De verf wordt in die winkel bezorgd, zodat we het niet zelf hoeven te halen.

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Breakdown of De verf wordt in die winkel bezorgd, zodat we het niet zelf hoeven te halen.

• wij: we
• die: that
• het: it
• de winkel: the store
• zodat: so that
• de verf: the paint
• bezorgen: to deliver
• in: to
• zelf: ourselves
• halen: to pick up

Questions & Answers about De verf wordt in die winkel bezorgd, zodat we het niet zelf hoeven te halen.

What does the verb bezorgd mean in this sentence?

Bezorgd is the past participle of bezorgen, which means “delivered.” In this sentence, it tells us that the paint is being delivered to a particular location.

Why is the sentence written in the passive voice as “De verf wordt bezorgd”?

The passive construction shifts the focus from who is doing the delivering to the fact that the delivery happens. This is common in Dutch when the agent is either unknown, unimportant, or when the emphasis is on the result of the action.

What is the function of zodat in this sentence, and how does it affect the meaning?

Zodat means “so that” and introduces a subordinate clause that explains the purpose or result of the action in the main clause. Here, it indicates that the paint is delivered to the store so that we don’t have to pick it up ourselves.

How does Dutch word order in the subordinate clause affect the placement of the modal hoeven te halen?

In Dutch subordinate clauses—especially those introduced by words like zodat—the finite verb (or the modal verb) is pushed toward the end of the clause. Thus, in “zodat we het niet zelf hoeven te halen,” the verb cluster “hoeven te halen” appears at the end, which is a standard feature of Dutch subordinate clause word order.

Why is “in die winkel” used rather than an alternative like “naar die winkel”?

The preposition in is used with bezorgen to stress that the item is delivered into the interior of the location (in this case, the store), making it immediately available there. Although in some contexts one might expect “naar” to indicate direction, with deliveries to a specific venue the use of “in” is the more natural choice in Dutch.

I noticed that the pronoun het is used to refer back to de verf. Shouldn’t a common gender noun like de verf use hem instead?

Traditionally, since verf is a common gender (de-word), the pronoun should indeed be hem when referring to it. However, in informal speech or in certain dialects, speakers sometimes use het interchangeably even for de-words. When writing formally, it’s advisable to use hem to adhere to the standard grammatical rules.