Breakdown of In de supermarkt is elk schap vrij kaal.
zijn
to be
in
in
de supermarkt
the supermarket
elk
each, every
vrij
quite / fairly (degree adverb)
het schap
the shelf (in a store)
kaal
bare / empty (bald, unfurnished)
Questions & Answers about In de supermarkt is elk schap vrij kaal.
Why is it elk schap and not elke schap, and how does this relate to the lesson about geen enkel(e)?
Schap (shelf) is a het-word (het schap). When placed before a singular het-word, words like elk (every/each) and geen enkel (not a single) do not get an extra -e at the end. If you wanted to make this sentence negative and say "not a single shelf is quite bare", you would use the exact same ending pattern: geen enkel schap is vrij kaal.
Doesn't vrij usually mean "free"?
It does when it's an adjective, but when used as an adverb right before another adjective like kaal (bare), vrij translates to "quite" or "fairly". So vrij kaal means "quite bare" or "fairly bare".
Can kaal be used for things other than a person's bald head?
Yes! While kaal is the word for "bald" when talking about people, it is also widely used to mean "bare" or "empty". You will frequently see it used to describe trees without leaves in the winter, empty rooms without furniture, or shelves stripped of products.
Why is the verb is placed before the subject elk schap?
This is a standard example of Dutch inversion. Because the sentence starts with the location phrase In de supermarkt (filling the first grammatical slot), the verb is must stay in the second position. This pushes the subject, elk schap, to the third position right after the verb.
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