Breakdown of De schoenmaker vervangt de hak die kapot is.
zijn
to be
kapot
broken
die
who / that (relative pronoun)
vervangen
to replace
de schoenmaker
the cobbler
de hak
the heel
Questions & Answers about De schoenmaker vervangt de hak die kapot is.
Why is there no comma before die in this sentence?
This is a restrictive relative clause (beperkende relatieve bijzin). It specifies exactly which heel the cobbler is replacing—specifically the broken one, distinguishing it from others. In Dutch, restrictive clauses do not get a comma. If we added a comma before die, it would become a non-restrictive clause, meaning he replaces the heel (implying there is only one heel we are talking about) and, as extra bonus information, it happens to be broken.
Why do we use die here instead of dat?
The relative pronoun needs to match the gender of the noun it refers back to. Since hak is a de-word (de hak), we must use die. If we were talking about a het-word, like het stiksel (the stitching), we would have to use dat instead.
Why is the verb is placed at the very end of the sentence?
The phrase die kapot is is a relative clause, and all relative clauses in Dutch follow subordinate clause (bijzin) word order. This rule dictates that all verbs in the clause, including the conjugated verb is, must be pushed to the very end.
Is vervangt a separable verb?
No, vervangen (to replace) is an inseparable verb. You can tell because it starts with the unstressed prefix ver-. Verbs starting with be-, ge-, her-, ont-, and ver- are never separable in Dutch, which is why it stays whole as vervangt here in the main clause.
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