Archive for 'Dutch Grammar'
The Verb Zijn (To Be) Posted by heather on Feb 7, 2012
Verbs might not be the most exciting part of a language but they are one of the most important. With that in mind, today we will take a look at the verb zijn, which means to be. Here are some examples of the verb at work: Ik ben de lerares. (I am the teacher.) Zij…
How the Dutch Got Their Cycle Paths Posted by heather on Jan 10, 2012
Bikes. They are everywhere in the Netherlands. In 2006, there were more than 17 million bikes in the Netherlands, with 750,000 of those in Amsterdam alone and no doubt that number has significantly increased. With around 91% of households owning at least one bike (and often more than one), it is not hard to see…
Happy New Year and Learning Dutch Resolutions Posted by heather on Dec 29, 2011
It was a bit odd realising that today’s post would be my last post in 2011 for the Transparent Language Dutch blog. The year has really gone by very snel (fast). Today I wanted to tell you about some of the things that happen in the Netherlands for the New Year’s celebration and hear about…
Verbs Used When Giving Directions Posted by heather on Jun 16, 2011
How are you getting on with the vocabulary I introduced in my last post? Hopefully you have been trying out some of the techniques that I suggested (and some of your own) and are making some steady progress. Stick with it, I promise it will be worth it in the end. Today we are going…
That’s My Lunch! (Possessives in Dutch) Posted by heather on Apr 26, 2011
Work refrigerators – they are the bane of many people’s life. No one wants to clean them and if you put something good in, you can almost guarantee it won’t be coming out, in your hands at least. After today’s post, you will be well equipped to exert your ownership on that tasty lunch, especially…
Subject Pronouns in Dutch Posted by heather on Apr 5, 2011
When you are just starting out in learning Dutch, one of the most important parts you can master are the subject pronouns. Luckily, they are quite straightforward with just a few points that need extra attention. This post will review the subject pronouns and highlight those attention-needing points. Subject Pronouns Subject pronouns are the words…
Adverbs of Time and Order of Events Posted by heather on Mar 29, 2011
Last week I wrote about prepositions related to time. Sticking with the theme of time, this week we will look at some adverbs related to time and the words you might use when talking about order of events. For both, I will begin by sharing some useful vocabulary words with you, followed by an example…