Breakdown of Die vaklieden hebben de brug perfect gerepareerd.
hebben
to have
die
that / those (de-words and plurals)
repareren
to repair
de brug
the bridge
perfect
perfect
de vakman
the craftsman
Questions & Answers about Die vaklieden hebben de brug perfect gerepareerd.
The plural of vakman here is vaklieden. Could I also say vakmannen or vaklui?
Yes, both vaklui and vakmannen are correct, though they have slightly different tones. Vaklieden is more formal and traditional. Vaklui is very common in everyday speech. While vakmannen is understood and used, historically, Dutch professions ending in -man shift to -lieden or -lui for their plural forms.
Does vaklieden apply to any kind of professional?
No, a vakman (and the plural vaklieden) specifically refers to a skilled craftsman or tradesman, such as a carpenter, plumber, or electrician. You wouldn't use it for an office worker or a doctor. For white-collar professionals, you would use words like professionals or deskundigen.
Why does the past participle gerepareerd end in a d and not a t?
This follows the classic 't kofschip rule, which still applies to loanwords like repareren. When you remove the -en from the infinitive, the stem ends in r. Because r is not in 't kofschip (or soft ketchup), the past participle gets a -d instead of a -t.
Why are perfect and gerepareerd placed at the very end of the sentence?
In the Dutch present perfect tense, the auxiliary verb (hebben) takes the second position, while the past participle (gerepareerd) gets pushed to the very end of the sentence. Adverbs like perfect that describe the verb's action are placed right before that final past participle.
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