Breakdown of Wat overkomt haar bondgenoot?
wat
what
haar
her
overkomen
to happen to / to come over
de bondgenoot
the ally
Questions & Answers about Wat overkomt haar bondgenoot?
Why isn't the verb separated here, like "Wat komt haar bondgenoot over"?
The verb here is the inseparable overkómen, which means "to happen to". Inseparable verbs carry the stress on the root verb rather than the prefix. If it were the separable verb óverkomen (stress on the prefix), it would separate and mean "to come over" (like for a visit), which would make the sentence mean "What is coming over to her ally?".
How do you pronounce overkomt in this specific sentence?
Because this is the inseparable version of the verb meaning "happens to", the spoken stress falls on the root verb: overkómt. If you stressed the prefix (óverkomt), it would sound like the separable verb for coming over, confusing your listener.
Who or what is the subject of this sentence?
Wat is the subject. Just like the English "to happen to", the event doing the happening (wat) is the subject, and the person experiencing the event (haar bondgenoot) is the direct object.
How does the past participle work for this specific meaning of overkomen?
If you wanted to say "What happened to her ally?", you would say Wat is haar bondgenoot overkomen? Because it is an inseparable verb, it does not get the ge- prefix in the perfect tense. If you used the separable version, it would get ge- in the middle, becoming overgekomen.
What is the literal breakdown of the word bondgenoot?
It combines bond (alliance, union, or league) and genoot (companion, associate, or mate). You will recognize genoot from other B1 and B2 vocabulary words like echtgenoot (spouse) and huisgenoot (housemate).
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