Wij betalen het bedrag bij de kassa.

We pay the amount at the checkout.

Breakdown of Wij betalen het bedrag bij de kassa.

• wij: we
• betalen: to pay
• bij: at
• het bedrag: the amount
• de kassa: the checkout

Questions & Answers about Wij betalen het bedrag bij de kassa.

What is the significance of the pronoun Wij in this sentence?

Wij is the subject pronoun meaning we. While Dutch speakers can use both wij and the less emphatic we, using wij often adds emphasis or is preferred in formal contexts.

How is the verb betalen conjugated when used with wij?

With wij (we), the verb remains in its base form, so betalen does not get an extra ending. Unlike the third person singular where you’d say hij betaalt, for wij you simply say wij betalen.

Why does the noun bedrag take the article het instead of de?

In Dutch, every noun has a specific grammatical gender. The noun bedrag is neuter, so it takes the definite article het rather than de, which is used for common gender nouns.

What role does the phrase bij de kassa play in the sentence?

Bij de kassa is a prepositional phrase that indicates the location where the action takes place—in this case, at the cash register. The preposition bij is used to mean at or near in many location-related contexts.

How does the word order in this Dutch sentence compare to English word order?

The sentence Wij betalen het bedrag bij de kassa follows a straightforward structure similar to English: subject (Wij), verb (betalen), direct object (het bedrag), and an adverbial phrase of place (bij de kassa). This similarity in basic word order helps when translating simple sentences between the two languages.