Breakdown of Hierdoor verlamt de kettingreactie het verkeer in de stad.
in
in
de stad
the city
het verkeer
the traffic
hierdoor
because of this / due to this
de kettingreactie
the chain reaction
verlammen
to paralyze
Questions & Answers about Hierdoor verlamt de kettingreactie het verkeer in de stad.
Why does the verb verlamt come before the subject de kettingreactie?
Could I use daardoor instead of hierdoor in this sentence?
Yes, absolutely. Both act as causal adverbs and both trigger V2 inversion. Hierdoor literally means "because of this" and implies the cause is very immediate or just mentioned. Daardoor means "because of that" and feels slightly more distant. At a B2 level, you'll see both used frequently to link cause and effect.
Is the verb verlammen (to paralyze) commonly used for things like traffic?
Yes, it is very common to use verlammen metaphorically in Dutch, just like in English. You will often hear news reports mention that a snowstorm, an accident, or a strike het verkeer verlamt (paralyzes the traffic).
Why is kettingreactie written as one solid word?
Dutch combines nouns into single compound words without spaces. It is made of ketting (chain) and reactie (reaction). As a B2 learner, recognizing that you can stick most nouns together like this will help you read long, intimidating words much faster!
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