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Questions & Answers about Tom zet de kast in elkaar.
Why is in not placed directly next to zet in Tom zet de kast in elkaar?
Because in is part of the separable verb in elkaar zetten (“to assemble”). In Dutch main clauses, the verb stem (zet) stays in second position, and separable prefixes or particles (in, elkaar) move to the end of the sentence.
What exactly do in and elkaar mean here?
They don’t carry their usual meanings (“in” = “in”, “elkaar” = “each other”) on their own. Together with zetten, they form the phrasal verb in elkaar zetten, which means “to put something together” or “to assemble.”
How do you conjugate in elkaar zetten in other tenses?
In the present tense for hij/zij/het, it’s zet. In the past you say Tom zette de kast in elkaar. In the perfect tense you use the auxiliary hebben and the past participle gezet: Tom heeft de kast in elkaar gezet.
Why is the direct object de kast and not something with a preposition?
De kast is a direct object (accusative) of zetten in this phrasal sense. You don’t need a preposition because in elkaar zetten already implies “assembling” the object; you simply place it in the object position after the verb.
Why is the article de used before kast, and not het?
Dutch nouns are either common gender (using de) or neuter (using het). Kast is common gender, so it takes the definite article de.
Could you use a different verb instead of in elkaar zetten, like bouwen?
Yes, but there’s a nuance. Bouwen means “to build,” often from raw materials or on a larger scale. In elkaar zetten implies assembling parts (like flat-pack furniture). So while Tom bouwt de kast could mean he’s constructing it from scratch, Tom zet de kast in elkaar suggests he’s putting pre-made pieces together.
What happens to word order if this sentence is turned into a question?
For a yes/no question you invert subject and verb: Zet Tom de kast in elkaar? Here zet moves to first position, Tom becomes second, and the particles in elkaar stay at the end.