28 Verbs Teaching the Conjugation Rules

• Examples showing the various forms of Dutch verbs
• Explanation of the spelling/pronunciation rules why they're written that way

The Simple Present Tense

A 'regular' example: denken to think

denken		to think
ik denk		I think		ik ('I')
jij denkt		you think		jij / je ('you' - singular informal)
hij denkt		he thinks		hij ('he') - zij / ze ('she') - het / 't ('it')
wij denken		we think		wij / we ('we')
jullie denken		you think		jullie ('you' - plural informal)
zij denken		they think		zij / ze ('they')
U denkt		you think		U ('you' - formal, polite)
	more denken			more on personal pronouns

ik denk

Ik denk dus ik besta 2 3 I think, [therefore I exist] so I am cogito, ergo sum

The Verb Stem and The Simple Present Tense Endings

(de) basisvorm 2 3

(de) grondvorm 2 3

Almost all Dutch verbs end in one or two consonants followed by an ‑EN ending. The stem of 'regular' verbs removes that ‑EN ending - but for many verbs that may cause further spelling changes, many special cases - see below
The stem of the 'regular' verb denken 2 ('to think') is the infinitive without the ‑EN ending, so: denk 2 3

Another verb example for clarity and entertainment:
stemmen 2 to vote // to tune a musical instrument
(stemmen 2 is also the plural of (de) stem 'voice' // 'vote' ‑>> )

stemmen		to vote // to tune
ik stem		I vote
jij stemt		you vote (singular, informal you)
hij stemt		he votes
wij stemmen		we vote
jullie stemmen		you vote (plural, informal you)
zij stemmen		they vote
U stemt		you vote (polite you)
		more stemmen - 2

A little peculiarity of the simple present tense: When the verb is placed before the subject, like in questions and some other situations (like after a statement of time or place ‑>>) then there is no T‑ending for the second person singular

Stem jij? 2 Are you voting? Do you vote? Denk je dat 't gaat regenen? Do you think it's going to rain? ‑>> Waar denk je aan? What are you thinking of?

Spelling/Pronunciation Rules and the Verb Stem

'short E'

unstressed E'

The spelling/pronunciation rules say that a single vowel before a single consonant at the end of a word  is 'short,' and that a single vowel before two (or more) consonants is also short.
'Long' and 'short' are traditional names - it is actually more a matter of tone than length

The verb nemen 'to take' shows some of the rules for 'long' vowels:

nemen		to take
ik neem		I take
jij neemt		you take (singular, informal you)
hij neemt		he takes
wij nemen		we take
jullie nemen		you take (plural, informal you)
zij nemen		they take
U neemt		you (polite you)
		more nemen

The 'long E'
Double vowels are always 'long,' and a single vowel before a single consonant followed by one or more vowels is also 'long'

'Long' and 'Short' Vowels

klinkers vowels:

'Short' Vowels
- a - e - i - o - u

'Long' vowels:
- aa/a - ee/e - ie ( ii ) / i - oo/o - uu/u

'Long' I is never written as 'ii.'  In old words of Germanic origin it's usually written as 'ie.'

(de) wil ~will ‑>>

willen 2 to want, wish, desire ‑>>

(het) wiel 2 wheel ‑>>

wielen wheels

voiceless, unstressed E (the 'schwa') - e (uh) ‑>>

medeklinkers consonants: ‑>>
b - c - d - f - g - h - j - k - l - m - n - p - q - r - s - t - v - w - x - z

The Spelling Rules:

• a double vowel is always 'long'
• a single vowel followed by one consonant and one or more vowels is usually 'long'
• a single vowel followed by two or more consonants is usually 'short'
• a single vowel followed by a single consonant that is the end of a word  is almost always 'short'
• exception: single u  in 'uw' is always 'long'
• A single vowel at the end of a word  is always long, except the 'voiceless, unstressed E' (the 'schwa')

'long' vowel		'short' vowel		'long' vowel
maan moon	manen moons	man man, male	mannen men	Ma Mom
vloot 2 fleet	vloten 2   fleets	vlot 2 3 raft	vlotten 2 3 rafts	vlo 2 flea
veel 2 3 much, many	vele ~many	vel skin	vellen 2 3 skins	vee 2 3 cattle

