Breakdown of Voordat de gokker de jackpot wint, bestelt hij er een cocktail.
hij
he / it (referring to a 'de'-word)
een
a/an
bestellen
to order
er
there (in that place)
winnen
to win
voordat
before
de cocktail
the cocktail
de jackpot
the jackpot
de gokker
the gambler
Questions & Answers about Voordat de gokker de jackpot wint, bestelt hij er een cocktail.
Why are the verbs placed where they are (wint at the end of the first clause, and bestelt right before the subject)?
This sentence perfectly demonstrates two key Dutch word order rules. First, voordat introduces a subordinate clause, which pushes its verb (wint) to the very end. Second, because that entire subordinate clause takes up the first position in the sentence, the main clause must undergo inversion to keep its verb (bestelt) in the second position, pushing the subject (hij) after it.
Can I use voor instead of voordat to mean "before"?
In informal spoken Dutch, you will often hear native speakers use voor as a conjunction. However, in written and standard Dutch, voordat is the correct conjunction to introduce a clause with a subject and a verb. Voor is primarily a preposition used before nouns, as in voor de wedstrijd (before the game).
What is the function of er in this sentence, and why not use daar?
Here, er acts as an unstressed locative pronoun meaning "there" (referring to the location, like a casino). You would only use daar instead if you wanted to place strong emphasis on the location, as if you were pointing and saying he ordered it "right there."
This lesson covers restrictions on indirect objects in the passive voice. How does that apply if we make the main clause passive?
If we make it passive, it becomes Er wordt een cocktail door hem besteld. Because this sentence only has a direct object (een cocktail) and no indirect object (like "for the winner"), it completely avoids the restriction you are currently learning. If we did add an indirect object, remember that Dutch strictly forbids making it the subject of a passive sentence, unlike English where you can say "The winner was ordered a cocktail."
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