Breakdown of Het scheelt niet veel.
schelen
to matter / to make a difference
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Questions & Answers about Het scheelt niet veel.
How exactly does the verb schelen work here?
The verb schelen is very versatile. Its core meaning is to differ or to make a difference. In the phrase Het scheelt niet veel, it literally translates to It does not differ much, meaning It doesn't make much difference or It's almost the same.
How would adding the modal particles nou eenmaal change the meaning of this sentence?
If you say Het scheelt nou eenmaal niet veel, you add a sense of resignation or inevitability. It translates to something like: It just doesn't make much difference, and we have to accept that. The particles nou eenmaal are used to express that a situation is simply the way it is and cannot be changed.
Can this sentence mean something else depending on the context?
Yes! Besides meaning It doesn't make much difference, Het scheelt niet veel is often used as an idiom to mean It was a close call or It almost happened. For example, if you narrowly avoid a bicycle accident, you can say Dat scheelde niet veel! (That was close!).
Why do we use veel instead of erg to mean much here?
We use veel because we are talking about a quantity or amount of difference. Erg is used as an adverb of degree with adjectives (like erg groot for very big) or to mean terrible as an adjective. Since schelen deals with measurable differences, veel is the correct choice.