Breakdown of Tijdens de atletiek juicht de tribune het hardst.
hard
loud / fast (forceful) / hard (with effort)
het
it
juichen
to cheer
tijdens
during
de tribune
the grandstand / the stands
de atletiek
the athletics / the track and field
Questions & Answers about Tijdens de atletiek juicht de tribune het hardst.
Why do we use het hardst here instead of de hardste?
Because it describes the verb juicht (cheers), making it an adverbial superlative. When a superlative modifies a verb to say how an action is done, it always uses the fixed word het followed by the superlative form ending in -st.
Why is the verb juicht placed before the subject de tribune?
Because the sentence starts with the phrase Tijdens de atletiek. This takes up the first grammatical position in the sentence. To keep the verb in the strict second position, the subject de tribune has to move right after it. This rule is called inversion.
Doesn't hardst mean "hardest" or "fastest"? How does it mean "loudest" here?
The Dutch word hard is very versatile. While it can mean "hard" or "fast", when you are talking about sound (like cheering, talking, or music), it means "loud". So in this context, het hardst translates to "the loudest".
Why is the article de used in Tijdens de atletiek when English just says "During athletics"?
In Dutch, it is very common to use definite articles (de or het) before names of sports, fields of study, and general concepts, whereas English usually leaves them out.
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