Volgens het tijdschema vertrekken wij morgen vroeg.

According to the schedule we leave early tomorrow.

Breakdown of Volgens het tijdschema vertrekken wij morgen vroeg.

• wij: we
• morgen: tomorrow
• vroeg: early
• vertrekken: to leave
• volgens: according to
• het tijdschema: the timetable

Questions & Answers about Volgens het tijdschema vertrekken wij morgen vroeg.

What does each word in “Volgens het tijdschema vertrekken wij morgen vroeg” literally mean?

Word-by-word:

• volgens = according to
• het = the (neuter singular definite article)
• tijdschema = timetable / schedule (tijd = time, schema = scheme/plan)
• vertrekken = (we) leave / depart (here it’s the present tense, 1st person plural: wij vertrekken = we leave)
• wij = we (stressed/emphatic form)
• morgen = tomorrow
• vroeg = early

A very literal rendering of the Dutch word order is: “According to the schedule leave we tomorrow early.”

Why does the sentence start with “Volgens het tijdschema” and not with “Wij”?

Dutch main clauses follow the verb-second rule: the finite verb (here: vertrekken) must be in second position.

• Whatever comes first (subject, time phrase, place phrase, etc.) takes position 1.
• The conjugated verb comes in position 2.

So:

• Volgens het tijdschema vertrekken wij morgen vroeg.
  
  • Position 1: Volgens het tijdschema (one whole phrase)
  • Position 2: vertrekken (finite verb)
  • Then the rest: wij morgen vroeg

You could also say:

• Wij vertrekken morgen vroeg volgens het tijdschema.

Both are correct. Starting with “Volgens het tijdschema” puts focus on the schedule: “According to the schedule we leave early tomorrow (maybe in contrast to what you thought).”

Is there any difference between “wij” and “we” in Dutch?

Yes:

• wij = stressed/emphatic form of “we”
• we = unstressed/neutral form

In spoken Dutch, we is more common. Wij is used when you want to emphasize we (as opposed to someone else) or when you contrast subjects:

• Wij vertrekken morgen vroeg, niet zij.
  “We leave early tomorrow, not them.”

In your sentence, both work:

• Volgens het tijdschema vertrekken wij morgen vroeg. (slightly more emphasis on we)
• Volgens het tijdschema vertrekken we morgen vroeg. (more neutral, very natural in speech)

Can I change the word order? For example, can I say “Wij vertrekken morgen vroeg volgens het tijdschema”?

Yes. Some common variants, all grammatical:

1. Volgens het tijdschema vertrekken wij morgen vroeg.
   – Emphasis on the schedule.

2. Wij vertrekken morgen vroeg volgens het tijdschema.
   – More neutral; schedule information comes at the end.

3. Morgen vroeg vertrekken wij volgens het tijdschema.
   – Emphasis on tomorrow morning / early tomorrow.

All of these keep the finite verb in second position:

• First element (subject or phrase) → second element is the verb → then the rest.

What would be wrong is something like:

• ✗ Volgens het tijdschema wij vertrekken morgen vroeg. (verb not in second position)

Why is it “het tijdschema” and not “de tijdschema”?

In Dutch, every noun is either “de”-word (common gender) or “het”-word (neuter gender).
Schema is a het-word, so:

• het schema = the scheme
• het tijdschema = the schedule

You simply have to memorize noun genders. A few related examples:

• het programma (the program)
• het systeem (the system)
• het probleem (the problem)

With these, you always use het, not de.

What is the role of “volgens” here, and how else can I use it?

Volgens means “according to” and introduces the source of information or the basis for a statement.

In your sentence:

• Volgens het tijdschema = According to the schedule (the schedule is the source of the information about departure time).

Other examples:

• Volgens mij is dat geen goed idee.
  “According to me / In my opinion that isn’t a good idea.”

• Volgens de krant gaat het morgen regenen.
  “According to the newspaper, it’s going to rain tomorrow.”

Word order: volgens + [noun / pronoun]

Why is it “morgen vroeg” and not something like “vroeg morgen” like in English “early tomorrow”?

