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24
Word
order
170
Erik zegt tegen Sanne dat de kapotte mixer niet meer gerepareerd kan
worden.
Erik tells Sanne that the broken mixer cannot be fixed anymore.
This verb group consists of three verbs: the modal verb kunnen, the passive
auxiliary verb worden and the main verb repareren. In this verb group, the
past participle of the main verb can be either at the beginning or the end:
Erik zegt tegen Sanne dat de kapotte mixer niet meer kan worden
gerepareerd.
Erik tells Sanne that the broken mixer cannot be fixed anymore.
The word order in a larger verb group in the conditional is the same as
above. The past participle of the main verb can be at the beginning or at
the end.
Erik zegt tegen Sanne dat hij de mixer graag zelf gerepareerd zou hebben.
Erik tells Sanne that he would have liked to fix the mixer himself.
Alternative: Erik zegt tegen Sanne dat hij de mixer graag zelf zou hebben
gerepareerd.
When a fourth verb is added to the group, such as in the sentences below
which are passive constructions in the past perfect, the word order
remains consistent. The past participle is at the beginning or at the end.
Examples:
Sanne gelooft dat de mixer nog best gerepareerd had kunnen worden.
Sanne believes the mixer could very well have been fixed.
Alternative: Sanne gelooft dat de mixer nog best had kunnen worden
gerepareerd.
Summary: The past participle of the main verb is at the beginning or the
end of the verb group, and within the other verbs, the conjugated verb
comes first, followed by the infinitives of the other verbs. Among those,
modal verb infinitives always come first.
Exercise 24.1
Reverse the order of the two sentences, and begin with the subordinated
sentence.
1 Erik neemt de trein naar Amsterdam, omdat hij niet in het spitsuur wil
komen.