Breakdown of Met een verrekijker bekijken we vogels die diep in het bos zitten.
wij
we
in
in
die
that
met
with
een
a, an
zitten
to sit
de vogel
the bird
het bos
the forest
de verrekijker
the binoculars
bekijken
to observe
diep
deep
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Questions & Answers about Met een verrekijker bekijken we vogels die diep in het bos zitten.
Why is the prepositional phrase Met een verrekijker placed at the very beginning of the sentence?
Dutch main clauses follow the “V2” (verb-second) rule: whatever you put in first position (the topic or focus) is followed by the finite verb in second place, then the subject. By fronting Met een verrekijker, you emphasize how you’re looking, and the verb bekijken still appears in second position, right before the subject we.
Why does the word order read bekijken we vogels instead of we bekijken vogels?
Because once Met een verrekijker occupies the first slot, the finite verb bekijken must come right after it (second slot), pushing the subject we to third position. If you started with the subject, you’d say We bekijken vogels met een verrekijker, but that shifts the emphasis.
What’s the difference between bekijken and kijken naar?
- bekijken is a transitive verb meaning “to look at” or “to examine.” You can directly attach an object: bekijken vogels.
- kijken by itself is intransitive (“to look”), so you need a preposition: kijken naar vogels (“to look at birds”).
Using bekijken often implies a more deliberate or careful look, especially with tools.
Why are there no commas around the clause die diep in het bos zitten?
In Dutch, restrictive relative clauses (those that define exactly which birds you mean) are not set off by commas. The clause die diep in het bos zitten tightly identifies the subset of birds you’re examining, so Dutch grammar omits commas.
Why is the relative pronoun die used instead of dat?
In Dutch, die is the relative pronoun for both plural antecedents and for singular common-gender nouns. Since vogels is plural, you always use die. Dat would be used only for singular neuter nouns (het-words).
Why is there no article before the plural noun vogels?
Dutch does not use an indefinite article in plural constructions. In English you can say “some birds,” but in Dutch you just pluralize the noun: vogels. If you wanted to be specific you’d use the definite article: de vogels.
Why does the sentence use zitten in diep in het bos zitten instead of zijn?
Dutch often uses zitten (literally “to sit”) to describe location or state, especially for animals and people that are situated somewhere. In het bos zitten conveys that the birds are “located” or “deep in the forest,” whereas zijn would simply mean “to be.”
In diep in het bos zitten, is diep an adjective or an adverb?
Here diep functions adverbially, modifying the prepositional phrase in het bos. It tells you how far into the forest the birds are. You could paraphrase as “far inside the forest.”