Long and Short Vowels 1 - Long and Short Vowels 2 - Long and Short Vowels 3

So, a single vowel can be 'long' or 'short,' depanding on what comes after it:

• a single vowel before two consonants: short
• a single vowel before one consonant at the end of a word: short
• a single vowel before one consonant followed by one or more vowels: long
• a single vowel as the last letter of a syllable or word: long (except a single E at the end of a word which is almost always 'voiceless, unstressed E' - the 'schwa')

'stomme E' 2

'toonloze E'

'niet-beklemtoonde E'

'doffe E' 2

heten 2 'to be called, have the name' ‑>>	heet 2 'hot' ‑>>
het 2 3 'the' #2 // 'it' ‑>>	vet / vette 2 'greasy, fatty'
groot 2 3 4 5 ('big, tall large, great')	grote 2 ('big, tall large, great')	(de) grootte ('size, dimensions')
(de) grot 2 ('cave')	grotten ('caves')

Like in the first example denken 2 'to think,' verbs with two different consonants before the ‑EN infinitive ending don't change the single or double vowels before those consonants. Another example:

brengen 2 3 4 to bring

brengen		to bring
ik breng		I bring
jij brengt		you bring (singular, informal you)
hij brengt		he brings
wij brengen		we bring
jullie brengen		you bring (plural, informal you)
zij brengen		they bring
U brengt		you (polite you)
		more brengen

Next to the vowels are the diphthongs, sometimes called combinations of vowels. Diphthongs are always the same lenght or tone, there are no 'long' or 'short' diphthongs and there are no special spelling rules for them.

tweeklanken diphthongs  don't change tone or length and don't double or reduce the number of consonants after them

- au/ou - ei/ij - eu - oe - ui

The 'long' i written as IE is treated as a diphthong in the spelling rules - see zien ('to see') below

zoeken 2 to search, seek

zoeken		to search
ik zoek		I'm searching
jij zoekt		you are searching (singular, informal you)
hij zoekt		he is searching
wij zoeken		we are searching
jullie zoeken		you are searching (plural, informal you)
zij zoeken		they are searching
U zoekt		you are searching (polite you)
2		more zoeken

The 'voiceless, unstressed E' (the 'schwa') is also not changed by the letters around it, so there are no special spelling rules for it

Verbs with a 'voiceless, unstressed E' (the 'schwa') before the consonant ‑EN ending don't have further spelling changes after removing the ‑EN ending for the stem. There are only a few verbs like this and they're not very common

aarzelen 2 to hesitate

aarzelen		to hesitate
ik aarzel		I hesitate
jij aarzelt		you hesitate (singular, informal you)
hij aarzelt		he hesitates
wij aarzelen		we hesitate
jullie aarzelen		you hesitate (plural, informal you)
zij aarzelen		they hesitate
U aarzelt		you hesitate (polite you)
2 3		more aarzelen

Back to the Stem

• Removing the -EN ending after a single vowel followed by double consonants: one of the double consonants is dropped. (Double consonants do not sound 'longer' than single consonants. The doubling is just a way to indicate that the single vowel before them is 'short')
• Removing the -EN ending after a single or double vowel followed by two different consonants leaves the vowel or vowels and the consonants unchanged
• Removing the -EN ending after a single vowel followed by a single consonant: the single vowel is doubled

• a double vowel with one consonant at the end of the stem will become a single vowel
• a single consonant at the end of the stem after a single vowel will become a double consonant

zeggen 2 3 to say

zeggen		to say
ik zeg		I say
jij zegt		you say (singular, informal you)
hij zegt		he says
wij zeggen		we say
jullie zeggen		you say (plural, informal you)
zij zeggen		they say
U zegt		you say (polite you)
		more zeggen

leren 2 3 to learn // to teach

leren		to learn / to teach
ik leer		I'm learning
jij leert		you're learning (singular, informal you)
hij leert		he's learning
wij leren		we're learning
jullie leren		you are learning (plural, informal you)
zij leren		they are learning
U leert		you are learning (polite you)
2		more leren

