Breakdown of De docent legt de nieuwe woorden duidelijk uit.
nieuw
new
het woord
the word
uitleggen
to explain
duidelijk
clearly
de docent
the teacher
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Questions & Answers about De docent legt de nieuwe woorden duidelijk uit.
Why is uitleggen split into legt … uit in this sentence?
uitleggen is a separable verb. In a main clause the prefix uit detaches and moves to the end, while legt is the conjugated finite verb.
Why does nieuw have an –e ending in de nieuwe woorden?
After a definite article (de or het), adjectives take the weak inflection and add –e, regardless of singular/plural or gender.
Why is duidelijk not inflected as duidelijke?
Here duidelijk is an adverb modifying the verb, not an adjective describing a noun. Adverbs in Dutch do not take adjective endings.
Could I move duidelijk to a different position in the sentence?
Yes. In Dutch main clauses adverbs in the mid-field can appear before the object:
De docent legt duidelijk de nieuwe woorden uit.
However, the separable prefix uit must still remain at the very end of the clause.
Why are there two occurrences of de in this sentence?
de docent uses de because docent is a common-gender noun. de nieuwe woorden uses de because most plurals in Dutch take de rather than het.
How do I recognize that woorden is plural?
The singular is woord (with article het). The plural adds –en, giving woorden. Plurals almost always use de.
What is the nuance between using docent and leraar?
Both mean teacher. docent often refers to instructors at secondary schools or universities, while leraar is more general (especially in primary or informal contexts).