Breakdown of Hoe gaat u om met het gedrag van bepaalde mensen?
u
you (formal)
hoe
how
de mens
the human / person
van
from (possession, starting point) / made of
het gedrag
the behavior
bepaald
certain / specific
omgaan met
to deal with (people, situations)
Questions & Answers about Hoe gaat u om met het gedrag van bepaalde mensen?
The current lesson is about nou eenmaal. Can I add it to this sentence to ask how they deal with the way people 'just are'?
You generally cannot use nou eenmaal in open questions (questions starting with words like hoe or waarom). Because nou eenmaal expresses resignation to an established fact ('that is just how it is'), it clashes with asking someone how they handle things. You would use it in the response instead: Ze vertonen nou eenmaal dat gedrag. (They just exhibit that behavior).
What is the infinitive of the verb used here for 'deal with', and how does it behave in a subclause?
The verb is omgaan met (to deal with / associate with). It is a separable verb, which is why it splits into gaat ... om in this main clause. If you turned this into a subordinate clause, it would snap back together at the end. For example: Ik vraag me af hoe u met het gedrag omgaat. (I wonder how you deal with the behavior).
Could I use behandelen instead of omgaan met for 'to deal with' here?
No, that would sound unnatural in this specific sentence. While behandelen means 'to treat' or 'to handle', you usually treat people or medical conditions, not their behavior. You 'deal with' or 'interact with' behavior, making omgaan met the perfect fit for het gedrag.
Why does bepaalde have an -e at the end?
Bepaald is an adjective meaning 'certain' or 'specific'. Because it modifies mensen, which is a plural noun, it must take the -e ending. In Dutch, adjectives modifying plural nouns always get this -e suffix, regardless of whether they are de or het words.
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