Breakdown of Ik krijg het rijbewijs niet vergoed.
ik
I
niet
not
krijgen
to get (receive)
vergoeden
to reimburse
het rijbewijs
the driver's license
Questions & Answers about Ik krijg het rijbewijs niet vergoed.
How does the grammar of krijgen and vergoed work together in this sentence?
This is the benefactive passive. By combining the verb krijgen (to get) with a past participle like vergoed (reimbursed), you express that an action is performed for you by someone else. It is very similar to the English structure of getting something done.
Could I use the regular passive with worden here instead of krijgen?
Not if you keep ik as the subject. You cannot say Ik word het rijbewijs niet vergoed. If you want to use worden, the license must become the subject: Het rijbewijs wordt niet aan mij vergoed (The driver's license is not reimbursed to me). Using krijgen allows you to be the subject who receives the outcome.
Why is niet placed right before vergoed instead of earlier in the sentence?
In Dutch, niet is placed after specific direct objects. Because het rijbewijs is specific (it uses the definite article het), niet must come after it. It also must come before the past participle vergoed at the end of the clause.
Why doesn't the past participle vergoed start with ge-?
The infinitive of the verb is vergoeden. Verbs that start with inseparable prefixes such as ver-, be-, ont-, or her- never take the ge- prefix in their past participle form.
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