Wh-remnant

Level 5

Sluicing is a way to avoid repeating yourself by leaving out the rest of a question when the meaning is already clear. You simply keep the question word (the 'remnant') and drop the rest of the clause.

How It Works

Sluicing (or wh-ellipsis) is a common syntactic tool in Dutch used across all registers. It occurs when a subordinate interrogative clause is reduced to a wh-remnant (a question word or a phrase containing one).

Key Rules:

  • The Remnant: The remnant can be a single word like wie (who) or wat (what), or a phrase like met wie (with whom) or welk boek (which book).
  • Connectivity: The remnant's case and prepositional requirements are governed by the elided verb in the sluiced clause, which is typically identical to the verb in the preceding (antecedent) clause. For example, if the elided verb is wachten op, the remnant must be op wie or waarop.
  • Pied-piping (Prepositions): Unlike English, Dutch generally does not allow 'preposition stranding' in sluicing. The preposition must stay with the question word (e.g., met wie, never wie met).
  • R-pronouns: If the remnant refers to an object of a preposition (like 'at what'), you must use a waar- compound such as waarnaar or waarmee instead of 'wat'.
  • Pragmatic Particles: In spoken Dutch, the remnant is very frequently followed by the particle dan to soften the question or add focus (e.g., Iemand heeft gebeld, maar ik weet niet wie dan).
  • Spading: In informal or dialectal Dutch, you may hear the demonstrative dat (or 'da') added after the wh-word (e.g., Ik weet niet wie dat). This is a specific type of sluicing called 'spading'.
  • Multiple Sluicing: Dutch allows more than one wh-remnant to remain if the antecedent contains multiple indefinite arguments (e.g., 'Iemand heeft iets gedaan, maar ik weet niet wie wat'). Note that Dutch follows the Clausemate Condition: all remnants must originate from the same underlying clause.

Types of Sluicing:
1. Merger: The remnant refers to an explicit word like iemand (someone) or iets (something).
2. Sprouting: The remnant refers to something implied but not explicitly named (e.g., 'Hij is aan het lezen, maar ik weet niet wat').

Examples (6)

  1. Er heeft iemand gebeld, maar ik weet niet wie.

    Someone called, but I don't know who.

    Word by Word: There has someone called, but I know not who.

    Here, 'wie' is the remnant standing in for the full clause 'wie er gebeld heeft'. The word 'iemand' serves as the correlate.

  2. Hij wil graag verhuizen, maar het is nog onduidelijk wanneer.

    He would like to move, but it is still unclear when.

    Word by Word: He wants gladly move, but it is still unclear when.

    The word 'wanneer' replaces 'wanneer hij gaat verhuizen'. This is a very natural way to end the sentence.

  3. Zij is met iemand aan het praten, maar ik zie niet met wie.

    She is talking to someone, but I don't see with whom.

    Word by Word: She is with someone at the talk, but I see not with whom.

    The preposition 'met' must be included because the verb 'praten' in the first clause is paired with 'met'. This is known as connectivity.

  4. Hij kijkt ergens naar, maar ik weet niet waarnaar.

    He is looking at something, but I don't know at what.

    Word by Word: He looks somewhere to, but I know not where-to.

    When referring to objects of prepositions, Dutch uses waar- compounds (R-pronouns) as the remnant instead of 'wat'.

  5. Iemand heeft iets gekocht, maar ik weet niet wie wat.

    Someone bought something, but I don't know who what.

    Word by Word: Someone has something bought, but I know not who what.

    This is an example of 'multiple sluicing', where two wh-remnants are left behind after the rest of the clause is elided.

  6. Ik wil een boek kopen, maar ik weet nog niet welk boek.

    I want to buy a book, but I don't know which book yet.

    Word by Word: I want a book buy, but I know yet not which book.

    This example shows a complex remnant 'welk boek', demonstrating that sluicing isn't limited to a single word.

Common Mistakes

  • Stranding a preposition at the end of the phrase.

    Ik weet dat hij op iemand wacht, maar ik weet niet wie op.
    Ik weet dat hij op iemand wacht, maar ik weet niet op wie.

    In Dutch sluicing, you cannot leave the preposition at the end. It must move to the front of the question word.

  • Using 'swiping' (inverting the preposition and wh-word).

    Hij gaat met iemand uit, maar ik weet niet wie met.
    Hij gaat met iemand uit, maar ik weet niet met wie.

    English speakers often try to place the preposition after the wh-word (swiping), but in Dutch, the preposition must precede the wh-word in a remnant.

  • Repeating the whole clause.

    Different MeaningIemand heeft mijn fiets gestolen, maar ik weet niet wie mijn fiets gestolen heeft.
    Iemand heeft mijn fiets gestolen, maar ik weet niet wie.

    The long version is correct Dutch and clear. The short wh-remnant is simply the more natural choice when the full clause adds nothing new.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

Wh-remnantLevel 5

Learn This First

Sluicing is a form of ellipsis where a whole clause is omitted, leaving only a question word (the remnant). To understand this, you need to be familiar with Dutch interrogative pronouns (wh-words) and how they function in subordinate clauses, as the omitted part is logically a sub-clause.