Breakdown of Niet alleen het zwaard, maar ook dit houten schild is uit de middeleeuwen.
zijn
to be
ook
also / -ever (concessive particle)
niet
not
maar
but
dit
this (neuter)
uit
out of / from
alleen
alone; only
houten
wooden
de middeleeuwen
the Middle Ages
het zwaard
the sword
het schild
the shield
Questions & Answers about Niet alleen het zwaard, maar ook dit houten schild is uit de middeleeuwen.
Why is the verb is singular if there are two items (the sword and the shield)?
With the correlative structure niet alleen X, maar ook Y (not only X, but also Y), the verb usually agrees with the subject closest to it. Since dit houten schild is singular, the verb takes the singular form is. If the second item were plural, it would be zijn.
Why does the adjective houten end in -en here, instead of following the usual adjective ending rules for het words?
Adjectives that describe the material something is made of (like wood, wool, or gold) almost always end in -en in Dutch. They do not get an extra -e or drop endings based on the noun's gender, so it is always houten whether it modifies a de word or a het word.
Why use the preposition uit instead of van to mean "from" the Middle Ages?
When talking about an object originating from a specific historical time period, year, or century, Dutch uses uit (literally "out of"). For example, you say een munt uit de middeleeuwen (a coin from the Middle Ages) or een boek uit de 17e eeuw (a book from the 17th century).
Why isn't middeleeuwen capitalized like "Middle Ages" is in English?
In Dutch spelling rules, historical eras and periods are written entirely with lowercase letters. This applies to words like de middeleeuwen, de steentijd (the Stone Age), and de oudheid (Antiquity).
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