Deze stoel heeft een zacht kussen waar ik graag op zit.

This chair has a soft cushion that I like to sit on.

Breakdown of Deze stoel heeft een zacht kussen waar ik graag op zit.

• ik: I
• hebben: to have
• de stoel: the chair
• deze: this
• zitten: to sit
• op: on
• zacht: soft
• het kussen: the cushion
• graag: like

Questions & Answers about Deze stoel heeft een zacht kussen waar ik graag op zit.

What is the function of the relative pronoun waar in this sentence?

In the sentence, waar acts as a relative pronoun meaning “on which.” It connects the noun phrase “een zacht kussen” with the relative clause “ik graag op zit.” Instead of using a pronoun like “dat” (which wouldn’t naturally include the preposition), waar efficiently combines the relative idea with the preposition op.

Why is the adjective written as zacht (without an -e) in “een zacht kussen” instead of “een zachte kussen”?

This is due to Dutch adjective agreement rules. Since kussen is a neuter noun (a het-word) and is used with the indefinite article een, the adjective remains in its base form (zacht). If the noun were common gender (a de-word) or if the article were definite, the adjective would typically take an -e ending (e.g., de zachte stoel).

What role does the preposition op play, and why is it placed at the end of the relative clause?

The preposition op is part of the fixed expression zitten op (meaning “to sit on”). In the relative clause, its role is to indicate the object upon which the speaker sits. Dutch grammar often moves separable elements like this to the end of a subordinate clause, which is why you see op at the very end in “waar ik graag op zit.”

How is the word order in the relative clause “waar ik graag op zit” determined?

The clause follows the typical Dutch subordinate clause structure. It begins with the relative pronoun waar, then the subject ik, followed by the adverb graag, and finally the preposition op associated with the verb zitten appears at the end. This ordering reflects the rules for separable verb constructions in subordinate clauses, where the extra element (in this case, the preposition) is shifted to the clause’s end.

Is it also acceptable to combine waar and op into waarop, as in “Deze stoel heeft een zacht kussen, waarop ik graag zit”?

Yes, combining waar and op to form waarop is perfectly acceptable and commonly used in Dutch. Both “waar ik graag op zit” and “waarop ik graag zit” mean the same thing (“on which I like to sit”), and the choice between them usually depends on stylistic preference or regional usage.