Breakdown of Kwam zojuist iets tussendoor, ben wat laat.
zijn
to be
laat
late
komen
to come
iets
something
wat
something / some (a little)
zojuist
just now
tussendoor
in between
Questions & Answers about Kwam zojuist iets tussendoor, ben wat laat.
The first part starts with the verb kwam. What exactly is missing at the beginning of this sentence?
The dummy subject er has been dropped. The full, grammatical version would be Er kwam zojuist iets tussendoor. Because the real subject of the clause is the indefinite pronoun iets (something), Dutch introduces it with er. In casual spoken Dutch or text messages, unstressed words in the very first position are often omitted, leading to this verb-first structure.
Why is the second part just ben wat laat? Can I always leave out ik?
You can only leave it out in highly informal contexts (like texting or chatting) and only when the pronoun normally occupies the very first position of the clause. The full phrase is Ik ben wat laat. If you started the phrase with something else, like the adverb nu (now), the ik shifts to the third position (Nu ben ik wat laat) and can no longer be dropped.
What is the infinitive of the verb in the first clause, and how does it mean "came up"?
The verb is the separable verb tussendoor komen. Literally, it means "to come in between." When an unexpected task or event inserts itself into your schedule "in between" your planned activities, Dutch uses this verb to express that "something came up."
I usually translate wat as "what." How is it being used in wat laat?
Here, wat is used as an adverb meaning "a bit" or "a little." It is completely synonymous with een beetje. So wat laat just means "a little late." This is a very common everyday usage that makes statements sound slightly softer or less direct.
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