Word
Zij hadden niets anders dan veel vermogen in die kring.
Meaning
They had nothing but a lot of wealth in that circle.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Zij hadden niets anders dan veel vermogen in die kring.
zij
they
hebben
to have
veel
much / many / a lot of
in
in
Questions & Answers about Zij hadden niets anders dan veel vermogen in die kring.
How does the phrase niets anders dan function in this sentence?
It translates literally to "nothing other than," but it is the standard Dutch way to express "nothing but." It acts as a modifier for exclusivity. Because it directly precedes veel vermogen, it emphasizes that this wealth was the absolute only thing they had in that specific group.
The word vermogen is translated as "wealth" here. Can it mean other things too?
Yes! At the B2 level, you will see vermogen used in several distinct ways. While it means "wealth," "assets," or "capital" in this financial or social context, it also frequently means "ability," "capacity," or "power" (such as a vehicle's engine power or someone's mental capacity).
Could I place in die kring earlier in the sentence, like Zij hadden in die kring niets anders dan veel vermogen?
Yes, you absolutely can. Placing the location (in die kring) directly after the verb hadden is very natural in Dutch and slightly shifts the focus to the specific circle. The original sentence places the heavy object phrase (niets anders dan veel vermogen) earlier, which puts the spotlight on the fact that they had wealth and nothing else. Both options are perfectly correct.
Why use kring instead of cirkel for "circle" here?