Word
U heeft een achterstand, dus u moet het bedrag meteen overmaken.
Meaning
You have arrears, so you must transfer the amount immediately.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of U heeft een achterstand, dus u moet het bedrag meteen overmaken.
een
a/an
u
you (formal)
hebben
to have
moeten
to have to, must
Questions & Answers about U heeft een achterstand, dus u moet het bedrag meteen overmaken.
The current lesson is about the conditional adverb anders, which triggers inversion. Why doesn't dus cause inversion here?
While anders acts as an adverb and takes up the first position (causing inversion: anders moet u...), dus is highly flexible. It can act as a coordinating conjunction taking position zero, like en or maar. That is why the normal subject-verb order is kept here: dus u moet. You can also use dus as an adverb, which does trigger inversion: dus moet u. Both are correct!
The English translation says arrears (plural). Why does the Dutch sentence use the singular een achterstand?
In Dutch, achterstand is typically a singular concept when referring to a general state of falling behind. It is used for financial arrears, a work backlog, or even lagging behind in a sports match. You would only use the plural achterstanden if referring to multiple distinct debts or delayed projects.
Could I use betalen instead of overmaken in this context?
Yes, betalen (to pay) would be perfectly understood. However, overmaken specifically means to transfer money electronically from one bank account to another. In official letters or financial reminders, overmaken is the standard, precise term for this action.
Why is the separable verb overmaken at the end of the sentence and written as one word?