Breakdown of Er valt hier geen enkel voertuig te zien.
hier
here
zien
to see
vallen
to fall
er
there (existential)
te
to (infinitive marker)
geen enkel
not a single / no ... whatsoever (also geen enkele)
het voertuig
the vehicle
Questions & Answers about Er valt hier geen enkel voertuig te zien.
Why is it geen enkel voertuig without an -e at the end of enkel?
Voertuig (vehicle) is a het-word (het voertuig). When using geen enkel(e) with a singular het-word, enkel does not get an -e ending. If it were a de-word, like auto, you would say geen enkele auto.
What does valt ... te zien mean here? Doesn't vallen mean "to fall"?
While vallen normally means "to fall", the structure vallen te plus an infinitive is a common Dutch expression meaning "can be done" or "is possible to do". Therefore, valt ... te zien translates to "can be seen" or "is to be seen".
Why is hier placed before geen enkel voertuig?
In Dutch, expressions of place like hier generally come before indefinite objects. Because geen enkel voertuig is indefinite (it does not refer to a specific, known vehicle), hier steps in front of it.
Can I use geen enkel with plural nouns, like geen enkele voertuigen?
No, geen enkel(e) emphasizes "not a single" and must always be followed by a singular noun. Just like in English, you wouldn't say "not a single vehicles". If you want to use the plural, you drop enkel and just use geen (geen voertuigen).
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