The S/Z and F/V Shifts

geven 2 to give

geven		to give
ik geef		I give
jij geeft		you give (singular, informal you)
hij geeft		he gives
wij geven		we give
jullie geven		you give (plural, informal you)
zij geven		they give
U geeft		you give (polite you)
		more geven

lezen 2 3 to read

lezen		to read
ik lees		I read, I am reading
jij leest		you read (singular, informal you)
hij leest		he reads
wij lezen		we read
jullie lezen		you read (plural, informal you)
zij lezen		they read
U leest		you read (polite you)
		more lezen

Irregular Verbs

eten to eat

eten		to eat
ik eet		I eat
jij eet		you eat (singular, informal you)
hij eet		he eats
wij eten		we eat
jullie eten		you eat (plural, informal you)
zij eten		they eat
U eet		you eat (polite you)
		more eten

Verbs whose stems end in D do add T's in the simple present tense for the second and third person singular, though the DT doesn't sound different from a D: 'Word'  and 'wordt'  sound exactly the same:
ik word 2 / hij wordt 2

worden 2		to become // to be - for the passive voice ‑>>
ik word		I am
jij wordt		you are (singular, informal you)
hij wordt		he is
wij worden		we are
jullie worden		you are (plural, informal you)
zij worden		they are
U wordt		you are (polite you)
		more worden

In the present tense, komen has a short O in the singular, but a long O in the plural - that's common with A in the past tense of strong verbs - more below - but a vowel change like that in the present tense is very unusual. I can't think of another verb that does that.
The different vowel sound is (of course) shown in the spelling

komen		(to come)
ik kom		I come
jij komt		you come (singular, informal you)
hij komt		he comes
wij komen		we come
jullie komen		you come (plural, informal you)
zij komen		they come
U komt		you come (polite you)
		more komen

Hebben 'to have' - and also the auxiliary verb for the perfect tenses of a majority of Dutch verbs. 'Hebben'  has an irregular third person singular in the simple present tense

hebben		to have
ik heb		I have
jij hebt		you have	(singular, informal you)
hij heeft		he has
wij hebben		we have
jullie hebben		you have	(plural, informal you)
zij hebben		they have
U heeft		you have	(polite you)
		more hebben

Zijn 'to be,' and the auxilary verb for the perfect tense of a few common verbs is rather irregular

zijn		to be
ik ben		I am
jij bent		you are	(singular, informal you)
hij is		he is
wij zijn		we are
jullie zijn		you are	(plural, informal you)
zij zijn		they are
U bent		you are	(polite you)
		more zijn

'Willen' 2 (to want, wish, desire, would like to)

willen		to want
ik wil		I want
jij wilt		you (singular, informal) want
hij wil		he wants
wij willen		we want
jullie willen		you (plural, informal) want
zij willen		they
U wilt		you (polite) want
		more willen

hij wil 2 3

je wilt 2

'Zullen' is the auxiliary verb for the future tense in Dutch. See the future tense page - also for sample sentences.

(zullen )		shall/will ‑>>
ik zal		I will/shall
jij zult		you will (singular, informal you)
hij zal		he will
wij zullen		we will/shall
jullie zullen		you will (plural, informal you)
zij zullen		they will
U zult		you will (polite you)
		more zullen

'Mogen' 2 'may,' 'to be allowed to'

mogen		'may,' to be allowed to
ik mag		'I may'
jij mag		'you may' (singular, informal you)
hij mag		'he may'
wij mogen		'we may'
jullie mogen		'you may' (plural, informal you)
zij mogen		'they may'
U mag		'you may' (polite you)
		more mogen

'Kunnen' 'can,' to be able to, to be possible, to be allowed to

kunnen		'can,' 'to be able to'
ik kan		I can
jij kunt		you (singular, informal you) can
hij kan		he can
wij kunnen		we can
jullie kunnen		you (plural, informal you) can
zij kunnen		they can
U kunt		you (polite you) can
		more kunnen

