Breakdown of Hij neemt het medicijn om beter te worden.
hij
he
om
for
beter
better
nemen
to take
worden
to get
het medicijn
the medicine
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Questions & Answers about Hij neemt het medicijn om beter te worden.
What is the translation of the sentence "Hij neemt het medicijn om beter te worden"?
It translates to "He takes the medicine to get better." The sentence clearly indicates an action (taking the medicine) and its purpose (to get better).
What role does om play in the phrase om beter te worden?
Om is used to introduce a purpose clause in Dutch. It functions similarly to the English "in order to" or simply "to," showing the reason behind taking the medicine.
Why is the structure "om beter te worden" used instead of leaving out te?
In Dutch, when forming an infinitive clause to express purpose, the standard construction is om + [adjective] + te + [infinitive verb]. Here, te worden (meaning "to become/get") is necessary; omitting te would create an incorrect structure.
Why is the article het used before medicijn?
In Dutch, nouns are gendered. The noun medicijn is neuter, and neuter nouns take the article het. Hence, it is correctly written as het medicijn.
What is the function of neemt in this sentence?
Neemt is the third-person singular form of the verb nemen, which means "to take." It serves as the main verb in the sentence, indicating the action performed by the subject (hij).
How does the word order in this Dutch sentence compare to that in English?
The Dutch sentence follows a similar SVO (subject–verb–object) word order like English: hij (subject), neemt (verb), het medicijn (object). The purpose clause (om beter te worden) is added at the end, which is a common construction in Dutch to express the goal or reason behind an action.
What is the grammatical role of beter in the phrase om beter te worden?
Beter functions as a predicate adjective in this infinitive phrase. When combined with te worden ("to become/get"), it describes the state that is to be achieved—namely, becoming better.