Breakdown of We verdelen twee derde van de soep over vijf kommen.
twee
two
vijf
five
de soep
the soup
derde
third (3rd)
we
we (unstressed form of wij)
verdelen
to divide
over
over, across (spatial)
van
out of (in ratios, e.g. two out of five)
de kom
the bowl
Questions & Answers about We verdelen twee derde van de soep over vijf kommen.
Why is it twee derde and not pluralized like twee derdes to match the English 'two-thirds'?
In Dutch, the fractional part does not get a plural ending even when the top number is greater than one. You combine the cardinal number (twee) and the ordinal number (derde) but leave it singular. It is always twee derde, drie vierde, and so on.
Can I write twee derde as one word, like tweederde?
The official spelling rule is to write fractions as two separate words when they indicate an amount. You only combine them into one word when they form the first part of a compound noun, such as een tweederdemeerderheid (a two-thirds majority).
Why does this sentence use the preposition over to mean 'among'?
The verb verdelen (to divide or distribute) pairs with the preposition over when you distribute an amount across multiple recipients, containers, or periods. You are conceptually spreading the soup 'over' the five bowls.
Just a quick refresher: why does kom double its m in the plural kommen?
The singular word kom has a short vowel sound. To keep that vowel short when adding the plural -en, the consonant must be doubled. If it were written with a single m as komen, it would have a long vowel sound and look exactly like the verb meaning 'to come'.
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