A few verb infinitives do not end in ‑EN

gaan to go

gaan		to go
ik ga		I go
jij gaat		you go (singular, informal you)
hij gaat		he goes
wij gaan		we go
jullie gaan		you go (plural, informal you)
zij gaan		they go
U gaat		you go (polite you)
2		more

'staan'

'slaan' 2

unstressed E'

doen 2 3 to do

doen		to do
ik doe		I do
jij doet		you (singular, informal you) do
hij doet		he does
wij doen		we do
jullie doen		you (plural, informal you) do
zij doen		they do
U doet		you (polite you) do
		more

zien to see

zien		to see
ik zie		I see
jij ziet		you see (singular, informal you)
hij ziet		he sees
wij zien		we see
jullie zien		you see (plural, informal you)
zij zien		they see
U ziet		you see (polite you)
		more

Splitting Verbs

optillen		to lift
ik til op		I lift
jij tilt op		you lift
hij tilt op		he lifts
wij tillen op		we lift
jullie tillen op		y'all lift
zij tillen op		they lift
U tilt op		you lift
		more optillen

The 'inseparable prefixes' BE-, ER-, GE-, HER-, ONT-  and VER- never leave their verbs; other compound verbs often separate in the simple tenses when the stress in the word is on the preposition, but do not separate when the stress is on the verb.
As the separating or not-separating plays an important role in the past participle, the splitting verbs will be dealt with more fully in the Perfect Tenses below

Verb Stem Summary

Remove the -EN ending from the verb infinitive to get the verb stem:
after two different consonants
-  no further changes
drinken drink	worden word	fietsen fiets
drinken - to drink — worden - to become // to be (passive voice) — fietsen - to ride a bicycle
diphthong before the consonant -EN ending
-  no further changes
zoeken zoek	houden houd	krijgen krijg
zoeken - to search — houden - to hold — krijgen - to get
voiceless, unstressed E (the 'schwa') before the consonant ‑EN ending
-  no further changes
winkelen winkel	tekenen teken	aarzelen aarzel
winkelen - to shop — tekenen - to draw — aarzelen - to hesitate
single vowel, single consonant before the -EN ending
-  vowel is doubled
laten laat	nemen neem	kopen koop
laten - to let, allow — nemen - to take — kopen - to buy
single vowel, double consonant before the -EN ending
-  double consonant becomes single consonant
stemmen stem	willen wil	vallen val
Long Vowel or Diphthong - V -EN
stemmen - to vote — willen -to want to, desire — vallen - to fall
-  V becomes F
graven graaf	geloven geloof	schrijven schrijf
graven - to dig — geloven - to believe — schrijven - to write
Long Vowel or Diphthong - Z -EN
-  Z becomes S
lezen lees	verliezen verlies	blazen blaas
lezen - to read — verliezen - to lose — blazen - to blow
Verbs not Ending in -EN
gaan ga staan staan slaan sla	zien zie	doen doe
gaan - to go — staan - to stand — slaan - to slap, hit — zien - to see — doen - to do

Listen to a Few more Verb 'Stem' Examples

(translations may be imprecise or incomplete)

