Questions & Answers about Repareren kan ik de spaak niet.
Why is the infinitive Repareren at the very beginning of the sentence?
Placing an infinitive at the start of a sentence creates contrastive focus. It emphasizes the action itself, often implying a contrast, like 'I might be able to replace it, but repair it, I cannot.' Doing this triggers inversion, pushing the subject ik after the conjugated verb kan.
Does moving Repareren to the front change the rest of the word order?
Yes. Because Dutch is a verb-second language, the conjugated verb kan must stay in the second position. Since Repareren takes the first slot, the subject ik is forced to move to the third position, right after kan.
Could I move the object to the front as well, and say De spaak repareren kan ik niet?
Yes, you can! You can front just the infinitive (Repareren), or the whole verb phrase (De spaak repareren). Fronting just the verb emphasizes the action itself (repairing versus replacing), while fronting the whole phrase emphasizes the task as a whole.
Why does niet end up at the very end of the sentence here?
The word niet typically comes after a specific direct object (de spaak). In a standard sentence, it would sit just before the infinitive at the end (Ik kan de spaak niet repareren). Because repareren was moved to the front for emphasis, niet simply stays behind in its usual spot, which is now the end of the sentence.
Learn Repareren kan ik de spaak niet and more in Dutch
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free