Making words plural in Dutch is usually straightforward.\u00a0 I’m a stickler for grammar rules and straightforward makes me a little happier. Here are some rules for turning one cookie into two cookies, or one euro into 100 euros.<\/p>\n
The rules for making a word plural are this simple: just add -en, -s,<\/em> or -es<\/em> to the end of a word.\u00a0 But of course, you would love to know when to add -en, -s, <\/em>or -es<\/em>. Here are some rules to follow and keep an eye out for how the other letters in the word change in order to keep the vowel sounds short or long.<\/em><\/p>\n 1. The basic way to make a plural in Dutch is to add -en<\/em>.<\/strong> So….<\/p>\n de boom : de bomen <\/em>[the tree(s)]<\/p>\n de man : de mannen <\/em>[the man \/ the men]<\/p>\n de taal : de talen <\/em>[the language(s)]<\/p>\n de kat : de katten <\/em>[the cat(s)]<\/p>\n het spel : de spellen<\/em> [the game(s)]<\/p>\n 2. When to add -s<\/em>:<\/strong><\/p>\n If the word ends in an unstressed -el, -en,<\/em> or -er<\/em>…add -s<\/em>.\u00a0 In the following examples, the underlined sections represent the syllable where the stress falls when you say the word out loud.<\/p>\n de wink<\/span>el<\/em> : de wink<\/span>els<\/em> [the shop(s)]<\/p>\n de taf<\/span>el<\/em> : de taf<\/span>els<\/em> [the table(s)]<\/p>\n de vog<\/span>el<\/em> : vog<\/span>els<\/em> [the bird(s)]<\/p>\n het leg<\/span>er<\/em> : de leg<\/span>ers<\/em> [the army \/ the armies)<\/p>\n 3. When to add an apostrophe + -s<\/em>:<\/strong><\/p>\n If a word ends in a vowel, add an apostrophe +-s<\/em>.<\/p>\n de radio = de radio‘s <\/em>[the radio(s)]<\/p>\n de auto = de auto‘s <\/em>[the car(s)]<\/p>\n de taxi = de taxi‘s <\/em>[the taxi(s)]<\/p>\n de video = de video‘s<\/em> [the video(s)]<\/p>\n And wouldn’t it be nice if these rules worked all the time? But of course, there are exceptions. Here are a few examples of common words that break the rules.<\/p>\n de stad : de steden\u00a0 [the city \/ the cities]<\/p>\n het kind : de kinderen\u00a0 [the child \/ the childeren]<\/p>\n het ei : de eieren\u00a0 [the egg(s)]<\/p>\n het lid : de leden\u00a0 [the member(s)]<\/p>\n de weg : de wegen\u00a0 [the road(s)]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Making words plural in Dutch is usually straightforward.\u00a0 I’m a stickler for grammar rules and straightforward makes me a little happier. Here are some rules for turning one cookie into two cookies, or one euro into 100 euros. The rules for making a word plural are this simple: just add -en, -s, or -es to…<\/p>\n