Posts tagged Grammar from the Learn Dutch For Expats team.
Groot, groter, grootst: Dutch comparatives add -er and superlatives add -st. Here is the rule, the dan vs als question, and the irregulars like goed-beter-best.
Every Dutch noun is de or het, and there is no perfect rule. But these patterns let you guess right most of the time. Here is the cheat sheet.
Mooie auto but mooi huis: Dutch adjectives sometimes take an -e and sometimes do not. Here is the rule, including the famous het-word exception.
Arbeidsongeschiktheidsverzekering: Dutch glues words together into giant compounds. Here is how samenstellingen work, how to read them, and the tussen-letters.
En, maar, want and dus keep normal word order; omdat, dat and als send the verb to the end. Here is how Dutch linking words split into two groups.
Kunnen, mogen, moeten, willen and zullen carry can, may, must and want in Dutch. Here is what each means and why the second verb jumps to the end.
Op de fiets, in de trein, aan de telefoon: Dutch place prepositions follow patterns but love their idioms. Here is the set and the fixed phrases to memorise.
The Dutch present tense is simpler than it looks: stem, stem+t, stem+en. Here is the rule for regular verbs and the one inversion catch.
When is it ik and when mij? Here are the Dutch subject and object pronouns, the stressed and unstressed forms, and when to use each.
Wie, wat, waar, wanneer, waarom, hoe and welke: the Dutch question words, plus the verb-first trick for yes/no questions. Ask anything with these.
Ik voel me, ik vergis me, hij wast zich: some Dutch verbs need a reflexive pronoun. Here is which pronoun goes with which person, and the common ones.
Opstaan becomes ik sta op: Dutch separable verbs split, sending the prefix to the end of the sentence. Here is the rule that makes them predictable.
Why is it maan but manen, and man but mannen? Dutch spelling follows clear syllable rules. Here is the logic behind the double letters.
How long, since when, how long ago: Dutch uses sinds, al, pas, over and geleden for time. Here is what each means and the al-vs-pas trap.
Two letters, four jobs, and no clean English equivalent: 'er' is the word that quietly stops your Dutch sounding natural. Here is how each use actually works.
Dutch has several ways to say you like something, and they are not interchangeable. Here is when to use houden van, leuk vinden, lekker vinden and graag.
IJ and EI sound exactly the same in Dutch, so how do you know which to write? Here is the lange ij vs korte ei trap and the tricks that help.
In Dutch you do not say you ARE cold or hungry, you HAVE it. Here is why ik heb het koud and ik heb honger are right, and ik ben koud is wrong.
Most Dutch plurals add -en, some add -s. Here is the rule for which is which, plus the spelling changes and the irregulars like kind-kinderen.
Memrise and Clozemaster both drill Dutch with spaced repetition, but only one really builds grammar. Here is how they differ and which fits your level.
Dutch has two words for 'not': niet and geen. Here is the simple rule for which to use, so you stop saying ik heb niet tijd.
Nou, toch, even, hoor, maar, eens: the tiny Dutch filler words that carry tone, not meaning. Here is what they actually do and how to use them.
Dutch barely uses a future tense: mostly you say gaan plus a verb, or just the present. Here is how to talk about plans and what is coming.
Kom, ga, let op, doe maar: the Dutch imperative is just the verb stem. Here is how to give instructions, directions and recipe steps, and soften them politely.
To talk about the past, Dutch mostly uses the perfect tense: hebben or zijn plus a participle. Here is how to form it and when to use zijn, not hebben.
Beyond the perfect tense, Dutch has a simple past (imperfectum) for stories and certain verbs. Here is how to form it and when to use it, not the perfect.
Real Dutch swallows sounds: 't huis, z'n fiets, d'r moeder, k'heb. Here is how to decode the contractions and reductions of fast, casual speech.
Brutaal does not mean brutal, eventueel does not mean eventually. Here are the Dutch false friends that catch out English speakers, and what they really mean.
Een biertje, een kopje koffie, even een momentje: the Dutch add -je to everything. Here is what the diminutive really signals and how to form it.
Zijn (to be) and hebben (to have) are the most common Dutch verbs and both irregular. Here are their forms and the many phrases built on them.
Dutch word order trips up every learner: the verb jumps to the end, inverts after time words, and more. Here is how much it really matters at A2, and what to nail first.
Dutch prepositions (op, aan, in, voor) feel impossible and rarely match English. Here is the honest answer on whether to study them early, and what to do instead.
Dutch will not let you say "met het". The fix is the er-word: ermee, erop, ervan, eraan. Here is how they work and why they split apart.