Breakdown of In dit gebied merken we vaak dat het klimaat extreem is.
zijn
to be
wij
we
in
in
dat
that
dit
this
vaak
often
merken
to notice
het klimaat
the climate
het gebied
the area
extreem
extreme
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Questions & Answers about In dit gebied merken we vaak dat het klimaat extreem is.
What does merken mean in this context and how is it used?
Here merken means “to notice” or “to observe.” It’s a transitive verb that often takes dat to introduce what is being noticed. Literally, “we notice that the climate is extreme.”
Why is in dit gebied placed at the beginning of the sentence?
Dutch main clauses often start with an adverbial phrase (here a location) to set the scene, then follow the verb-second rule. Putting in dit gebied first emphasizes the location and still keeps merken in the second slot.
Why do we need dat before “het klimaat extreem is”?
Dutch uses dat to introduce subordinate clauses after verbs like merken, vinden, zien or denken. It works like the English “that.” Without dat, the link between the noticing-verb and the clause would break, making the sentence ungrammatical.
Why is the verb is at the end of the subordinate clause?
In Dutch subordinate clauses (introduced by dat), the finite verb moves to the very end. So you say dat het klimaat extreem is, not dat het klimaat is extreem.
Why is it het klimaat and not de klimaat?
Dutch nouns are either common gender (take de) or neuter gender (take het). Klimaat is a neuter noun, so it uses het.
Why is the adjective extreem not inflected with an -e (i.e. not extreme)?
When an adjective follows a linking verb like is (predicative position), it stays in its base form, so no -e is added. If the adjective were attributive (before a noun), you would inflect it: het extreme klimaat.
Why is vaak placed after merken we, and could we move it?
In Dutch main clauses, adverbs of frequency like vaak generally follow the finite verb. You could say We merken vaak in dit gebied dat…, but moving vaak changes the rhythm and emphasis—placing it right after the verb highlights how frequently the observation happens.
Could we omit dat, like in English “We notice the climate is extreme”?
No. Dutch grammar requires dat to introduce a subordinate clause after perception or cognition verbs. Omitting dat would sound incorrect or at best very colloquial.
Why do we say in dit gebied and not op dit gebied?
Gebied (area/region) takes in when you refer to something happening inside a region. Op is used with surfaces, islands or specific occasions (e.g., op Texel, op het dak). So for a general area, in dit gebied is correct.