Breakdown of De vaklui zijn degenen die het probleem hebben opgelost.
zijn
to be
hebben
to have
het probleem
the problem
die
who / that (relative pronoun)
oplossen
to solve / to resolve
degene
the one (who)
de vakman
the craftsman
Questions & Answers about De vaklui zijn degenen die het probleem hebben opgelost.
Why is the plural for craftsmen vaklui instead of vakmannen?
The singular form is vakman (craftsman or tradesperson). In Dutch, professions ending in -man often get an irregular plural ending in -lui or -lieden instead of -mannen. So vakman becomes vaklui (more common in everyday speech) or vaklieden (slightly more formal).
What exactly does degenen mean here, and why does it end in an -n?
Degenen translates to 'the ones' or 'those'. It is the plural of degene (the one). In Dutch, when demonstrative pronouns like this refer specifically to plural people, they must get an -n at the end. If it referred to things, it would not get the extra -n.
Can I use wie instead of die to mean 'who' in this sentence, since it refers to people?
No, you must use die. When pointing back to a preceding noun or pronoun (like degenen), Dutch uses die as the relative pronoun for plural words, even for people. You generally only use wie as a relative pronoun if there is a preposition right in front of it, like met wie (with whom).
Why are hebben and opgelost at the very end of the sentence?
The relative pronoun die starts a subordinate clause (die het probleem hebben opgelost). In a subordinate clause, all verbs get pushed to the end. Note that you can also swap the verbs at the end: saying opgelost hebben is equally correct and natural in this sentence.
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