De valvloer beschermt de klimmer.

to protect

Breakdown of De valvloer beschermt de klimmer.

• de klimmer: the climber
• de valvloer: the padded floor

Questions & Answers about De valvloer beschermt de klimmer.

What kind of word is valvloer? Is it made up of smaller words?

Yes. Valvloer is a compound noun, which is very common in Dutch.

It is made from:

• val = fall
• vloer = floor

So the word literally means something like fall floor, but in natural English it refers to a safety floor, impact-absorbing floor, or floor designed to cushion a fall.

Dutch often combines words into one single noun where English might use two words or a longer phrase.

Why does the sentence use de twice?

Both valvloer and klimmer are de-words in Dutch, so they take the definite article de.

So:

• de valvloer = the safety floor
• de klimmer = the climber

In Dutch, nouns usually take either de or het. This is something learners often need to memorize noun by noun, although there are patterns.

A useful pattern here is that words for people, such as klimmer, are very often de-words.

Why is it beschermt and not beschermen?