Breakdown of De nieuwe oppas is weliswaar streng, maar hij is consequent.
zijn
to be
hij
he / it (referring to a 'de'-word)
maar
but
nieuw
new
streng
strict
de oppas
the babysitter
weliswaar
admittedly / true (conceding a point)
consequent
consistent
Questions & Answers about De nieuwe oppas is weliswaar streng, maar hij is consequent.
How does the pair weliswaar ... maar affect the word order in this sentence?
The adverb weliswaar (admittedly) pairs with maar (but) to concede a point before countering it. Because weliswaar is placed after the verb here, the first clause keeps standard Subject-Verb order. Maar is a coordinating conjunction, so it doesn't change the word order of the second clause either (hij is).
Can I place weliswaar at the very beginning of the sentence?
Yes, starting with it emphasizes the concession: Weliswaar is de nieuwe oppas streng, maar... Because you are starting the clause with an adverb, it triggers inversion, meaning the verb is must come before the subject de nieuwe oppas.
Is consequent a false friend here? It looks like the English word 'consequent'.
Exactly, it is a classic false friend! In Dutch, consequent means 'consistent' (applying rules reliably). To express the English meaning of 'consequent' (resulting), you would typically use a phrase like als gevolg daarvan (as a result of that).
The sentence uses hij to refer to de oppas. Is the word oppas strictly masculine?
Oppas is a de-word (common gender) and can refer to a babysitter of any gender. The use of hij here simply tells us that this specific babysitter is a man. If the babysitter were a woman, the sentence would naturally use zij.
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