Breakdown of Je moet je focussen op een ander aspect dan de lengte.
een
a/an
op
on
moeten
to have to, must
je
you (unstressed form of jij)
dan
than
ander
other
zich focussen
to focus oneself
de lengte
the length
het aspect
the aspect
Questions & Answers about Je moet je focussen op een ander aspect dan de lengte.
Why is it een ander aspect without an -e on the end of ander?
Aspect is a neuter noun (het aspect). When you use an indefinite article like een with a neuter singular noun, the adjective drops its -e ending. If the noun were a de-word, like manier (way), it would get the ending: een andere manier.
Why do we use dan here instead of als to mean "than/as"?
When expressing a difference with words like ander(e) (different/other) or with a comparative adjective (like groter, bigger), you must use dan (than). You only use als (as) when expressing equality or identity, which you saw with hetzelfde aspect als (the same aspect as).
Why are there two instances of je right next to each other (Je moet je...)?
The verb used here is zich focussen (to focus), which is a reflexive verb in Dutch. You literally have to "focus yourself". The first je is the subject ("you"), and the second je is the reflexive pronoun ("yourself").
Is op the fixed preposition for the verb zich focussen?
Yes, just like in English where you "focus on" something, Dutch uses zich focussen op. Because it takes op, if you wanted to replace "a different aspect" with a pronoun later in a conversation, you would use a pronominal adverb with er, such as erop (on it).
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