Breakdown of Het resultaat is onzekerder dan dat de meeste respondenten denken.
zijn
to be
het resultaat
the result
denken
to think
dan
than
meest
most
dat
that (conjunction)
onzeker
insecure
de respondent
the respondent
Questions & Answers about Het resultaat is onzekerder dan dat de meeste respondenten denken.
Why do we use dan dat instead of just dan like in English "than"?
In Dutch, when you are comparing a situation to an entire new clause (with its own subject and verb, like de meeste respondenten denken), you typically use dan dat. If you were simply comparing two nouns, you would just use dan. The dat acts as a bridge to introduce the full comparative thought.
How does the word dat affect the word order in the second half of the sentence?
The word dat acts as a subordinating conjunction, which means it turns the second half of the sentence into a dependent clause. In Dutch dependent clauses, all verbs are pushed to the end. That is why the verb denken sits at the very end of the sentence.
Why is it de meeste respondenten, when in English we just say "most respondents" without "the"?
This is a common trap for English speakers! In Dutch, when you mean "the majority of a group," you must always include the definite article de before meeste. Saying meeste respondenten without de sounds unnatural.
Why does the comparative onzekerder not get an -e ending here?
Because it is acting as a predicative adjective. It comes after the verb is to describe the subject, rather than sitting directly in front of a noun (like it would in een onzekerdere situatie). Predicative adjectives do not get an extra -e, even when they are in their comparative form.
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