Breakdown of Wij hebben olie nodig om de pitten in te roosteren.
wij
we
hebben
to have
in
in
nodig
needed
te
to (infinitive marker)
om
in order to
de olie
the oil
de pit
the seed (fruit stone or pip)
roosteren
to roast
Questions & Answers about Wij hebben olie nodig om de pitten in te roosteren.
How does the structure om de pitten in te roosteren work here?
This structure acts like an adjective describing the noun olie (oil). When you want to say "oil to roast the seeds in" in Dutch, you use om + [object] + [preposition] + te + [infinitive]. The preposition in gets "stranded" near the end of the clause rather than attaching directly to olie.
Why is the preposition in placed after de pitten instead of before it?
The preposition in relates to the oil (roasting in the oil), not the seeds. If you wrote om in de pitten te roosteren, it would mean you are roasting something inside the seeds! Because in refers back to the noun outside the clause (olie), it is separated from it and placed right before the te + infinitive.
Why does nodig come before the om clause?
nodig hebben (to need) acts like a separable verb, meaning nodig gets sent to the end of the main clause. The om ... te clause is an entirely separate infinitive clause. In Dutch, these longer subordinate clauses are placed after the main clause is already complete, which is why it appears after nodig.
I learned the word zaden for seeds. Why does this sentence use pitten?
While zaden is the general word for seeds (especially those you plant), pitten is used for the edible seeds found inside fruits or vegetables, such as pumpkin seeds (pompoenpitten) or sunflower seeds (zonnebloempitten). Since we are roasting these to eat, pitten is the more natural choice.
Learn Wij hebben olie nodig om de pitten in te roosteren 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