Ik herinner me dat ik me laatst vergiste in de datum, maar dit keer zal ik op tijd zijn.

I remember that I was mistaken about the date last time, but this time I will be on time.

Breakdown of Ik herinner me dat ik me laatst vergiste in de datum, maar dit keer zal ik op tijd zijn.

• ik: I
• zijn: to be
• maar: but
• dat: that
• zullen: will
• dit: this
• herinneren: to remember
• zich vergissen: to be mistaken
• me: myself
• laatst: last
• de datum: the date
• de keer: the time
• tijd: time

Questions & Answers about Ik herinner me dat ik me laatst vergiste in de datum, maar dit keer zal ik op tijd zijn.

Why do we use me in Ik herinner me?

In Dutch, the verb zich herinneren (to remember) is reflexive. That’s why we say ik herinner me literally meaning "I remember myself." Even though in English we normally wouldn’t say "I remember myself," you have to use the reflexive pronoun in Dutch to make the verb grammatically correct.

Why do we have two reflexive constructions: Ik herinner me and ik me vergiste?

Both zich herinneren ("to remember") and zich vergissen ("to be mistaken") are reflexive verbs that require a form of zich. For zich herinneren, we say ik herinner me. For zich vergissen, it’s ik vergis me. In the sentence, ik me vergiste is simply the past tense of that reflexive verb (ik vergiste me).

Why is vergiste used instead of vergis?

Vergiste is the simple past tense of zich vergissen. Dutch has a simple past for regular verbs that often ends in -te or -de. Here, vergisten follows the -te form: ik vergiste (me), meaning "I was mistaken."

What does me laatst vergiste in de datum mean more precisely?

It literally translates to "I was mistaken about the date last time." The adverb laatst ("last time" or "recently") indicates it happened once before, and in de datum clarifies that the mistake was about the date.

How does the clause maar dit keer zal ik op tijd zijn work grammatically?

It’s a straightforward future tense construction using zal (the future form of zullen). Dit keer ("this time") serves as an adverbial phrase, and op tijd zijn literally means "be on time." The essential structure is onderwerp (subject) + zal + rest. Here, ik (subject) + zal + op tijd (adverbial phrase) + zijn (infinitive as the main verb).