Questions & Answers about Wat een schijnheilige vrouw blijkt ze te zijn!
Why does blijkt come right after vrouw instead of after ze?
How does the verb blijken work in this sentence?
The verb blijken means to turn out or to appear. When you combine it with another verb, it uses a te + infinitive construction. Just like in English (turns out to be), the conjugated verb blijkt sits in the V2 position, while te zijn is pushed to the very end of the sentence.
Is schijnheilig a compound word?
Yes, it is made up of schijn (appearance or illusion) and heilig (holy). Translating literally to fake-holy, it is the most common Dutch word for hypocritical. It gets an extra -e at the end here because it modifies the noun vrouw.
Could I drop een and just say Wat schijnheilige vrouw?
No, just like in English, singular exclamations require an indefinite article. You must use Wat een (What a). However, if you were talking about multiple women, you would drop the article entirely: Wat schijnheilige vrouwen!