Tom merkt al snel de positieve invloed van dagelijks lezen.

Tom quickly notices the positive influence of reading daily.

Breakdown of Tom merkt al snel de positieve invloed van dagelijks lezen.

• Tom: Tom
• lezen: to read
• al: already
• snel: quickly
• dagelijks: daily
• van: of
• merken: to notice
• de invloed: the influence
• positief: positive

Questions & Answers about Tom merkt al snel de positieve invloed van dagelijks lezen.

What does merken mean in this context, and why use merken instead of zien or opmerken?

• merken means “to notice” or “to become aware of,” focusing on perceiving something more gradually or internally.
• zien strictly means “to see” (visual perception).
• opmerken is “to remark” or “to point out,” often implying you say something about it; merken stays on the level of personal awareness.

What is the difference between al snel and just snel?

• snel = “quickly.”
• al snel = “before long” or “fairly soon,” with al adding the nuance of “already” or “surprisingly soon.”

Why is the phrase de positieve invloed using de, and why does positieve get an ‑e ending?

• invloed is a common-gender noun, so its definite article is de.
• When an adjective precedes a definite noun (de + adjective + noun), it takes an -e ending. Hence positief → positieve.

Why is the preposition van used before dagelijks lezen? Could we use op instead?

• van marks the source or origin: de invloed van X = “the influence of X.”
• op is used for “influence on something” (invloed op iets), e.g. de invloed van suiker op de gezondheid. Here, reading is the cause, so van is correct.

Why is there no article before dagelijks lezen? Could we say het dagelijks lezen?

• dagelijks lezen is treated as a general, uncountable activity, so no article is needed.
• You can say het dagelijks lezen to nominalize it more strongly (“the daily reading”), but it’s not required unless you want to stress it as a specific defined activity.

Why is dagelijks placed directly before lezen? Can we move it elsewhere?

• As an adverb of frequency, dagelijks typically precedes the verb it modifies.
• Putting it elsewhere (e.g. lezen dagelijks) sounds marked or poetic; the normal position is right before the verb.

Why is al snel placed between the verb merkt and the object de positieve invloed? Could the sentence be rearranged?

• Dutch main clauses follow the V2 rule: the finite verb (here merkt) is in second position, then adverbials like al snel, then the object.
• You can also move al snel to the end:
“Tom merkt de positieve invloed van dagelijks lezen al snel.”
This is correct but shifts the emphasis.