Breakdown of Naarmate men ouder wordt, wordt men vaak wijzer.
oud
old
vaak
often
worden
to become
men
one / people (general)
Questions & Answers about Naarmate men ouder wordt, wordt men vaak wijzer.
Why does the first clause end with wordt?
Naarmate (meaning 'as' or 'in proportion as') is a subordinating conjunction. In Dutch, subordinate clauses trigger verb-final word order, pushing the conjugated verb wordt to the very end of that clause.
Why are there two wordts right next to each other in the middle of the sentence?
This happens because the first clause ends with its verb, and the second clause begins with its verb. The subordinate clause (Naarmate men ouder wordt) takes up the first position of the overall sentence. To satisfy the verb-second (V2) rule, the main clause must put its verb (wordt) immediately after the comma, followed by the subject (men).
Could I use je instead of men in this sentence?
Yes, and in casual speech, you almost certainly would! Men is the equivalent of the English impersonal 'one' and sounds quite formal or literary. In everyday spoken Dutch, you would say: Naarmate je ouder wordt, word je vaak wijzer.
Is there another way to say 'the older, the wiser' in Dutch?
Yes! While naarmate expresses proportion ('as one grows older...'), Dutch also has a direct equivalent to the English 'the... the...' structure using hoe..., hoe.... You could rephrase this sentence as: Hoe ouder men wordt, hoe wijzer men vaak wordt.