Dutch grammar is generally logical and not too difficult to understand. However, there are countless exceptions, which is why I often tell my students about the so-called “90% rule”: whatever grammar rule I explain is usually only true in about 90% of cases. For this reason, use what you feel is right, rather than focusing too much on grammar rules.
In this section, the grammar topics are organised by level. As you can see, this is still a work in progress, and I will continue to expand it regularly with new topics and explanations.
While Dutch pronunciation may seem challenging at first, it is generally much more predictable than English pronunciation. Once you learn the basic rules, it becomes much easier to pronounce new words correctly.
Some letters always represent the same sound, while others can be pronounced in different ways depending on the word. Dutch also uses a number of letter combinations that represent their own distinct sounds.
The guide below provides a clear overview of the sounds associated with individual letters and letter combinations, along with the most important pronunciation rules.
Dutch distinguishes between two types of vowel sounds. In many textbooks these are called short and long vowels, but this can be misleading because the difference is not just about length. The quality of the sound is often more important than its duration.
The following vowel pairs exist in Dutch:
Short vowel | Long vowel |
a | aa |
e | ee |
i | |
o | oo |
u | uu |
Double vowels (aa, ee, oo, uu) always represent a long vowel sound. Single vowels, however, can sometimes represent either a short or a long vowel. The key question is therefore: how do you know which pronunciation to use?
The basic rule is actually quite simple, although it has important consequences for Dutch spelling.
For stressed syllables, the following rule applies:
If a vowel is followed by a single consonant and then another vowel, the vowel is pronounced as a long vowel. In all other cases, it is pronounced as a short vowel.
Let's look at some examples:
The a in avond is pronounced in the same way as the aa in straat, because double vowels always represent a long vowel sound.
One special case is i. Unlike the other Dutch vowels, it does not have a separate long spelling. Nevertheless, the same spelling rules still apply when words are formed or modified.
Dutch has two definite articles: de and het.
Unlike English, which uses only one definite article (the), Dutch nouns belong to one of two groups: de-words and het-words.
Unfortunately, there is no single simple rule that tells you which article a noun takes. For this reason, it is best to learn each noun together with its article.
Don't worry too much, though. About 80% of Dutch nouns are de-words, and even if you occasionally use the wrong article, native speakers will usually understand you without any difficulty.
(That said, it's still worth learning the correct articles over time!)
There is one piece of good news: all plural nouns take the article de, even if the singular form uses het.
For example:
Dutch has only one indefinite article: een, which corresponds to English a or an.
For example:
In everyday speech, een is usually pronounced as a weak, unstressed sound similar to uh (/ən/), while the full pronunciation is mainly used for emphasis.
Dutch has several ways of forming the plural, and the correct form depends on the noun. In this section, we'll look at the two most common plural endings.
The -en Plural
The most common plural ending in Dutch is -en.
Although this looks straightforward, Dutch spelling rules can make things a little more complicated. Dutch spelling tries to preserve the original pronunciation of a word, which means that the spelling often changes when a plural ending is added.
To understand these changes, it helps to be familiar with the rules for short and long vowels.
a) Doubling the Consonant
If a noun ends in a short vowel followed by a single consonant, the consonant is doubled in the plural. This keeps the vowel short.
Without the doubled consonant, the preceding vowel would be interpreted as a long vowel.
b) Long Vowels Lose a Letter in Spelling
If a noun contains a long vowel followed by a single consonant, the plural ending would normally make that syllable "closed". To keep the pronunciation unchanged, Dutch spelling often removes one of the vowel letters.
The pronunciation remains the same.
Notice that the aa in raam and the oo in boom are still pronounced as long vowels in the plural forms, even though only one vowel letter is written.
The -s Plural
The second most common plural ending is -s.
Many nouns ending in unstressed syllables, such as -el, -er, -en, -em, or -aar, often take -s rather than -en.
Apostrophes Before -s
If a noun ends in a, i, o, u, or y, an apostrophe is usually added before -s.
This helps preserve the correct pronunciation and prevents confusion.
Without the apostrophe, readers might misinterpret the pronunciation of the word.
As with many aspects of Dutch grammar, there are exceptions and additional patterns, but -en and -s account for the vast majority of plural nouns you will encounter.
Like English to be (am, is, are), Dutch zijn has several different forms depending on the subject.
