Breakdown of Wij zijn in staat om het antiek te restaureren.
antiek
antique
restaureren
to restore
in staat zijn om
to be able to
Questions & Answers about Wij zijn in staat om het antiek te restaureren.
How does in staat zijn relate to the passive potential structures taught in this lesson?
While this lesson focuses on passive expressions of capability like Het antiek is te restaureren (The antique can be restored), in staat zijn om is the active equivalent. It puts the focus on the people doing the action, translating directly to "are able to" or "are capable of."
Could we just use kunnen instead of in staat zijn?
Why do we need both om and te in this sentence?
The fixed expression in staat zijn requires the om ... te + infinitive structure when you link it to an action. The word om introduces the action part of the sentence, and te must go immediately before the infinitive verb at the very end (restaureren).
Is antiek singular or plural here?
It is singular. The word antiek is a neuter noun (het antiek) that refers to antiques as a broad, collective category. While English speakers often use the plural "the antiques," Dutch commonly uses this singular collective noun.
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