Living nearby and getting to class | Learn Dutch in English

Dutch lesson set in a contemporary Amsterdam everyday setting: In a language classroom, two adults talk about living nearby and getting to class by bike or bus in different weather..

EN → NL / Level: A1

About This Lesson

Use Living nearby and getting to class to practice Dutch conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

Waar woon je?

vahr VOHN yuh? Where do you live?
B

Ik woon hier vlakbij.

ick VOHN heer vlahk-BYE. I live nearby.
A

Hoe kom je hier?

hoo KOHM yuh heer? How do you get here?
B

Ik fiets op zonnige dagen.

ick FEETS awp ZAW-nuh-ghuh DAH-ghun. I ride my bike on sunny days.
A

En op regenachtige dagen?

en awp RAY-ghuh-nahkh-tuh-ghuh DAH-ghun? What about rainy days?
B

Ik neem de bus als het regent.

ick NAYM duh buhs ahls hut RAY-ghunt. I take the bus when it rains.

Word by Word

Waar “Waar” asks for a place: here it means “where” in “Waar woon je?”. It commonly begins a question about location, followed by a verb and the person being asked.
woon “woon” means “live” here and is the form of wonen used in “Waar woon je?”. It is used to ask or state where someone lives, as in the dialogue’s location question.
je “je” means “you” in “Waar woon je?” and “Hoe kom je hier?”. It refers to the person being addressed and follows the verb in both questions.
Ik “Ik” means “I” and marks the speaker as the person who lives nearby, cycles, or takes the bus. It comes at the start of each statement in the dialogue, as in “Ik woon hier vlakbij.”
hier “hier” means “here” and locates the speaker in “Ik woon hier vlakbij.” and “Hoe kom je hier?”. It can identify the place where someone is or the place someone is getting to.
vlakbij “vlakbij” means “nearby” in “Ik woon hier vlakbij.”. Together with “hier”, it says that the speaker lives close to this place; it is useful for describing a nearby location.
Hoe “Hoe” asks about the way or method: in “Hoe kom je hier?” it means “how” someone gets here. It commonly starts a question about how an action happens.
kom “kom” means “get” or “come” in “Hoe kom je hier?”, referring to reaching this place. It is a form of komen and is used here with “hier” to ask about someone’s way of getting here.
fiets “fiets” means “ride a bike” in “Ik fiets op zonnige dagen.”. It is the verb used for travelling by bicycle and can be followed by a time expression such as “op zonnige dagen”.
op “op” introduces the days when something happens in “op zonnige dagen” and “op regenachtige dagen”. With days, it marks the relevant time or conditions for the activity.
zonnige “zonnige” means “sunny” and describes “dagen” in “op zonnige dagen”. Its form appears before the plural noun “dagen”, making the phrase describe days with sunny weather.
dagen “dagen” means “days” in “op zonnige dagen”. It names the time period in which the speaker cycles and is also used with “regenachtige” for rainy days.
En “En” means “and”, but at the start of “En op regenachtige dagen?” it introduces a follow-up question meaning “what about”. It is useful for asking about another related situation.
regenachtige “regenachtige” means “rainy” and describes “dagen” in “op regenachtige dagen?”. It has the same descriptive pattern as “zonnige” before “dagen”, but refers to days with rain.
neem “neem” means “take” in “Ik neem de bus als het regent.”, where it describes choosing bus travel. It is a form of nemen and is used here with the transport object “de bus”.
de “de” means “the” in “de bus” and identifies the bus as the means of transport being taken. It comes directly before the noun in this phrase.
bus “bus” means “bus” in “Ik neem de bus”. It is the transport object after “neem”, so the phrase expresses travelling by bus.
als “als” introduces the condition or time “when it rains” in “als het regent”. It connects that condition to the main statement about taking the bus.
het “het” is the subject used in the weather expression “het regent”, where it does not refer to a particular object. Together with “regent”, it expresses that it is raining.
regent “regent” means “rains” in “het regent”. It is used in the fixed weather expression “het regent” and gives the rainy condition for taking the bus.

Grammar Points

Waar woon je?

Waar woon je?

vahr VOHN yuh?

Where do you live?

In a Dutch question with a question word, the verb comes before the subject: woon je.

Als het regent, ...

Als het regent, neem de bus.

ahls hut RAY-ghunt, NAYM duh buhs.

When it rains, take the bus.

Als introduces a when/if clause. The verb regent follows the subject het.

Dutch Vocabulary

dagen noun
DAH-ghun days
en conj
en and, what about
fiets verb
FEETS ride a bike
hier adv
heer here
hoe adv
hoo how
je pron
yuh you
kom verb
KOHM come, get
op prep
awp on
vlakbij adv
vlahk-BYE nearby
waar adv
vahr where
woon verb
vohn live
zonnige adj
ZAW-nuh-ghuh sunny

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

Where do you live?

Show AnswerWaar woon je?

I live nearby.

Show AnswerIk woon hier vlakbij.

How do you get here?

Show AnswerHoe kom je hier?

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

nearby

Show Answervlakbij

here

Show Answerhier

live

Show Answerwoon

ride a bike

Show Answerfiets