Breakdown of Toen we terugblikten op dat jaar, waren we blij.
zijn
to be
blij
happy
op
on
dat
that (het-words)
het jaar
the year
we
we (unstressed form of wij)
toen
when / then (in the past)
terugblikken
to look back
Questions & Answers about Toen we terugblikten op dat jaar, waren we blij.
Why do we use toen here instead of als?
In Dutch, toen is used for a single, specific event or time period in the past. Here, it refers to one specific moment of reflecting. If we had used als, it would mean "Whenever we looked back," describing a repeated habit or condition in the past.
Why is the separable verb terugblikken written as one word (terugblikten) here?
Because toen introduces a subordinate clause, the conjugated verb is pushed to the end of the clause. When a separable verb's conjugated part moves to the end, it bumps back into its prefix (terug) and they must be written together as a single word.
Why is it waren we and not we waren in the second half of the sentence?
This is due to the verb-second rule. The entire subordinate clause (Toen we terugblikten op dat jaar) acts as the first block of information in the sentence. To keep the main verb in the second position, waren has to come right after the comma, causing the subject (we) to move behind it.
Is op the standard preposition to use with terugblikken?
Yes, terugblikken op is a fixed combination, exactly mirroring the English phrase "to look back on".
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