions & Answers about Klopt het dat de stiefmoeder de prinses heeft moeten verstoppen?
Why does heeft have to come before moeten verstoppen at the end of the sentence?
Because of the double infinitive! In a standard subordinate clause, you can often choose to put the conjugated auxiliary verb before or after a past participle. However, when you have a double infinitive cluster like moeten verstoppen, the conjugated auxiliary (heeft) must always be placed in front of them.
Why is it moeten here instead of the past participle gemoeten?
In Dutch, when a modal verb like moeten (to have to) is used in the perfect tense alongside another verb, it changes from a past participle into an infinitive. This creates a double infinitive. So instead of the incorrect heeft gemoeten verstoppen, it becomes heeft moeten verstoppen.
Both de stiefmoeder and de prinses are right next to each other. How do we know who is hiding whom?
By the standard word order. In a subordinate clause, the subject almost always comes immediately after the conjunction (dat). Therefore, de stiefmoeder is the subject (the one who has to do the hiding) and de prinses is the direct object (the one being hidden).
What is the literal meaning of klopt het?
The verb kloppen literally means to knock or to beat (like a heartbeat). However, in Dutch it is very commonly used idiomatically to mean to be correct. So klopt het dat smoothly translates to is it true that or is it correct that.
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