Breakdown of Hij neemt zich voor minder vlees te eten.
hij
he / it (referring to a 'de'-word)
eten
to eat
het vlees
the meat
minder
less / fewer
te
to (infinitive marker)
zich voornemen
to intend
Questions & Answers about Hij neemt zich voor minder vlees te eten.
How would this sentence look if we used a regular dat clause instead of the te infinitive?
You could say: Hij neemt zich voor dat hij minder vlees gaat eten. (He intends that he will eat less meat). Because the subject of both clauses is the same (hij), Dutch strongly prefers a shorter infinitive clause using te + infinitive, which is exactly what we see in the main sentence.
Why is the word zich in this sentence?
It belongs to the verb zich voornemen (to intend / to resolve). This is a reflexive verb, meaning the subject acts upon itself, so hij requires the reflexive pronoun zich. The literal translation is something like "He resolves himself to...".
Where does the separable prefix voor go in a sentence with an attached te clause like this?
The prefix voor is placed at the end of the main clause, right before the infinitive clause begins (...minder vlees te eten). You can think of the main clause (Hij neemt zich voor) as being a complete structure on its own, with the infinitive clause acting as an extra block of information tacked onto the end.
Could we add om to this sentence (...om minder vlees te eten)?
Yes, many Dutch speakers would add om here: Hij neemt zich voor om minder vlees te eten. With verbs of intending, trying, or deciding (like zich voornemen or proberen), adding om at the start of the infinitive clause is optional but very common.
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