~to bake  ‑>> 2 bakken bak 2 to pray  ‑>> bidden bid 2 to do  ‑>> doen 2 3 doe to turn  draaien draai to push  ‑>> duwen duw exception: 'uw' is always 'long' to eat  ‑>> eten eet 2 3 to ride a bike  ‑>> fietsen 2 fiets to go  ‑>> gaan ga 2 to believe  ‑>> geloven 2 geloof 2 3 to greet  groeten groet ~to get   ‑>> halen 2 haal to help, assist   ‑>> helpen 2 help 2 to hope   ‑>> hopen 2 hoop 2 to hear   ‑>> horen 2 hoor to hold   ‑>> houden 2 3 4 houd to rent   ‑>> huren huur 2 to come   ‑>> komen kom 2 komen  is an irregular verb: exception to buy   ‑>> kopen koop to crack, break  kraken 2 3 kraak to get   ‑>> krijgen krijg 2 3 'can'   ‑>> kunnen kun / kan ↑↑ to kiss   kussen 2 kus to lwt, allow   ‑>> laten laat to laugh   ‑>> lachen 2 lach to learn // to teach   ‑>> leren 2 3 leer 2 to read   ‑>> lezen 2 3 lees to lie down   ‑>> liggen 2 lig to walk, hike   ‑>> lopen 2 loop 2 to listen   ‑>> - 2 luisteren luister 2 'must'   ‑>> moeten 2 moet 2 3 to take   ‑>> nemen neem to travel  ‑>> reizen 2 3 reis 2 to drive // to ride   ‑>> rijden 2 rijd to write   ‑>> schrijven 2 3 schrijf to slap, hit  ‑>> slaan 2 sla to sleep   ‑>> slapen slaap 2 to stop, cease   ‑>> stoppen 2 stop 2 to draw   ‑>> tekenen 2 teken 2 3 to pull   ‑>> trekken 2 3 trek 2 to fall   ‑>> vallen val to lose   ‑>> verliezen 2 verlies to tell, relate   ‑>> vertellen 2 vertel to ask   ‑>> vragen 2 vraag 2 to wait   ‑>> wachten wacht to want, desire   ‑>> willen 2 wil to shop   ‑>> winkelen 2 winkel 2 '~to be' // to become   ‑>> worden 2 word 2 to put   ‑>> zetten zet to sit   ‑>> zitten zit to search, seek   ‑>> zoeken 2 zoek 2 shall, will   ‑>> zullen zul / zal 2 ↑↑

The Verb Stem is The Imperative

to be silent, not speak   zwijgen 2 3 zwijg 2 Zwijg! 2 Be silent! (Don't speak! Shut up!)

to listen   luisteren luister 2 Luister! 2 Listen!

to go  gaan ga 2 Ga direct naar huis! 2 Go home immediately!

to boil   koken 2 kook 2 3 Kook de aardappels zeventien minuten
'Boil the potatoes for 17 minutes' to say   zeggen 2 3 zeg 2 3 Zeg het voort 2 [Say it forth] - Pass it on (a message)
Zegt het voort 2 Pass it on (a message) - addressing a crowd

The Simple Past Tense

In the simple past tense there are just two forms, the singular and the plural.
Like in English, most of the common verbs are 'strong,' meaning they have a vowel or diphthong change for the simple past tense, and sometimes also for the past participle. Strong verbs are often listed in a row of three forms:

	infinitive		simple past tense (singular)		past participle
for instance:	drinken		dronk		gedronken
	to drink		drank		drunk
	breken to break, crack		brak broke		gebroken broken

(drinken)		to drink
ik dronk		I drank
jij dronk		you drank
hij dronk		he drank
wij dronken		we drank
jullie dronken		y'all drank
zij dronken		they drank
U dronk		you drank
		more drinken

more about strong verbs
Alphabetic List of Strong Verbs
Patterns - Systematic List of Strong Verbs

The spelling rules sometimes come into play for the ‑EN ending of the plural of the simple past tense, for instance:

to look		kijken		keek		gekeken
				wij keken

For most strong verbs with an A in the simple past tense, that A ia 'short' in the singular and 'long' in the plural, for instance:

eten to eat

(eten)		to eat
ik at		I ate
jij at		you ate
hij at		he ate
wij aten		we ate
jullie aten		y'all ate
zij aten		they ate
U at		you ate
		more eten

Not more than half, but a large minority of strong verbs add a consonant or change a consonant next to the vowel or diphthong change, for instance:

weten to know (things)

(weten)		to know (things)
ik wist		I knew
jij wist		you knew
hij wist		he knew
wij wisten		we knew
jullie wisten		y'all knew
zij wisten		they knew
U wist		you knew
2		more

a few verbs add a D in the plural of the simple past tense, for instance:

kunnen 'can,' be able to

(kunnen)		'can,' 'to be able to'
ik kon		I could, was able to
jij kon		you could, were able to
hij kon		he could, was able to
wij konden		we could, were able to
jullie konden		y'all could, were able to
zij konden		they could, were able to
U kon		you could, were able to
		more kunnen

