Breakdown of Mijn collega raakt overweldigd en gefrustreerd tijdens de vergadering.
en
and
mijn
my
de collega
the colleague
de vergadering
the meeting
tijdens
during
raken
to get / to become (state change)
overweldigd
overwhelmed
gefrustreerd
frustrated
Questions & Answers about Mijn collega raakt overweldigd en gefrustreerd tijdens de vergadering.
Why is raakt used here instead of wordt to mean 'gets' or 'becomes'?
While wordt is the standard verb for 'to become', raken specifically emphasizes a transition into a new state. When combined with past participles like overweldigd or gefrustreerd, raken adds the nuance that this change of state is unintentional, emotional, or happening beyond the person's control.
How do we know to end both overweldigd and gefrustreerd with a -d rather than a -t?
This is a great place to recall the 't kofschip rule. For overweldigen, the stem is overweldig. Because g is not in 't kofschip, the past participle gets a -d. For frustreren, the stem is frustreer. The letter r is also not in 't kofschip, so it also takes a -d.
How would this sentence change if it were in the present perfect tense ('My colleague has gotten overwhelmed...')?
You would use zijn as the helping verb for raken, turning the sentence into: Mijn collega is tijdens de vergadering overweldigd en gefrustreerd geraakt. Notice that geraakt goes to the very end of the sentence.
Are overweldigd and gefrustreerd considered verbs or adjectives in this sentence?
They are past participles acting as adjectives. When you use raken to indicate a change of state, the past participles describe the condition the subject ends up in. You treat them exactly like adjectives showing how the colleague feels.
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