Breakdown of De leraar wil dat we zo veel mogelijk Nederlandse boeken lezen.
het boek
the book
wij
we
lezen
to read
dat
that
willen
to want
veel
many
zo
so
de leraar
the teacher
Nederlands
Dutch
mogelijk
possible
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Questions & Answers about De leraar wil dat we zo veel mogelijk Nederlandse boeken lezen.
What does zo veel mogelijk mean, and how should I write it?
zo veel mogelijk literally means “as many as possible.” In standard Dutch it’s usually written as one word—zoveel mogelijk—but you’ll also see the two-word form zo veel mogelijk in less formal contexts. The meaning is the same.
Why is the verb lezen at the end of the clause?
Because Dutch subordinate clauses (introduced by words like dat) follow Subject-Object-Verb (SOV) order. After dat we zo veel mogelijk Nederlandse boeken, the finite verb lezen moves to the very end.
Why do I need dat after wil?
When willen (here wil) is followed by a whole clause (with its own subject and verb), Dutch grammar requires the conjunction dat to link the main clause to the subordinate clause. English often drops “that,” but Dutch keeps it: De leraar wil dat we lezen…
Why is the subject we placed right after dat, and what’s the difference between we and wij?
In a dat-clause, the subject generally comes immediately after dat, so dat we is correct. As for we vs wij: both mean “we,” but we is the unstressed, everyday form, while wij is the stressed form used for emphasis or in very formal writing.
Why does Nederlandse end with -e in Nederlandse boeken?
Dutch attributive adjectives (those before a noun) usually take an -e ending when they modify any plural noun or a singular common-gender noun with a determiner. Here boeken is plural, so Nederlandse boeken.
Why is it de leraar and not het leraar?
Most Dutch nouns for people—especially professions—are common-gender (de-words). Leraar (teacher) is a common-gender noun, so it takes de rather than het.
Why isn’t there a te before lezen?
You only use te with infinitives when they directly complement certain verbs (e.g. probeer te lezen). In wil dat we lezen, lezen is the finite verb of the subordinate clause (not an infinitive after wil), so no te is needed.