Breakdown of Plotseling komt er een jongen naar beneden glijden.
een
a/an
de jongen
the boy
naar
to
komen
to come
beneden
downstairs / down (downwards)
er
there (existential)
plotseling
suddenly
glijden
to slide
Questions & Answers about Plotseling komt er een jongen naar beneden glijden.
Why do we use the infinitive glijden instead of a present participle like glijdend for "sliding"?
This is the specific grammar structure for "manner of arrival". When describing how someone or something arrives, Dutch uses the verb komen paired with the bare infinitive of the action. While English says "comes sliding", Dutch literally says "comes to slide" (komt ... glijden).
Why is naar beneden placed before glijden?
Because glijden is the infinitive in a two-verb construction (komt ... glijden). The conjugated verb (komt) takes the second position in the sentence, and the infinitive gets pushed to the very end. The directional phrase naar beneden (down) has to fit between them.
What is the function of er in this sentence? Can I leave it out?
You shouldn't leave it out. Because the subject is indefinite (een jongen, a boy) and is being introduced as new information, Dutch strongly prefers using er as a provisional subject. It works much like "there" in the English phrase "Suddenly there comes a boy..."
Why is the word order komt er instead of er komt?
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