Word
Alleen wanneer u extra bagage meeneemt, wordt u geacht te betalen.
Meaning
Only when you bring extra luggage, are you expected to pay.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Alleen wanneer u extra bagage meeneemt, wordt u geacht te betalen.
u
you (formal)
betalen
to pay
meenemen
to take along / to bring
de bagage
the luggage
Questions & Answers about Alleen wanneer u extra bagage meeneemt, wordt u geacht te betalen.
Why is the main clause inverted to wordt u geacht instead of u wordt geacht?
The entire conditional clause Alleen wanneer u extra bagage meeneemt acts as the first block of information in the sentence. Because Dutch strictly follows the V2 (verb-second) rule in main clauses, the main verb wordt must come immediately after this fronted clause, causing the subject u to move behind the verb.
Could I use pas als instead of alleen wanneer in this sentence?
Yes, they are very similar and often interchangeable. However, alleen wanneer strictly emphasizes the condition (only in the event that), while pas als often carries a slight focus on a time or a threshold being crossed (not until). Additionally, alleen wanneer sounds slightly more formal, which fits perfectly with the formal tone of u and geacht worden in this sentence.
How does the formal phrase wordt u geacht te betalen work?
The verb achten means to deem or to consider. The passive construction geacht worden te followed by an infinitive is a formal way of saying to be expected to or supposed to do something. Literally, it translates to you are deemed to pay.
Why doesn't the separable verb meenemen split in the first clause?