Breakdown of Ik fiets naar kantoor, behalve als het regent en ik mijn regenjas vergeet.
ik
I
en
and
naar
to
fietsen
to cycle
vergeten
to forget
mijn
my
het kantoor
the office
het
it
regenen
to rain
behalve als
except if / unless
de regenjas
the raincoat
Questions & Answers about Ik fiets naar kantoor, behalve als het regent en ik mijn regenjas vergeet.
How does behalve als affect the word order in this sentence?
Because behalve als is a subordinating conjunction, it pushes the conjugated verb to the end of the clause. This is very obvious in the second half of the condition: ik mijn regenjas vergeet. In the first half, het regent, the verb is also at the end, but because there are only two words it happens to look like a normal main clause!
Could I use tenzij instead of behalve als here?
Yes, tenzij means exactly the same thing (unless) and also acts as a subordinating conjunction. You could say tenzij het regent en ik mijn regenjas vergeet. The phrase behalve als literally means except if and is often preferred in everyday spoken Dutch, while tenzij is slightly more formal but still extremely common.
Why doesn't the word order return to normal after the word en?
The word en is a coordinating conjunction, which means it joins two things of equal grammatical weight. Since it links two conditions that both fall under the umbrella of behalve als, the second clause remains a subordinate clause. That is why the verb vergeet is pushed all the way to the end.
Why is it naar kantoor instead of naar het kantoor?
When referring to routine daily destinations in a general sense, Dutch often drops the definite article. Just like you would say naar school (to school) or naar bed (to bed), going to the office for work is usually just naar kantoor rather than naar het kantoor.
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