Practice a sentence again | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Kun je dat nog een keer zeggen?

   Can you say that again?

   Kun je

   Can you

   dat

   that

   nog een keer

   again

   zeggen

   say

   More detail

   Kun je is the question pattern “can you ...?”. kun is the present-tense form of kunnen (“to be able to/can”) used with je in this inverted question order. In a statement, the common order is Je kunt ...; in a question, Kun je ...? is natural. The following infinitive gives the action that the person is being asked whether they can perform. Example: Kun je helpen? — “Can you help?” dat means “that” here. It is a demonstrative pronoun referring to the thing or content being mentioned, while its specific referent is not identified in the fixed sentence itself. Dutch also uses dit for “this” in the corresponding demonstrative contrast. nog een keer is a reusable expression meaning “again” or “one more time.” Its meaning comes from the expression as a whole; een is not by itself a stated numerical count here. The same expression appears in the supplied continuation, Ik zeg het nog een keer (“I will say it one more time”). zeggen is the infinitive “to say.” After kun, Dutch uses the infinitive for the action in question: kun je zeggen means “can you say.” The form zeggen is the base form; a present-tense statement with ik uses zeg instead, as in Ik zeg het — “I say it” or, according to context, “I will say it.” Together, Kun je asks about ability, dat identifies what is to be said, nog een keer adds repetition, and zeggen names the action. The complete utterance therefore means “Can you say that again?”

2. Ik zeg het nog een keer.

   I will say it one more time.

   Ik

   I

   zeg

   say

   het

   it

   nog een keer

   one more time

   More detail

   Ik is the Dutch first-person singular subject pronoun: “I.” It identifies the speaker as the person carrying out the action. Compare jij (“you,” singular informal) when addressing one person. zeg is the first-person singular present form of zeggen, “to say.” The form pattern is ik zeg; with jij, the usual form is jij zegt. Dutch present tense can refer to an action happening now or to an intended near-future action, so the fixed translation uses “will say” in this context. Example: Ik zeg het morgen. — “I will say it tomorrow.” het is a singular neuter object pronoun meaning “it.” Here it refers to the content to be said, without the supplied sentence identifying that content more specifically. The same form het is also used as the definite article for neuter singular nouns, but its role here is a pronoun because it stands for something being said. Example: Ik begrijp het. — “I understand it.” nog een keer is a reusable expression meaning “again” or “one more time.” keer is a noun meaning “time” in the sense of an occurrence or occasion; een is the indefinite article, and here the complete expression conveys repetition rather than simply stating a numerical count. nog contributes the sense of an additional repetition. Example: Zeg het nog een keer. — “Say it again.” Together, Ik zeg het nog een keer follows the pattern Ik + present-tense verb + object + repetition expression: “I say it again.” In the supplied context, the Dutch present form is understood as the speaker’s intention to say it one more time, giving the fixed meaning “I will say it one more time.”

3. Nu begrijp ik het.

   Now I understand.

   Nu

   now

   begrijp

   understand

   ik

   I

   het

   it

   More detail

   Nu means “now” and places the understanding in the present moment. It can also occur in other time expressions, for example: Nu begin ik. — “Now I am starting.” begrijp is the present-tense first-person singular form of begrijpen, “to understand.” The useful pattern is ik begrijp — “I understand.” Dutch present-tense verb forms change with the subject; begrijp is the form used with ik here. Example: Ik begrijp de vraag. — “I understand the question.” ik is the first-person singular subject pronoun, “I.” In this sentence it comes after begrijp, not before it, because Nu occupies the first position. Dutch commonly uses this subject–verb inversion after an element such as a time adverb at the beginning: Nu begrijp ik ... The order returns to ik begrijp ... when the subject comes first. het is the object pronoun “it.” Its specific referent is supplied by the surrounding situation rather than identified further in this sentence. Do not confuse this use with het as the definite article “the”; its role here is the object of begrijp. Example: Ik zie het. — “I see it.” Together, Nu begrijp ik het. has the structure “Now understand I it,” with Dutch word order adjusted by the initial time expression. Its natural meaning is “Now I understand.”

4. Laten we de zin samen oefenen.

   Let's practice the sentence together.

