Word
Hij werpt de speer net zo ver als zijn broer.
Meaning
He throws the javelin just as far as his brother.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Hij werpt de speer net zo ver als zijn broer.
hij
he / it (referring to a 'de'-word)
de broer
the brother
zijn
his
ver
far
Questions & Answers about Hij werpt de speer net zo ver als zijn broer.
How does the "just as... as" structure work in this sentence?
To compare two equal things, Dutch uses zo [adverb] als. Here, zo ver als means "as far as". The word net translates to "just", so net zo ver als means "just as far as". This is the base degree of comparison, contrasting with the superlatives you are focusing on in this lesson.
How would I rewrite this sentence to say "He throws the javelin the farthest" using an adverbial superlative?
You would replace the entire comparison (net zo ver als zijn broer) with het verst. The sentence becomes: Hij werpt de speer het verst. Because it describes how he performs the verb werpt, you use the invariant het + superlative, with no extra -e on the end of the adverb.
Why is the verb "werpt" used here instead of the more common "gooit"?
Gooien is indeed the everyday word for "to throw". However, werpen is used in sports contexts, such as speerwerpen (javelin throwing), as well as in more formal language or fixed expressions. It is a strong (irregular) verb you should recognize at this level: werpen - wierp - geworpen.
If I wanted to add the verb "does" to the end ("just as far as his brother does"), where would it go?