Breakdown of Niet alleen de ballon, maar ook de taart moet strakjes onopgemerkt blijven.
ook
also / -ever (concessive particle)
niet
not
maar
but
de taart
the cake
blijven
to stay
moeten
to have to, must
alleen
alone; only
strakjes
shortly / in a little while
de ballon
the balloon
onopgemerkt
unnoticed
Questions & Answers about Niet alleen de ballon, maar ook de taart moet strakjes onopgemerkt blijven.
How does strakjes differ from just saying straks?
Strakjes is an adverbial diminutive of time, formed by adding -jes to straks (later/in a bit). While both mean the same thing, strakjes sounds softer, more casual, and often implies that the wait will be very short.
Why is the verb moet singular when both a balloon and a cake are mentioned?
In sentences using the niet alleen A, maar ook B (not only A, but also B) structure, the verb usually agrees with the part of the subject that is closest to it. Here, that is the singular de taart, so we use moet.
How is the word onopgemerkt put together?
It is built from the separable verb opmerken (to notice). First, it becomes the past participle opgemerkt (noticed). Then, the prefix on- is added to make it negative, creating onopgemerkt (unnoticed).
What grammatical rule puts onopgemerkt blijven at the end of this sentence?
The sentence uses the modal verb moeten (must). The conjugated form moet takes the second position right after the long subject phrase. In Dutch, modal verbs push the main verb (blijven) and closely related adjectives or participles (onopgemerkt) all the way to the end of the clause.
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