Word
Wij verzegelen de ruimte optimaal, opdat de schimmel het perkament niet aantast.
Meaning
We seal the room optimally, so that the mold does not affect the parchment.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Lesson
Breakdown of Wij verzegelen de ruimte optimaal, opdat de schimmel het perkament niet aantast.
niet
not
wij
we
de ruimte
the room
het perkament
the parchment
Questions & Answers about Wij verzegelen de ruimte optimaal, opdat de schimmel het perkament niet aantast.
Why is the verb aantast placed at the very end of the sentence?
The word opdat (so that / in order that) is a subordinating conjunction. This means it introduces a subordinate clause, which forces the conjugated verb (aantast) to the very end of that clause.
Could I just use zodat instead of opdat here?
Yes, and in everyday spoken Dutch, zodat is much more common. However, opdat explicitly shows the purpose behind an action (in order that), while zodat can sometimes just indicate a consequence. opdat is quite formal, which fits perfectly with a highly specific sentence about preserving old parchment.
The dictionary says the verb is aantasten. Why aren't the two parts separated here, like tast aan?
aantasten is indeed a separable verb. In a normal main clause, it splits (for example: De schimmel tast het perkament aan). But because the conjunction opdat forces the verb to the end of the clause, the prefix and the core verb are pushed back together and written as a single word: aantast.
Does aantasten always just mean 'to affect'?
While 'affect' works well as a translation here, aantasten has a stronger, more destructive meaning. It translates closer to 'to attack', 'to corrode', or 'to compromise'. You will often see it used when rust attacks metal, acid corrodes stone, or, as in this sentence, mold damages a delicate material.