Transitive verbs may be conjugated either with with wêze be (unaccusative) or hawwe have (unergative). If the subject argument is more actively involved than the object in the event denoted by the verb, then the verb is conjugated with hawwe have. An example is given below:

The one who hits is more actively involved in the event than the one who gets hit. Correspondingly the verb is H-conjugated, that is conjugated with hawwe have. Now, if the subject of the sentence is inanimate, then the verb is B-conjugated, that is conjugated with wêze be, as is shown below:

However, it is not the case that a switch from animate to inanimate subject necessarily brings about a change in selection of the auxiliary of the perfect. A case in point is the verb reitsje reach (by hitting).

Only a restricted set of verbs changes their selection of the perfect tense depending on the animacy of the subject: normally, this is immaterial. For example, the verb bewize prove is H-conjugated, regardless of the animacy of the subject:

Note, though, that in this example the object is inanimate. It seems then that a change in animacy only brings about a change in unaccusativity / unergativity in case the direct object becomes more actively involved than the subject in the event denoted by the verb.

Some psychological verbs standardly have a subject which is less actively involved in the event described by the verb than the object. In such cases, the object must be animate or even human. Such verbs are characteristically B-conjugated:

However, similar events may also be represented by verbs of which the subject, though inanimate, is seen as a cause. On that view, the subject is viewed as being at least as actively involved in the event described by the verb as the object. Correspondingly, such psychological verbs are H-conjugated.

So it seems that the choice between unergativity versus unaccusativity depends on the relative prominence of the roles assigned by the verb to its arguments.

Some verbs have two argument structures, one of which is archaic or characteristic of older generations. The verb ferjitte forget is an example of this. If the more active argument, the person who forgets something, is realised as a subject, then the verb can either be H-conjugated or B-conjugated.

However, the verb is sometimes found with the more passive argument realised in the subject position. In that case, the verb can only be B-conjugated:

It is quite well possible that this type of argument realisation is restricted to a few constructions, because it is going out of use.

In another case, a verb displays both types of linking, but with a change in meaning; the verb misse may either mean miss or be mistaken. The more active argument is realised as the subject in case the meaning miss is involved:

The more passive argument is realised as the subject in case the meaning be mistaken is involved:

However, this type of argument realisation is almost exclusively reserved to the first person conditional collocation illustrated in (10).

Furthermore, what also brings about a change from unergativity to unaccusativity is the use of a verb of activity as a verb of change of location. Consider the verb dûnsje dance. As an activity verb, it is H-conjugated:

As a verb of change of location, it is B-conjugated:

These examples do not tally with the idea that B-conjugation is a sign of the direct object being more actively involved in the event than the subject. Note, though, that these examples do not involve direct objects, but postpositional complements. It could be hypothesized that the postpositional complement as a whole is more actively involved than the subject, seeing that the location ( the room) undergoes a change from not being a location hosting the event of Boukje dancing to being a location hosting the event of Boukje dancing.