Questions & Answers about Hij schildert het huis blauw.
What is the grammatical function of blauw in the sentence Hij schildert het huis blauw?
Blauw functions as a predicative adjective (or resultative complement). It describes the state into which het huis is transformed as a result of the painting. Unlike attributive adjectives—which appear before a noun and usually agree in form—the predicative adjective comes after the object to indicate a resultant condition.
Why does blauw appear after het huis rather than before it as an attributive adjective?
In Dutch, when an adjective is used to express the result or outcome of an action, it is placed after the object it modifies. If you were describing an inherent quality, you would use an attributive position with inflection (e.g., het blauwe huis). In this sentence, placing blauw after het huis communicates that the house is being painted and ends up blue.
What tense is the verb schildert, and how can you tell?
The verb schildert is in the present tense and is conjugated for the third person singular form of the verb schilderen (to paint). The ending -t is typical for Dutch verbs when the subject is hij (he).
How does the word order in Hij schildert het huis blauw compare to typical English sentence structure?