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Questions & Answers about Dit vak geeft zes studiepunten als je alle opdrachten haalt.
Why do we say dit vak and not deze vak?
In Dutch, demonstratives agree with the gender of the noun. Vak is a het-woord (neuter), so you use dit (not deze). You’d only use deze with de-woorden (common gender), e.g. deze docent.
What does geeft mean here, and why not krijgt?
Geeft is the 3rd-person singular present of geven (to give). The course “gives” you credits. If you said krijgt, it would mean the course “receives” credits, which doesn’t make sense. A student, however, “krijgt zes studiepunten.”
What are studiepunten exactly?
Studiepunten are academic credits (ECTS). One studiepunt equals one credit. So zes studiepunten means six credits you earn for that course.
Why does zes come before studiepunten without any article?
In Dutch, cardinal numbers normally precede the noun directly, without an article or plural marker: drie boeken, tien euro. So you say zes studiepunten, not de zes studiepunten.
What does halen in haalt mean here? Could you use another verb?
Here halen means “to pass” or “to obtain” (successfully complete). You could also say slagen voor de opdrachten, but opdrachten halen is very common. Inleveren only means “submit,” not necessarily “pass.”
Why is haalt placed at the end of the clause?
Because the clause als je alle opdrachten haalt is subordinate (introduced by als, “if”). In Dutch subordinate clauses, the finite verb goes to the very end.
Does als mean “if” or “when” here?
Here als means “if”/“provided that.” Dutch uses als for both “if” and “when” in conditional/time clauses; context tells you which. For a pure time-when meaning you might also use wanneer.
Why is there no comma before als? Wouldn’t English put one?
In Dutch you generally omit the comma when a subordinate clause follows the main clause. So Hoofdzin + bijzin doesn’t need a comma:
Dit vak geeft zes studiepunten als je alle opdrachten haalt.
Can you swap the order of clauses?
Yes. If you start with the subordinate clause, you add a comma and adjust the main clause to V2 word order:
Als je alle opdrachten haalt, geeft dit vak zes studiepunten.