Breakdown of Elke ochtend geef ik die plant water met een kleine gieter.
ik
I
klein
small
die
that
met
with
elke
every
een
a, an
de ochtend
the morning
de plant
the plant
water geven
to water
de gieter
the watering can
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Questions & Answers about Elke ochtend geef ik die plant water met een kleine gieter.
Why does the verb geef come before the subject ik in Elke ochtend geef ik…?
Dutch main clauses follow the “verb-second” (V2) rule. When you start a sentence with an adverbial phrase like Elke ochtend, the finite verb must occupy the second position. That pushes the subject (ik) to third place. If you began with the subject, you’d say Ik geef elke ochtend… and there’d be no inversion.
Could I instead say Ik geef elke ochtend die plant water met een kleine gieter?
Yes. Both word orders are correct.
- Elke ochtend geef ik… emphasizes the time at the front.
- Ik geef elke ochtend… is a neutral subject-first structure.
In both cases the finite verb remains second.
Why is there no article before water? Wouldn’t it be het water?
Here water is an uncountable, mass noun used in a general sense (“give water”). You only use het water when you refer to a specific quantity or instance (“het water in de emmer”).
What’s the difference between die plant and simply saying de plant?
Die plant uses the demonstrative die (“that plant”), pointing to a specific one. De plant is just the indefinite or definite noun (“the plant”) without the extra emphasis on which plant you mean.
Why is it met een kleine gieter? What role does met play here?
Met introduces the instrument you use to perform the action. So met een kleine gieter means “with a small watering can.” It tells us how you give the plant water.
Why does kleine have an -e ending instead of just klein gieter?
In Dutch, attributive adjectives (adjectives before the noun) take an -e ending when they modify a de-word after an indefinite article (or certain determiners). Since gieter is a de-word and the article is een, the adjective becomes kleine.
Why is it elke ochtend and not elk ochtend?
The determiner elk changes to elke before de-words. Because ochtend is a de-word, it takes the inflected form elke.
Could I say geef ik die plant water met de gieter instead of een kleine gieter?
Yes, if you’re referring to a known or previously mentioned watering can, you’d use de gieter (“the watering can”). Choosing een kleine gieter just indicates any small watering can in an indefinite sense.