Breakdown of Met gekruiste armen leunt ze tegen de muur.
met
with
ze
they; she (unstressed form of zij) / them (object)
tegen
against / to (speaking to)
de muur
the wall
kruisen
to cross
de arm
the arm
leunen
to lean
Questions & Answers about Met gekruiste armen leunt ze tegen de muur.
Could I use the absolute construction 'met de armen gekruist' instead?
Yes! While this sentence simply uses gekruiste as an adjective before the noun, you can absolutely use the 'met + noun + participle' structure taught in this lesson. Saying met de armen gekruist or met haar armen gekruist is extremely common and means exactly the same thing.
Why is there an -e at the end of 'gekruiste'?
Gekruist is the past participle of the verb kruisen (to cross). When you place a past participle in front of a noun to describe it, it takes on the role of an adjective. Because armen is a plural noun, the adjective gets the standard -e ending.
Why is there no possessive pronoun here, like 'met haar gekruiste armen'?
In Dutch, it is standard practice to omit possessive pronouns for body parts when the owner is obvious from context. This is especially true for fixed expressions describing a physical state or posture, similar to how you would say met blote voeten (with bare feet) instead of explicitly saying 'with her bare feet'.
Why is the word order 'leunt ze' rather than 'ze leunt'?
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