Breakdown of Gezichtsmaskers probeert ze er het liefst twee.
twee
two
proberen
to try
ze
they; she (unstressed form of zij) / them (object)
liefst
most (preferably)
er
of them (with a number or quantity)
het gezichtsmasker
face mask
Questions & Answers about Gezichtsmaskers probeert ze er het liefst twee.
Why are gezichtsmaskers and twee separated here?
This is a split noun phrase, which is a common way to emphasize a topic in Dutch. By putting the noun (gezichtsmaskers) at the very beginning of the sentence, it becomes the main focus. The number (twee) stays behind at the end of the sentence. It feels similar to saying 'Face masks, she prefers to try two of them' in English.
Why is the word er used in this sentence?
This is the quantitative er. Whenever a number or quantity like twee is separated from its noun (or when the noun is dropped entirely because it is understood from context), Dutch strictly requires er to bridge the gap. It acts just like the English phrase 'of them'.
Where exactly does er belong in the sentence structure?
The quantitative er tends to appear as early as possible in the middle part of the sentence. Here, it immediately follows the fronted verb and the subject (probeert ze) and comes right before the adverbial phrase het liefst.
Why does the English translation use a verb ('prefers') while the Dutch sentence uses het liefst?
English often uses the verb 'to prefer' to express a preference, but Dutch typically uses an adverb to modify the main verb. The adverb liever means 'preferably', and its superlative het liefst means 'most preferably'. Therefore, probeert ... het liefst translates literally to 'tries most preferably', which is the standard Dutch way to express 'prefers to try'.
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