Breakdown of Kun je dit plan lezen en me vertellen wat je ermee wilt doen?
jij
you
lezen
to read
en
and
met
with
het
it
willen
to want
het plan
the plan
kunnen
can
mij
me
dit
this
doen
to do
wat
what
vertellen
to tell
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Questions & Answers about Kun je dit plan lezen en me vertellen wat je ermee wilt doen?
Why does this sentence start with Kun je instead of Je kunt?
It’s a yes/no question: Dutch uses inversion. The finite verb goes first, then the subject. When je follows the verb, the –t is dropped in a verb-subject inversion (so you say Kun je, not Kunt je). If the subject came first, you would say Je kunt.
Why is it wilt doen in the second clause, not wil doen?
That clause is subordinate (introduced by wat). In subordinate clauses the verb goes to the end in its full conjugated form: the subject (je) comes before wilt, so you keep the –t. By contrast, in a direct question you’d say Wat wil je ermee doen? dropping the –t because of inversion.
What is ermee and why is it one word?
E rmee is a pronominal adverb combining er (referring to dit plan) + mee (the preposition met). It replaces met dit plan. Dutch allows you to write these two parts as one word: ermee.
Why is it me vertellen and not mij vertellen?
Me is the unstressed (weak) object form of mij. In everyday Dutch, the clitic me is more common, especially in spoken language. Mij vertellen is also correct but sounds more formal or emphatic.
Why does the verb in the subordinate clause go to the very end?
Subordinate clauses in Dutch follow Subject-Object-Verb order. Everything introduced by words like en, omdat, wat, etc., pushes the conjugated verb to the final position. Here wat je ermee wilt doen follows that rule.
Could you leave out me and say Kun je dit plan lezen en vertellen wat je ermee wilt doen?
Grammatically you can omit me, but then it’s unclear who should be told. The verb vertellen needs an indirect object. Without me, the listener won’t know for whom the information is intended.
What does wat introduce in this sentence?
Wat is a relative/interrogative pronoun meaning “what.” It introduces the subordinate clause wat je ermee wilt doen (“what you want to do with it”).
What’s the difference between je and jij here?
Je and jij both mean “you,” but jij is stressed or emphatic. In everyday questions like Kun je… you always use the unstressed je. Using jij would add emphasis (e.g., “Jij gaat dit doen, niet iemand anders”), which isn’t needed here.