Wij controleren het verhaal samen na het lezen.

We check the story together after reading.

Breakdown of Wij controleren het verhaal samen na het lezen.

• wij: we
• lezen: to read
• samen: together
• het verhaal: the story
• na: after
• controleren: to check

Questions & Answers about Wij controleren het verhaal samen na het lezen.

Why is samen placed before na het lezen?

In Dutch, adverbs and phrases can often be placed in flexible positions, but here samen (together) is placed before na het lezen (after reading) to emphasize that the act of checking is done together before focusing on the time aspect (after reading). Both word orders (samen na het lezen or na het lezen samen) can be understood, but the given sentence sounds more natural in everyday speech.

What does controleren usually mean?

The verb controleren in Dutch generally means "to check," "to verify," or "to review." In this context, it implies looking over het verhaal to make sure it is correct or complete.

Is het verhaal always the correct way to say "the story"?

Yes, Dutch uses the neuter article het with verhaal. You would say het verhaal for "the story" and een verhaal for "a story." This is simply part of Dutch noun genders and must be memorized.

Why does the sentence start with Wij and not We?

Dutch has two forms for the first-person plural pronoun: wij (stressed form) and we (unstressed form). Wij is used here likely to emphasize "we" as the subject. Dutch speakers can choose either form depending on context or emphasis.

How does the structure compare to English word order?

Although it looks somewhat similar to English ("We check the story together after reading"), Dutch tends to place time expressions like na het lezen later in the sentence. Because na het lezen is a prepositional phrase, you’ll usually see it placed after the direct object and adverbs, as in this sentence.