   Laten we

   let’s

   zin

   sentence

   samen

   together

   oefenen

   practise

   More detail

   Laten we is a construction used to suggest doing something together: “let’s …”. It contains laten (“let/allow”) and we (“we”), but here it is not a request for permission. The lexical verb that follows stays in the infinitive. zin means “sentence” here. Its base form is zin; its plural is zinnen. In the full phrase de zin, the noun has the definite article de, giving “the sentence”. samen means “together”. It describes joint action by the participants. Example: We werken samen. — “We work together.” oefenen means “to practise”. This is the infinitive after Laten we. The same verb appears as Ik oefen (“I practise”) and We oefenen (“we practise”); the present-tense form changes with the subject, while the infinitive is used in this suggestion construction. Together, Laten we + de zin + samen + oefenen gives “Let’s practise the sentence together.” The definite phrase de zin refers to the sentence intended in the shared context, and samen presents the practice as a joint activity.

5. Het eerste deel is nog steeds moeilijk voor mij.

   The first part is still hard for me.

   eerste

   first

   deel

   part

   is

   is

   nog steeds

   still

   moeilijk

   hard; difficult

   voor mij

   for me

   More detail

   eerste means “first” here: it identifies the initial part in an order. It is the ordinal form related to één (“one”), but Dutch uses eerste, not a form such as *éénste*. Example: de eerste dag — “the first day.” deel means “part” or “section.” The fixed phrase het eerste deel therefore means “the first part.” deel is a neuter noun and takes het in the singular; its plural is delen: de delen — “the parts.” is is the third-person singular present form of zijn (“to be”). It links the subject het eerste deel with its description moeilijk. Example: Het boek is interessant. — “The book is interesting.” nog steeds means “still.” Together, these words show that the situation continues at the relevant time: the part remains difficult. This is different from nog alone, which can have other meanings such as “still” or “yet” depending on context. moeilijk means “difficult” or “hard.” Here it is a predicate adjective describing het eerste deel; in this position, it does not take a gender- or number-dependent ending. Before a noun, Dutch commonly uses the attributive form moeilijke: een moeilijke oefening — “a difficult exercise.” A useful contrast is makkelijk — “easy”: De oefening is moeilijk. — “The exercise is difficult.” voor mij means “for me.” mij is the stressed form of the first-person singular pronoun after the preposition voor; the unstressed form me is also common in less emphatic speech. Here, voor mij presents the difficulty from the speaker’s perspective. Example: Dit is belangrijk voor mij. — “This is important to me.” Together, Het eerste deel (“the first part”) is the subject, is ... moeilijk says that it is difficult, nog steeds adds that this remains true, and voor mij specifies the speaker’s perspective. The complete meaning is: “The first part is still hard for me.”

6. We kunnen dat deel langzaam oefenen.

   We can practice that part slowly.

   We kunnen

   we can

   dat

   that

   deel

   part

   langzaam

   slowly

   oefenen

   practise

   More detail

   We kunnen means “we can.” we is the first-person plural subject, and kunnen is the present-tense form of kunnen (“can, be able to”) used with we. In a modal construction, the other verb normally stays in the infinitive and comes later: We kunnen oefenen = “We can practise.” dat means “that.” Here it is the singular neuter demonstrative matching deel, which is a neuter noun (het deel). In this sentence, the fixed translation identifies the intended referent as the part already under discussion. Dutch contrasts dat for a singular neuter noun with die for a singular common-gender or plural noun. deel means “part” or “section.” Its plural is delen: een deel = “a part,” twee delen = “two parts.” The phrase dat deel therefore means “that part.” langzaam means “slowly” here and describes how the practice is done. The same form can also function as an adjective, meaning “slow,” as in een langzaam proces (“a slow process”); its role in this sentence is adverbial. oefenen is the infinitive “to practise” or “to practice.” It follows the modal verb kunnen in the construction kunnen + infinitive. The infinitive remains oefenen rather than taking a personal ending after kunnen. Together, We kunnen + dat deel + langzaam + oefenen gives “We can practise that part slowly.” The subject is “we,” kunnen expresses ability or possibility, dat deel is what is practised, and langzaam modifies the manner of practising.