Dutch and English order these elements differently.

• English: early tomorrow (adverb early before tomorrow)
• Dutch: morgen vroeg (adverb vroeg after morgen)

So you normally say:

• Ik kom morgen vroeg. = I’ll come early tomorrow.
• We vertrekken morgen vroeg. = We leave early tomorrow.

“Vroeg morgen” would sound strange in this sense; it’s not the normal way to say early tomorrow in Dutch.
Think of “morgen vroeg” as a fixed, very common time expression.

What exactly is the difference between “vertrekken” and just “gaan” or “weggaan”?

All three can relate to leaving, but they’re used differently:

• vertrekken = to depart

  • Often used for planned departures (trains, planes, buses, people following a schedule):
  • De trein vertrekt om 8 uur. – The train leaves at 8.
  • Wij vertrekken morgen vroeg.

• gaan = to go

  • Very general; does not specifically mean “depart” from a place.
  • We gaan morgen naar Amsterdam. – We’re going to Amsterdam tomorrow.

• weggaan = to go away / to leave

  • Focus on leaving a place, but not necessarily according to a timetable.
  • Ik ga nu weg. – I’m leaving now.

In your sentence, vertrekken fits well because it’s explicitly tied to a tijdschema (schedule).

Is “vertrekken” a separable verb? Do I ever split it like some other Dutch verbs?

No, “vertrekken” is not a separable verb. It always stays together.

Compare:

• Separable: opstaan
  
  • Ik sta om 7 uur op.
• Non-separable: vertrekken
  
  • Wij vertrekken morgen vroeg. (you do not say: ✗ wij trekken morgen vroeg ver)

In past participle as well:

• Ik ben om 7 uur opgestaan. (separable)
• Wij zijn om 6 uur vertrokken. (non-separable, ver stays attached)

Why is the verb “vertrekken” after the long phrase “Volgens het tijdschema”? I thought the verb should be the second word.

In Dutch main clauses, the verb must be in second position as a sentence element, not as the second word.

• Volgens het tijdschema counts as one constituent (a prepositional phrase).
• Then the verb vertrekken is the second constituent.

So the pattern is:

1. Constituent 1: Volgens het tijdschema
2. Constituent 2: vertrekken (finite verb)
3. Constituent 3: wij
4. Constituent 4: morgen vroeg

This still respects the verb-second (V2) rule.
If you started with the subject instead, it would be:

• Wij vertrekken volgens het tijdschema morgen vroeg.
  (Wij = first constituent, vertrekken = second)

Could I leave out “het” and say “Volgens tijdschema vertrekken wij morgen vroeg”?

In normal, natural Dutch, no. You need the article:

• ✅ Volgens het tijdschema vertrekken wij morgen vroeg.

“Volgens tijdschema” without het sounds like telegraph style or something you might see in very compact technical notes, but it is not standard everyday language.

Sometimes Dutch does drop articles in certain fixed expressions (e.g. per trein, op school), but “volgens tijdschema” is not one of those standard patterns. Stick with “volgens het tijdschema”.

What does “vroeg” mean exactly here? Can it also be used as an adjective?

In your sentence, vroeg is an adverb meaning “early” (in time):

• Wij vertrekken morgen vroeg.
  “We’re leaving early tomorrow.”

You can also use vroeg as an adjective:

• een vroege vlucht – an early flight
• de vroege ochtend – the early morning

The comparative vroeger means earlier:

• We vertrekken morgen vroeger dan vandaag.
  “We’re leaving earlier tomorrow than today.”

Are there more natural or common ways to say the same idea in Dutch?

Your sentence is correct and natural. Other very natural variants include:

• Volgens het schema vertrekken we morgen vroeg.
  (schema is a bit shorter than tijdschema; still clear.)

• We vertrekken morgen vroeg, volgens het tijdschema.
  (Information about the schedule added at the end, after a comma.)

• We gaan morgen vroeg weg, volgens het tijdschema.
  (More colloquial; uses gaan weg instead of vertrekken.)

All of these would sound normal in everyday Dutch.