Breakdown of Sommige lezers denken dat de dader de buurman is, maar ik vind deze theorie zwak.
ik
I
zijn
to be
maar
but
deze
this / these
de buurman
the neighbor (male)
denken
to think
dat
that (conjunction)
vinden
to think / consider (hold an opinion)
de dader
the perpetrator
sommige
some
de theorie
the theory
zwak
weak
de lezer
the reader
Questions & Answers about Sommige lezers denken dat de dader de buurman is, maar ik vind deze theorie zwak.
Why do we use "denken" in the first half but "vinden" in the second half?
This sentence perfectly contrasts the two verbs! You use denken when expressing a belief or suspicion about a fact (guessing who the perpetrator is). You use vinden when expressing a subjective judgment or evaluation of something (judging the theory to be weak).
Could I rewrite the second half to say "...maar ik vind dat deze theorie zwak is"?
Yes, absolutely. Both structures are correct and mean the same thing. Using vinden followed directly by the object (deze theorie) and your judgment (zwak) is just a shorter, more direct way to express an opinion than using a dat clause.
Why is the verb "is" pushed all the way to the comma in the first half?
The word dat introduces a subordinate clause. In Dutch, a subordinate clause forces the conjugated verb (in this case, is) to the very end of that specific clause.
Since "theorie" is a de-word, why is it just "zwak" and not "zwakke"?
Adjectives only get the -e ending when they are placed directly in front of the noun they describe (like de zwakke theorie). Here, zwak is separated from the noun to state a conclusion about it, so it keeps its basic dictionary form.
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