Breakdown of Men gebruikt een stil toetsenbord uit voorzichtigheid, zodat niemand gestoord wordt.
zodat
so that
een
a, an
gebruiken
to use
uit
out of
stil
quiet
niemand
no one
men
one
het toetsenbord
the keyboard
de voorzichtigheid
the caution
gestoord worden
to be disturbed
Elon.io is an online learning platform
We have an entire course teaching Dutch grammar and vocabulary.
Questions & Answers about Men gebruikt een stil toetsenbord uit voorzichtigheid, zodat niemand gestoord wordt.
What does men mean in this sentence and how is it used?
Men is an impersonal pronoun in Dutch, equivalent to English “one” or the generic “people.” It’s used when you want to make a general statement without referring to a specific person. You could also say je (you) or mensen (people), but men is more formal and neutral.
Why is it stil toetsenbord and not stilletjes toetsenbord?
Stil is an adjective modifying the noun toetsenbord (“keyboard”), so you use the adjective form stil. Stilletjes is an adverb (“quietly”), which you’d use to describe a verb, not a noun. If you wanted to say “to press the keys quietly,” you’d use stilletjes: Men typt stilletjes.
What does uit voorzichtigheid mean and why is uit used here?
Uit voorzichtigheid literally means “out of caution,” i.e. “as a precaution.” In Dutch, uit + a noun often expresses a motive or cause:
- Hij handelt uit liefde. (“He acts out of love.”)
- Ze handelde uit nieuwsgierigheid. (“She acted out of curiosity.”)
Why is the verb wordt at the end of the clause in zodat niemand gestoord wordt?
Because zodat is a subordinating conjunction (a “subordinate clause” marker) in Dutch. When you use a subordinating conjunction like dat, omdat, or zodat, the finite verb moves to the very end of that clause.
Why is the passive gestoord wordt used here instead of an active construction?
The passive focuses on the action happening to “nobody” (niemand)—“nobody gets disturbed.” In English we might say “so that nobody is disturbed.” You could make it active in Dutch (zodat men niemand stoort), but that shifts the focus to “people disturbing someone,” whereas the passive highlights the result for “nobody.”
Can I use omdat instead of zodat here?
No. Omdat means “because” (gives a reason), while zodat means “so that” (expresses purpose or intended result). If you said Men gebruikt een stil toetsenbord omdat niemand gestoord wordt, it would mean “People use a quiet keyboard because nobody is disturbed,” which doesn’t make logical sense as a cause‐and‐effect statement.
Could I start the sentence with Uit voorzichtigheid instead of Men gebruikt?
Yes, you can front the adverbial phrase. Because of the Dutch V2 (verb-second) rule, the finite verb then comes right after the fronted element:
Uit voorzichtigheid gebruikt men een stil toetsenbord, zodat niemand gestoord wordt.