Breakdown of Het bondgenootschap wordt door de koning ondertekend.
het
it
worden
to become
door
by (agent in a passive sentence)
de koning
the king
ondertekenen
to sign
het bondgenootschap
the alliance
Questions & Answers about Het bondgenootschap wordt door de koning ondertekend.
How does the word bondgenootschap break down, and what role does the suffix -schap play?
The base word is bondgenoot (ally), which itself is a compound of bond (league or union) and genoot (companion). Adding the suffix -schap turns this into an abstract noun representing a relationship, status, or collective. Here, the concept of being allies becomes an alliance.
Why is het used for bondgenootschap? Are all nouns ending in -schap neuter?
Not all of them! Nouns ending in -schap split into two groups. When the word refers to a collective entity, status, or office (like het bondgenootschap, het vaderschap, het lidmaatschap), it takes het. However, when the word indicates a quality, state, or institution (like de wetenschap, de eigenschap, de zwangerschap), it is a de-word.
Why is wordt used here to mean is in is signed?
This sentence uses the present passive voice to describe an action happening right now. Dutch uses worden (literally to become) plus the past participle for the dynamic passive. If you used is instead (Het bondgenootschap is ondertekend), it would mean the action is already finished, translating to The alliance has been signed.
Why doesn't the past participle ondertekend have a ge- prefix?
The verb ondertekenen (to sign) has an inseparable prefix (onder-). Verbs with inseparable, unstressed prefixes (such as be-, ver-, ont-, and in this case onder-) do not take a ge- in their past participle. You simply add a -d or -t to the stem.
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