Deze saus heeft te weinig peper, dus hij smaakt een beetje flauw.

This sauce has too little pepper, so it tastes a bit bland.

Breakdown of Deze saus heeft te weinig peper, dus hij smaakt een beetje flauw.

• hebben: to have
• hij: he
• te: too
• deze: this
• dus: so
• weinig: little
• de saus: the sauce
• de peper: the pepper
• het beetje: the bit
• flauw: bland

Questions & Answers about Deze saus heeft te weinig peper, dus hij smaakt een beetje flauw.

What does te weinig mean in this sentence, and how is it used?

Te weinig translates to "too little" or "not enough" in English. In the sentence, it qualifies peper to indicate that the sauce contains an insufficient amount of pepper.

Why is the pronoun hij used to refer to deze saus, and how does this differ from English usage?

In Dutch, every noun has a grammatical gender. The noun saus is masculine, so the masculine pronoun hij is used to refer back to it. In English, we typically use it for inanimate objects regardless of gender.

What role does the conjunction dus play in the sentence?

Dus functions as a causal connector similar to "so" or "therefore" in English. It links the cause (the sauce having too little pepper) with the effect (resulting in a bland taste).

How does the word flauw describe the taste of the sauce?

Flauw means "bland" or "lacking in flavor." It conveys that the sauce tastes somewhat underwhelming, likely due to the insufficient seasoning with pepper.

What does the phrase een beetje add to the sentence?

Een beetje means "a little" or "a bit." It serves to moderate the description by indicating that the bland taste is only slight rather than overwhelming.