Breakdown of Hij laat de robot het laboratorium schoonmaken.
hij
he / it (referring to a 'de'-word)
schoonmaken
to clean
laten
to let (laten we ... = let's ...)
de robot
the robot
Questions & Answers about Hij laat de robot het laboratorium schoonmaken.
Why use laat here instead of doet?
In Dutch, laten is used when you delegate a task or give permission, which perfectly fits someone programming or commanding a robot. You only use doen for involuntary or automatic reactions, like making someone laugh (hem doen lachen). Since cleaning is an active, delegated task, laat is the required choice here.
The translation says 'He lets the robot clean', but could this also mean 'He has the robot clean'?
Yes, absolutely! Laten is used for both giving permission (letting) and delegating a task (having someone do something). Context usually tells you which one it is. Given that it is a robot and not a person asking for permission, 'He has the robot clean the laboratory' is actually the most logical interpretation.
Schoonmaken is a separable verb. Why is it written as one word at the end of the sentence?
Because it is being used as an infinitive. In causative sentences with laten or doen, the second verb stays in its full, attached infinitive form and is pushed to the end of the clause. Separable verbs only split when they act as the conjugated verb in a main clause, such as in hij maakt het laboratorium schoon.
What dictates the word order of the two objects (de robot and het laboratorium) here?