Learning Dutch
- Thread starter Rick van Opbergen
- Start date
OK I'll start with some basics, although nobody seems to be interested :wink:
Now, there are two important verbs that are essential in well, all languages: to be and to have. These two are translated as (te) zijn and (te) hebben.
But first this: how to translate things like I, you, he, she, we, they? A list:
(English) (Dutch)
I = Ik
You (singular) = Jij
He = Hij
She = Zij
We = Wij
You (plural) = Jullie
They = Zij
Well, that ain't too complicated, eh?
Now, the verbs zijn and hebben. Warning: they are irregular! See whether you understand it.
I am = Ik ben
You are (singular) = Jij bent
He is = Hij is (well, that ain't very hard, eh?)
She is = Zij is
We are = Wij zijn
You are (plural) = Jullie zijn
They are = Zij zijn
Nou the other one:
I have = Ik heb
You have (singular) = Jij hebt
He has = Hij heeft
She has = Zij heeft
We have = Wij hebben
You have (plural) = Jullie hebben
They have = Zij hebben
Ok, this was lesson 01
Now, there are two important verbs that are essential in well, all languages: to be and to have. These two are translated as (te) zijn and (te) hebben.
But first this: how to translate things like I, you, he, she, we, they? A list:
(English) (Dutch)
I = Ik
You (singular) = Jij
He = Hij
She = Zij
We = Wij
You (plural) = Jullie
They = Zij
Well, that ain't too complicated, eh?
Now, the verbs zijn and hebben. Warning: they are irregular! See whether you understand it.
I am = Ik ben
You are (singular) = Jij bent
He is = Hij is (well, that ain't very hard, eh?)
She is = Zij is
We are = Wij zijn
You are (plural) = Jullie zijn
They are = Zij zijn
Nou the other one:
I have = Ik heb
You have (singular) = Jij hebt
He has = Hij heeft
She has = Zij heeft
We have = Wij hebben
You have (plural) = Jullie hebben
They have = Zij hebben
Ok, this was lesson 01
Thats nice Andem Umm but just with the Zij.. Its not like.. zee.. But you're close..
Wij is more like Weej 8O yeh, Its very hard to pronounce..
Umm but just with the Zij.. Its not like.. zee.. But you're close..Wij is more like Weej 8O yeh, Its very hard to pronounce..
Why?
To make it easier for us non-native English speakers to learn *hehe*
Unlike Dutch, where you need to learn
jij, jullie and U
--> the U tends to get lost, too, right?! It's nearly vanished in Scandinavian languages already.
In German, all three forms are still used for addressing:
du (you, sg.), ihr (you, pl.) and Sie (polite you, sg and pl).
In old literature and films setting around the middle ages, also "Ihr" (you, pl.) is used instead of Sie (polite you, sg, pl) to be the polite form of addressing, also for a single person. "Er/sie" (he/she) can be found in addition as a pronoun for addressing people in older language.
For the Majestatis Pluralis, "Wir" (we) is used instead of ich (I). ;-)
To make it easier for us non-native English speakers to learn *hehe*
Unlike Dutch, where you need to learn
jij, jullie and U
--> the U tends to get lost, too, right?! It's nearly vanished in Scandinavian languages already.
In German, all three forms are still used for addressing:
du (you, sg.), ihr (you, pl.) and Sie (polite you, sg and pl).
In old literature and films setting around the middle ages, also "Ihr" (you, pl.) is used instead of Sie (polite you, sg, pl) to be the polite form of addressing, also for a single person. "Er/sie" (he/she) can be found in addition as a pronoun for addressing people in older language.
For the Majestatis Pluralis, "Wir" (we) is used instead of ich (I). ;-)
Pemmican: I do have to say that "U" is used less and less, but I'm not sure whether it will disappear. Like "Sie", it's a "polite you".