Breakdown of De zekeraar controleert de klimmer.
controleren
to check
de zekeraar
the belayer
de klimmer
the climber
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Questions & Answers about De zekeraar controleert de klimmer.
Why is de used before both nouns?
Because both zekeraar and klimmer are de-words.
In Dutch, the definite article is:
- de for singular common-gender nouns
- het for singular neuter nouns
- de for all plural nouns
So here:
- de zekeraar
- de klimmer
Both are singular nouns, and both happen to take de.
Also, Dutch does not normally change the article for subject and object, so you can have de on both nouns in the same sentence.
How do I know who is doing the action and who is receiving it?
You know mainly from word order.
In a normal Dutch main clause, the usual pattern is:
subject + finite verb + object
So in:
De zekeraar controleert de klimmer.
- De zekeraar = the subject, the person doing the action
- controleert = the verb
- de klimmer = the object, the person being checked
If you switch the nouns, the meaning changes:
De klimmer controleert de zekeraar.
= The climber checks the belayer.
What exactly does zekeraar mean?