Subject | Verb Form | Example Sentence | Translation |
ik (I) | ben | Ik ben thuis. | I am at home. |
jij (you, singular) | bent | Jij bent boos. | You are angry. |
u (you, formal) | bent | U bent moe. | You are tired. |
hij (he) | is | Hij is dokter. | He is a doctor. |
zij (she) | is | Zij is hier. | She is here. |
wij (we) | zijn | Wij zijn vrienden. | We are friends. |
jullie (you, plural) | zijn | Jullie zijn laat. | You are late. |
zij (they) | zijn | Zij zijn in Amsterdam. | They are in Amsterdam. |
Important Notes
The verb zijn has four main present-tense forms:
The form you use depends on the subject of the sentence.
The Dutch present tense is relatively straightforward and is used in many of the same situations as the English present tense. Most Dutch verbs follow regular conjugation patterns.
In the present tense, the form of the verb depends on the subject (I, you, he, she, we, etc.).
Example: werken (to work)
Subject | Verb Form | Rule |
ik (I) | werk | verb stem |
jij / u (you) | werkt | stem + t |
hij / zij (he / she) | werkt | stem + t |
wij (we) | werken | full infinitive |
jullie (you, plural) | werken | full infinitive |
zij (they) | werken | full infinitive |
How to Form the Present Tense
In most cases, the first step is to find the verb stem. This is usually done by removing -en from the infinitive.
Once you have the stem, the present tense is formed as follows:
1. ik (I)
Use the stem on its own.
2. jij, u, hij, zij (you, he, she)
Add -t to the stem.
3. wij, jullie, zij (we, you plural, they)
Use the full infinitive.
Comparison with English
English learners often find Dutch verb conjugation easier than English because there are fewer forms to remember.
Compare:
English | Dutch |
I work | ik werk |
you work | jij werkt |
he works | hij werkt |
we work | wij werken |
they work | zij werken |
Notice that Dutch uses only three different forms in the present tense:
Most regular verbs follow this same pattern.
Example Sentences
A Note About Meaning
Just like English, Dutch can use the present tense to talk about:
Unlike English, Dutch usually does not need a separate verb form equivalent to I am working. In many situations, the simple present tense is enough.
The basic structure of a Dutch sentence is:
Subject + Verb + Other Information
(Who? + What happens? + Where? When? How? etc.)
Examples
Dutch | English |
Ik woon in Nederland. | I live in the Netherlands. |
Hij werkt thuis. | He works at home. |
Wij gaan naar school. | We go to school. |
Zij spreekt goed Nederlands. | She speaks Dutch well. |
At first glance, Dutch word order looks very similar to English.
The Most Important Rule: The Verb Comes Second
One of the most important rules in Dutch is that the conjugated verb must be in the second position of the sentence.
This remains true even when the sentence begins with a time expression, place expression, or another piece of information.
Examples
Dutch | English |
Vandaag ga ik naar Nederland. | Today I am going to the Netherlands. |
Op school eet hij altijd boterhammen. | At school, he always eats sandwiches. |
Notice that these sentences do not begin with the subject. Instead, they begin with a time expression (vandaag) or a place expression (op school).
Even so, the verb remains in the second position, which means the subject moves behind the verb.
This pattern is often called the verb-second rule (V2) and is one of the defining features of Dutch grammar.
Compare with English
English | Dutch |
Today I am going to the Netherlands. | Vandaag ga ik naar Nederland. |
At school he always eats sandwiches. | Op school eet hij altijd boterhammen. |
English usually keeps the subject before the verb, while Dutch moves the verb into the second position.
Sentences with More Than One Verb
When a sentence contains more than one verb, the conjugated verb still occupies the second position.
The other verb (or verbs) usually move to the end of the sentence.
Examples
Dutch | English |
Ik moet vanavond koken. | I have to cook this evening. |
Ik heb een ijsje gegeten. | I ate an ice cream. |
In both examples, the conjugated verb (moet, heb) appears in the second position, while the second verb (koken, gegeten) comes at the end of the sentence.
Why This Matters
For English speakers, this is one of the biggest differences between English and Dutch word order.
English generally keeps verbs together:
Dutch often separates them:
Although this may feel unusual at first, it quickly becomes natural with practice. In fact, once you remember the simple rule "the conjugated verb goes in second position", Dutch word order becomes much easier to understand.