Questions & Answers about De huurder neemt de lift naar boven.
Why does the word for tenant (huurder) end in -der instead of -er?
The base verb is huren (to rent). To create a noun for the person doing the action (the agent), we usually add -er to the stem. However, since the stem of huren is huur (which already ends in an r), Dutch adds -der instead to make it easier to pronounce.
Does huurder mean the person renting the apartment, or the person renting it out?
A huurder is the tenant, meaning the person paying the rent. The landlord or person renting the property out is the verhuurder. This comes from the verb verhuren (to rent out), where the prefix ver- shifts the meaning from renting for yourself to renting to someone else.
Why is 'upstairs' translated as naar boven instead of just boven?
In Dutch, you have to distinguish between being in a location and moving towards it. While boven means 'upstairs' or 'above' as a fixed location, moving there requires the preposition naar (to). Literally, the tenant is going 'to above'.
Is nemen used here exactly like 'take' in English?
Yes, in Dutch you use the verb nemen (to take) for elevators, stairs, and public transportation in the exact same way you do in English.
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