Breakdown of Verschillende medewerkers waren de discussie aan het voorbereiden.
zijn
to be
voorbereiden
to prepare
de medewerker
the employee
verschillende
various, several
de discussie
the discussion
Questions & Answers about Verschillende medewerkers waren de discussie aan het voorbereiden.
The verb voorbereiden is a separable verb. Why aren't the parts separated here?
When you use the aan het + infinitive construction to show an ongoing action, the infinitive stays fully intact at the end of the sentence. Because of this, the separable verb voorbereiden (to prepare) remains one single word: aan het voorbereiden.
Verschillende usually means "different". Why is it translated as "various" here?
While verschillende can mean "different" (as in "not the same"), when it is placed before a plural noun without an article it very often means "several" or "various". Context tells us this sentence means "various employees" rather than "employees who are different from each other".
Why does de discussie come before aan het voorbereiden?
In the aan het continuous structure, the direct object (de discussie) must come before the aan het + infinitive block. The aan het + infinitive is pushed to the very end of the clause, so you cannot say waren aan het voorbereiden de discussie.
The translation doesn't explicitly refer to aan. Could aan het voorbereiden simply mean "prepared"?
No. The combination of aan het + a verb infinitive (voorbereiden) specifically translates to the continuous aspect in English ("were preparing"). A past completed action ("prepared") would be hebben voorbereid or voorbereidden.
Is verschillende in this sentence a direct adjective modifying medewerkers?
Yes, verschillende modifies medewerkers. When the adjective verschillend (different/various) is placed before a plural noun without an article, it takes an -e at the end: verschillende.
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