Breakdown of Wij experimenteren met kruiden.
wij
we
met
with
experimenteren
to experiment
het kruid
the herb
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Questions & Answers about Wij experimenteren met kruiden.
What does the Dutch word wij mean in this sentence?
It translates to we in English and serves as the subject of the sentence.
What is the role and meaning of the verb experimenteren in this context?
Experimenteren means “to experiment.” In this sentence, it acts as the main verb and is conjugated in the first-person plural present form. Note that in Dutch the form for wij often matches the base (infinitive) form of the verb.
Why is the preposition met used, and how does it function in the sentence?
The preposition met translates to “with” in English. It is used here to link the verb experimenteren to its object, indicating the means or the subject matter of the experimentation.
What does kruiden mean, and why is it presented in its plural form?
Kruiden means “herbs.” The plural form is used because the sentence implies experimenting with various herbs rather than referring to a single herb.
Does the sentence follow typical Dutch word order, and if so, what is that order?
Yes, it does. The sentence follows the standard Dutch word order of Subject (Wij) - Verb (experimenteren) - Prepositional Phrase (met kruiden), which is very similar to the common English structure of subject-verb-prepositional complement.
Why doesn’t the verb experimenteren change its form for the subject wij?
In Dutch, many regular verbs maintain the same form in the first-person plural as in their infinitive form. Changes, such as adding a -t, typically occur only in the second and third person singular forms. Hence, with wij the verb remains experimenteren.