'Moeten' 2 'must,' 'should, have to' is as far as I know the only verb with only a consonant change for the simple past tense:
moeten 2 'must,' should, have to, be obliged to

(moeten)		'must'
ik moest		I had to
jij moest		you had to
hij moest		he had to
wij moesten		we had to
jullie moesten		y'all had to
zij moesten		they had to
U moest		you had to
		more moeten

Weak Verbs and the 't Kofschip  Rule

‑TE for the singular simple past tense, ‑TEN for the plural simple past tense of weak verb stems ending in T, K, F, S, CH and P (Dutch people remember this as the consonants of the word 't kofschip - an old shiop type) - and a few recently imported English verbs ending in X

‑DE for the singular simple past tense, ‑DEN for the plural simple past tense of verb stems ending in other letters

hopen 2 to hope

(hopen)		to hope
ik hoopte		I hoped
jij hoopte		you hoped
hij hoopte		he hoped
wij hoopten		we hoped
jullie hoopten		y'all hoped
zij hoopten		they hoped
U hoopte		you hoped
		more hopen

leren 2 3 to learn // to teach

(leren)		to learn / to teach
ik leerde		I learned
jij leerde		you learned
hij leerde		he learned
wij leerden		we learned
jullie leerden		y'all learned
zij leerden		they learned
U leerde		you learned
2 3		more leren

As mentioned before, verbs with a stem ending in ‑T do not get T's for the second and third person singular in the simple present tense, but they do get ‑TE and ‑TEN endings after the stem's T's in the simple past tense. For instance: wachten - the plurals of the simple present and the simple past tense sound the same

simple present tense
wachten		to wait
ik wacht		I am waiting
jij wacht		you are waiting (singular, informal you)
hij wacht		he is waiting
wij wachten		we are waiting
jullie wachten		you are waiting (plural, informal you)
zij wachten		they are waiting
U wacht		you are waiting (polite you)
2

simple past tense
(wachten)		to wait
ik wachtte		I was waiting
jij wachtte		you were waiting
hij wachtte		he was waiting
wij wachtten		we were waiting
jullie wachtten		you were waiting
zij wachtten		they were waiting
U wachtte		you were waiting
		more wachten

Fine point: The F/V and S/Z Shifts and 't kofschip

meaning	infinitive	stem	past tense (singular)
to believe	geloven 2	geloof	geloofde 2 ‑>> believed
to promise	beloven 2 3 4	beloof	beloofde 2 ‑>> promised
to blush	blozen	bloos	bloosde blushed
cows etc. taking in grass	grazen 2	graas	graasde grazed
to plane (wood)	schaven	schaaf	schaafde 2 planed
to tremble	beven 2	beef 2	beefde 2 trembled
to fear	vrezen 2	vrees	vreesde 2 ‑>> feared
to whizz	suizen 2	suis	suisde whizzed
to grin	grijnzen 2	grijns	grijnsde 2 grinned
to feign	veinzen	veins	veinsde 2 feigned

The Perfect Tenses

The Past Participle

The perfect tenses are an auxiliary verb ('to have'in English) with a past participle. Dutch has hebben ‑>> for the perfect tense of most verbs, but a small group of common verbs, mostly verbs of motion, use zijn ‑>> (otherwise 'to be')
A List of Verbs Using Zijn  for the Perfect Tenses

ik heb gehad	I have had
ik ben geweest	I have been
ik had gehad 2	I had had
ik was geweest 2	I had been

The past participle is in principle formed by adding a GE‑ prefix to the verb stem, and for strong verbs an ‑EN ending, ‑T for weak verbs of the 't kofschip- class and ‑D for other weak verbs, but there are many irregularities.
In Dutch, the past participle is often placed at the end of the sentence ‑>>
There is a small group of common verbs that when combined with other verbs in the perfect tenses use an infinitive, not a past participle, for instance:
Regular:  Ik heb de vogels gehoord 2 3 I've heard the birds But:  Ik heb de vogels horen fluiten 2 3 I've heard the birds [whistle] sing more - short version

