Word
Twee studenten zijn afwezig vanwege ziekte.
Meaning
Two students are absent due to illness.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Lesson
Breakdown of Twee studenten zijn afwezig vanwege ziekte.
zijn
to be
de student
the student
twee
two
vanwege
because of
Questions & Answers about Twee studenten zijn afwezig vanwege ziekte.
Why is there no article before the plural noun, as in twee studenten instead of something like “the two students”?
Dutch does not use an article with an indefinite plural. When you say a number (like twee), you just use the bare plural: twee studenten. If you mean specific, known students, you add the definite article: de twee studenten = the two students (a particular pair you and the listener know about).
Why is the verb zijn plural here and not is?
Because the subject twee studenten is plural. Present-tense forms of zijn:
- ik ben
- jij/je bent
- hij/zij/het is
- wij/jullie/zij zijn So with a plural subject (we/you all/they, or any plural noun), you use zijn.
What part of speech is afwezig here, and why doesn’t it get an -e ending?
Afwezig is an adjective used predicatively (after the verb, describing the subject). Predicative adjectives in Dutch do not take the -e ending: Zij zijn afwezig. When used attributively (before a noun), it takes -e: de afwezige studenten = the absent students.
Can the phrase vanwege ziekte go somewhere else in the sentence?