Breakdown of Zolang het niet regent, blijven we in de tuin lezen.
niet
not
wij
we
lezen
to read
in
in
het
it
de tuin
the garden
blijven
to stay
regenen
to rain
zolang
as long as
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Questions & Answers about Zolang het niet regent, blijven we in de tuin lezen.
What does zolang mean and how is it different from als, wanneer, or totdat?
zolang means “as long as” and indicates a duration during which something continues.
- als can mean “if” or “whenever” (a general condition).
- wanneer means “when” (at a specific moment).
- totdat means “until” and implies the action stops once the event occurs.
So zolang het niet regent = “for the entire time that it’s not raining.”
Why does the verb regent come at the end in zolang het niet regent?
Because zolang is a subordinating conjunction. In Dutch subordinate clauses, the finite verb moves to the end. Hence: subject (het) + negation (niet) + verb (regent).
Why is there an inversion in the main clause: blijven we instead of we blijven?
After a fronted subordinate clause (ending with a comma), the main clause resets and must follow the V2 (verb-second) rule. The finite verb (blijven) comes first, then the subject (we), yielding blijven we in de tuin lezen.
Why is lezen placed at the very end of the sentence?
Because of the verb cluster blijven + infinitive. The finite verb (blijven) occupies the second position, and the non-finite verb (lezen) goes to the clause’s end.
What is the purpose of using blijven + infinitive here instead of just using lezen?
blijven + infinitive expresses a continuous or ongoing action—similar to English “keep reading.” Simply saying lezen we in de tuin is grammatically fine, but blijven lezen stresses that the reading continues as long as the rain holds off.
Why do we have het in het regent? What does it refer to?
het is a dummy (impersonal) subject required by Dutch with weather verbs like regenen. It doesn’t refer to anything concrete, just like English “it” in “It’s raining.”
Can we say op de tuin instead of in de tuin, or replace in de tuin with in onze tuin?
- in de tuin is correct for “in the garden.”
- op de tuin would literally mean “on the garden,” which is wrong.
- You can say in onze tuin (“in our garden”) to specify whose garden it is.
Is it possible to replace zolang with totdat in this sentence?
No. totdat means “until” and expects the event that ends the action (e.g., “totdat het gaat regenen” = “until it starts raining”). zolang is needed for “as long as it’s not raining.”