The Past Participles of Splitting and Non-Splitting Compound Verbs

beloven		to promise ‑>>
ik beloofde		I promised
ik heb beloofd		I have promised

herhalen		to repeat ‑>>
ik herhaalde		I repeated
ik heb herhaald		I have repeated

In a few rare cases like vergeten  below the infinitive of a 'strong' non-splitting verb is identical to its past participle

(a strong verb:)
vergeten		to forget ‑>>
ik vergat		I forgot
ik ben vergeten		I have forgotten

Compound verbs that split up place the ‑GE‑ interfix between the preposition and the verb

a strong verb:
achterlaten	to leave behind ‑>>
ik laat achter	I'm leaving behind
ik liet achter	I left behind
ik heb achtergelaten	I have left behind

achterhalen		to retrieve, find out ‑>>
ik achterhaal		I'm finding out
ik achterhaalde		I found out
ik heb achterhaald		I have found out

overhalen 2 to persuade

overhalen		to persuade
ik haal over		I'm persuading
ik haalde over		I persuaded
ik heb overgehaald		I have persuaded

overtuigen		to convince ‑>>
ik overtuig		I convince
ik overtuigde		I convinced
ik heb overtuigd		I have convinced

more on Splitting Verbs

Past and Present Partciples as Adjectives

(het) voltooid deelwoord

- (het) tegenwoordig deelwoord 2 3

verwarren 2	to confuse
verward	confused
verwarrend 2	confusing

het schip zinkt	the ship is sinking
het zinkende schip	the sinking ship
het schip is gezonken	the ship has sunk
't schip - het is gezonken	the ship - it has sunk
het gezonken schip	the sunken ship
het zinken van het schip	the sinking of the ship

de aardappels koken the potatoes are [boiling] cooking e kokende aardappels the boiling potatoes de aardappels zijn gekookt the potatoes have been [boiled] cooked de gekookte aardappels the [boiled] cooked potatoes

het naderend onheil the approaching disaster het gesproken boek the [spoken] audio book een sprekend voorbeeld a telling example vergaande maatregelen 2 [far-reaching] extensive, drastic, impactful measures But:  vergane glorie faded glory ‑>> de zangeres lacht the lady singer laughs de lachende zangeres the laughing singer dichtbij near, nearby, close by (place) de dichtstbijzijnde winkel 2 the nearest shop, the shop closest-by

Verbs can be nouns, taking the definite article het 2 3 - 't ‑>>

het verwoorden 2 the phrasing, putting into words Het eten van varkensvlees is verboden Eating pork is not allowed. Het drinken van alcohol is toegestaan 'Drinking alcohol is permitted'

Luisteren  - to Listen

unstressed E'

Luisteren is weak verb of the non-'t kofschip type, meaning its simple past tense and past participle have D-endings:

luisteren		to listen
ik luister		I am listening
wij luisteren		we are listening
ik luisterde		I was listening
wij luisterden		we were listening
ik heb geluisterd		I have been listening
2		more luisteren

Flashcards Listening Tests

Other verbs with voiceless, unstressed E before a consonant and the ‑EN infinitive ending:
aarzelen 2 to hesitate - see above
slenteren 2 to saunter, walk leisurely

wandelen to stroll
- a pleasant, enjoyable walk is (de) wandeling 2

wandelen		to stroll
ik wandel		I stroll
wij wandelen		we stroll
ik wandelde		I strolled
wij wandelden		we strolled
ik heb gewandeld ik ben gewandeld		I have strolled ‑>>

winkelen 2 to shop ‑>>

winkelen	to shop
ik winkel	I'm shopping
wij winkelen	we're shopping
ik winkelde	I was shopping
wij winkelden	we were shopping
ik heb gewinkeld	I've been shopping

"ik ben aan 't winkelen" 2	'I am shopping' ‑>>
"ik was aan 't winkelen"	'I was shopping'

See also: aarzelen 2 'to hesitate' ‑>>

Recommended Next: Get to Know 80 Common Dutch Verbs

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Gij zult niet stelen 'Thou shalt not steal'