Word
De begunstigde hoeft niet de enige erfgenaam te zijn.
Meaning
The beneficiary does not have to be the only heir.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of De begunstigde hoeft niet de enige erfgenaam te zijn.
zijn
to be
niet
not
hoeven
to need (to)
te
to (infinitive marker)
Questions & Answers about De begunstigde hoeft niet de enige erfgenaam te zijn.
Why is te required before zijn here?
In Dutch, the verb hoeven (to need) is almost exclusively used in negative contexts, like niet hoeven, to mean "does not have to". When combined with another verb, hoeven always requires te before the infinitive (te zijn). This contrasts with moeten (must), which takes a bare infinitive without te.
Why use de enige for "the only" instead of a form of enkel?
Enige translates to "only" in the sense of "the one and only" (de enige erfgenaam = the only heir). Enkele usually translates to "a few" or "some", or "single" in negative phrases (geen enkele = not a single). To say "the only [noun]", you always use de/het enige.
How is the noun begunstigde (beneficiary) formed?
It is built from the verb begunstigen (to favor or benefit). It takes the past participle begunstigd (favored) and adds an -e to the end. This is a common Dutch pattern to turn a participle into a noun referring to a person, literally meaning "the favored one".
How does the word erfgenaam (heir) break down?