Breakdown of Sommigen zonderen zich liever af van de menigte.
liever
rather (prefer)
van
from (possession, starting point) / made of
sommige
some
de menigte
the crowd (group of people)
zich afzonderen
to isolate oneself
Questions & Answers about Sommigen zonderen zich liever af van de menigte.
Why does Sommigen have an -n at the end here?
Because it is used independently to refer to people. When words like sommige (some), andere (others), or vele (many) stand alone without a noun and refer specifically to human beings, they take the -n suffix. If the sentence was about some things or animals, it would just be Sommige.
Where does the verb zonderen ... af come from, and why is it split?
It comes from the separable verb afzonderen, which means to isolate or seclude. Because it is the main conjugated verb in a main clause, it splits. The core verb zonderen takes the second position in the sentence, and the prefix af is pushed toward the end.
We translate this as prefer to isolate, but there is no verb for prefer in the Dutch sentence. How does that work?
Dutch often expresses preference using the adverb liever (which translates to rather) alongside a normal action verb. Instead of using a specific verb for prefer, the Dutch phrasing literally means some isolate themselves rather.
Why isn't the separable prefix af placed at the very end of the sentence after van de menigte?
While separable prefixes usually go at the absolute end of a clause, prepositional phrases like van de menigte are often placed after them. This is a common exception that prevents the middle of the sentence from becoming too long and clunky.
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