Breakdown of Enerzijds lijken de volgers de content leuk te vinden, anderzijds blijken ze het te haten.
leuk
nice / fun
het
it
ze
they; she (unstressed form of zij) / them (object)
vinden
to think / consider (hold an opinion)
te
to (infinitive marker)
lijken
to seem
blijken
to turn out / to appear
haten
to hate
enerzijds
on the one hand
anderzijds
on the other hand (often paired with enerzijds)
de content
the content
de volger
the follower
Questions & Answers about Enerzijds lijken de volgers de content leuk te vinden, anderzijds blijken ze het te haten.
How would this sentence look if we used standard 'dat' (that) clauses instead of subject raising?
Without subject raising, you would use a dummy subject, usually het, in the main clause, followed by a dat clause. The sentence would be: Enerzijds lijkt het dat de volgers de content leuk vinden, anderzijds blijkt het dat ze het haten. The version in the example sentence shifts the actual subjects (de volgers and ze) into the main clause and uses te + infinitive, which sounds much more natural and advanced in Dutch.
What is the exact difference in meaning between lijken and blijken in this context?
Lijken means 'to seem' or 'to appear' based on an initial or surface impression. Blijken means 'to turn out' or 'to be proven' based on underlying facts or a later realization. By putting them in contrast here, the sentence perfectly captures the gap between what the followers appear to feel (lijken) and what the actual data or result shows they feel (blijken).
Why do the verbs lijken and blijken come before their subjects (de volgers and ze)?
This happens because of inversion triggered by the adverbs enerzijds (on the one hand) and anderzijds (on the other hand). In Dutch, the conjugated verb must always take the second position in a main clause (the V2 rule). Because the adverbs occupy the first position in both clauses, the subjects must move behind the verbs.
Why does te go between leuk and vinden?
Leuk vinden (to like) acts like a separable verb phrase in Dutch. When you use a te + infinitive construction, the word te is placed right before the core infinitive verb, splitting the separable parts. This is why it becomes leuk te vinden, rather than te leuk vinden.
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