omdat
AfrikaansEdit
EtymologyEdit
From Dutch omdat. Equivalent to univerbation of om + dat.
PronunciationEdit
ConjunctionEdit
omdat
Usage notesEdit
- Omdat triggers the use of verb-final word order in the following subordinate clause. This contrasts with want, that uses the word order of positive main clauses.
DutchEdit
EtymologyEdit
Univerbation of om + dat.
PronunciationEdit
ConjunctionEdit
omdat
- because
- De machinist komt niet naar zijn werk, omdat hij ziek is.
- The train driver is not coming to work because he is sick.
Usage notesEdit
- The word order is subject-object-verb after omdat. This contrasts with the synonym want, after which the word order is that of non-interrogative main clauses.
- In prescriptive use omdat is often reserved for subjective reasoning or non-direct consecution, while doordat implies direct, objective causation and the formal conjunction opdat is used for the end (telos) of an action. Less formal usage tends to prefer omdat to doordat and occasionally omdat is used where opdat would be prescribed. Compare daarom and daardoor.