Soms raken wij afgeleid tijdens het lezen in de tuin.

Sometimes we get distracted while reading in the garden.

Breakdown of Soms raken wij afgeleid tijdens het lezen in de tuin.

• wij: we
• in: in
• de tuin: the garden
• tijdens: during
• soms: sometimes
• het lezen: the reading
• afgeleid raken: to get distracted

Questions & Answers about Soms raken wij afgeleid tijdens het lezen in de tuin.

Why do you say raken afgeleid instead of just zijn afgeleid?

In Dutch, raken often means to get / to become in the sense of entering a state.

• raken afgeleid = to get distracted / to become distracted
• zijn afgeleid = to be distracted (describing the state, not how you got there)

So:

• Soms raken wij afgeleid = Sometimes we get (become) distracted.
• Wij zijn afgeleid = We are distracted (they are already distracted now).

In your sentence, the focus is on the process of becoming distracted while reading, so raken fits better than zijn.

What is the difference between raken afgeleid and worden afgeleid?

Both can be translated as to become distracted, but there is a nuance:

• raken afgeleid

  • Very common, quite neutral.
  • Focuses on ending up in the state of being distracted.
  • Often used for something that just happens to you.

• worden afgeleid

  • Grammatically feels a bit more like a passive: to be distracted (by something).
  • More natural when you add an explicit cause:
    
    • Wij worden afgeleid door het lawaai.
      We are being distracted by the noise.

In your sentence, raken afgeleid is the idiomatic, everyday choice.
Soms worden wij afgeleid tijdens het lezen in de tuin is understandable but sounds a bit heavier and more passive.

Why is the word order Soms raken wij afgeleid and not Soms wij raken afgeleid?

Dutch main clauses follow the verb-second rule:

• The finite verb (here raken) must be in second position in the sentence.
• Soms (an adverb) is in first position.
• That forces raken into second position.
• The subject wij comes after the finite verb.

So the structure is:

1. Soms (position 1)
2. raken (finite verb – position 2)
3. wij (subject)
4. afgeleid (rest of the predicate)

Soms wij raken afgeleid breaks the verb-second rule, so it is ungrammatical.

What is the difference between wij and we here? Could you say Soms raken we afgeleid?

Yes, you can absolutely say:

• Soms raken we afgeleid tijdens het lezen in de tuin.

The difference:

• wij

  • Stressed form of we.
  • Used when you want to emphasize we (as opposed to someone else):
    
    • Soms raken wij afgeleid, maar zij nooit.

• we

  • Unstressed, more neutral and more common in everyday speech.

In your original sentence, wij is not strictly required; we would sound more natural in casual speech.

What exactly is afgeleid here? Is it an adjective or a participle?

Afgeleid is originally the past participle of the verb afleiden (to distract; also: to derive).

In the combination afgeleid raken, the participle behaves like a predicative adjective, just like:

• blij worden – to become happy
• boos worden – to become angry
• afgeleid raken – to become distracted

So grammatically it comes from a verb, but functionally in this sentence it describes the state that wij end up in.

What is the base verb behind afgeleid, and is it separable?

The base verb is afleiden.

• Infinitive: afleiden
• Past participle: afgeleid
• Present: ik leid af, jij leidt af, hij leidt af, etc.

Afleiden is a separable verb:

• Main-clause example:
  
  • Het lawaai leidt mij af.
    The noise distracts me.
• Subordinate clause:
  
  • … dat het lawaai mij afleidt.

In afgeleid raken, the separable part af is already attached in the participle afgeleid.

Why is it tijdens het lezen and not just tijdens lezen?

In Dutch, when you use an infinitive as a noun (like reading → lezen), you normally add the neuter article het:

• het lezen – the reading
• het koken – the cooking
• het rijden – the driving

So:

• tijdens het lezen is the natural, grammatical phrase.
• tijdens lezen sounds incomplete or incorrect to native speakers.

You might also see:

• tijdens het lezen van een boek – while reading a book
• tijdens het autorijden – while driving a car

Could you also say terwijl we in de tuin lezen instead of tijdens het lezen in de tuin? What is the difference?

Yes, you can rephrase the idea:

• Soms raken we afgeleid terwijl we in de tuin lezen.

Differences:

• tijdens het lezen in de tuin

  • tijdens is a preposition followed by a noun phrase (het lezen).
  • More compact and somewhat more formal/neutral.
  • Focuses on the time period: during the reading in the garden.

• terwijl we in de tuin lezen

  • terwijl is a subordinating conjunction introducing a clause.
  • Sounds more like spoken language and more dynamic: while we are reading in the garden.

Both are correct; the choice is mostly about style and rhythm.

Why is it tijdens and not gedurende or something else?

You could technically use gedurende, but it is:

• More formal and written
• Less common in everyday speech

Compare:

• Soms raken wij afgeleid tijdens het lezen in de tuin.
  – Natural, everyday Dutch.
• Soms raken wij afgeleid gedurende het lezen in de tuin.
  – Grammatically correct but sounds more formal/official.

Tijdens is the default preposition for during in normal conversation.

Can the phrase in de tuin move to a different place in the sentence?

Yes, Dutch word order is flexible with these adverbial phrases. All of these are grammatical, with small differences in emphasis:

1. Soms raken wij afgeleid tijdens het lezen in de tuin.
   – Neutral; tijdens het lezen and in de tuin are grouped.

2. Soms raken wij tijdens het lezen in de tuin afgeleid.
   – Also fine; slightly more emphasis on the time/place of becoming distracted.

3. Soms raken wij in de tuin afgeleid tijdens het lezen.
   – Puts in de tuin closer to raken wij afgeleid, slightly emphasizing the location.

Usual preference is to keep the time and place expressions toward the end, and to avoid splitting the verb + complement too much. Your original version is very natural.

Why is it tijdens het lezen in de tuin and not tijdens het in de tuin lezen?

Tijdens het in de tuin lezen is not impossible, but it sounds awkward and heavy, because:

• You are putting a prepositional phrase (in de tuin) inside the noun-like infinitive het lezen.
• Dutch prefers to keep the infinitive noun phrase simple when used like this.

More natural options:

• tijdens het lezen in de tuin – keeps het lezen together, adds in de tuin after it.
• Or switch to a full clause with terwijl:
  
  • terwijl we in de tuin lezen

So tijdens het lezen in de tuin is the smoothest version.

Is there any reflexive form like ons afleiden that would fit here?

Yes, Dutch also has a reflexive structure:

• zich laten afleiden – to let oneself be distracted

Example:

• Soms laten wij ons afleiden tijdens het lezen in de tuin.
  Sometimes we let ourselves get distracted while reading in the garden.

Nuance:

• raken afgeleid
  
  • More neutral: distraction just happens.
• ons laten afleiden
  
  • Suggests some responsibility: we allow ourselves to be distracted.

Your original sentence with raken afgeleid does not contain a reflexive pronoun and is perfectly natural.

How would you say this in the past tense in Dutch?

Two common ways, both correct:

1. Simple past:

   • Soms raakten wij afgeleid tijdens het lezen in de tuin.
     Sometimes we got distracted while reading in the garden.

2. Present perfect:

   • Soms zijn wij tijdens het lezen in de tuin afgeleid geraakt.
     Literally: Sometimes we have become distracted during the reading in the garden.

In everyday Dutch, the simple past (raakten wij afgeleid) will usually feel lighter and more natural here.