About This Lesson
Use Asking About Homework to practice Dutch conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.
Dialogue
A
Wat moet ik voor mijn huiswerk doen?
waht MOOT ik vorr mine HOWS-wurk doon? What should I do for homework?
B
Maak eerst deze oefening.
MAHK AIRST DAY-zuh OO-fuh-ning. Start by completing this exercise.
A
Welke pagina moet ik gebruiken?
VEL-kuh pah-GHEE-nah MOOT ik guh-BRUI-kuh(n)? Which page should I use?
B
Gebruik de pagina met de korte vragen.
guh-BRUIK duh pah-GHEE-nah met duh KOR-tuh VRAH-gun. Use the page with the short questions.
A
Wanneer moet ik het afmaken?
vah-NAIR MOOT ik ut AHF-mah-kuh(n)? When should I finish it?
B
Maak het af voor de les.
MAHK ut ahf vorr duh LESS. Finish it before class.
A
Kun je later naar mijn antwoorden kijken?
kunn yuh LAH-ter nar mine AHNT-vorr-dun KAI-kuh(n)? Can you look at my answers later?
B
Breng ze naar mij als je klaar bent.
breng zuh nar may ahls yuh KLAHR bent. Bring them to me after you finish.Word by Word
Wat
Wat means “what” here and asks for the thing or task the speaker should do. In Wat moet ik voor mijn huiswerk doen?, it introduces the question. A common reuse pattern is Wat moet ik ... doen? for asking what someone should do.
moet
Moet means “must” or “should” here, expressing what the speaker is expected to do. In Wat moet ik voor mijn huiswerk doen?, it is followed by the subject ik and the action doen. A common reuse pattern is moet + subject + verb.
ik
Ik means “I” and identifies the person who has to do the homework. It is the subject of moet and the person performing doen. A common reuse pattern is ik moet + verb when saying what you have to do.
voor
Voor means “for” here and connects the homework with the task to be done. In voor mijn huiswerk, it introduces the purpose or context of the action. A common reuse pattern is voor + noun when explaining what something is for.
mijn
Mijn means “my” and shows that the homework belongs to or is assigned to the speaker. It comes directly before huiswerk in mijn huiswerk. A common reuse pattern is mijn + noun when referring to something connected with the speaker.
huiswerk
Huiswerk means “homework” in this dialogue. It appears in voor mijn huiswerk to identify the work the speaker needs to complete. A common reuse pattern is huiswerk maken for doing homework.
doen
Doen means “do” here and names the action the speaker is asking about. In Wat moet ik voor mijn huiswerk doen?, it comes at the end after moet. A common reuse pattern is iets doen for doing something.
Maak
Maak means “make” or “do” here and gives a direct instruction to complete the exercise. In Maak eerst deze oefening, it is the command form used at the beginning of the sentence. A common reuse pattern is Maak + object for telling someone to make or complete something.
eerst
Eerst means “first” and tells the learner which task to do before other tasks. In Maak eerst deze oefening, it places the exercise at the start of the sequence. A common reuse pattern is eerst + action when giving the first step.
deze
Deze means “this” and points to the particular exercise being indicated. In deze oefening, it comes before the noun it identifies. A common reuse pattern is deze + noun when pointing out a specific nearby thing.
oefening
Oefening means “exercise” in this classroom context. In deze oefening, it refers to the task the learner should complete. A common reuse pattern is een oefening maken for completing an exercise.
Welke
Welke means “which” and asks the learner to choose one page from several possible pages. In Welke pagina moet ik gebruiken?, it comes before pagina. A common reuse pattern is Welke + noun? when asking which item is meant.
pagina
Pagina means “page” and identifies the part of the learning material the speaker should use. In Welke pagina and de pagina met de korte vragen, it refers to a page in the course material. A common reuse pattern is pagina + number when identifying a page.
gebruiken
Gebruiken means “use” here. In Welke pagina moet ik gebruiken?, it is the action connected with moet and appears at the end of the question. A common reuse pattern is iets gebruiken for using something.
Gebruik
Gebruik means “use” here and gives the instruction to use a particular page. In Gebruik de pagina met de korte vragen, it is the command form at the beginning of the sentence. A common reuse pattern is Gebruik + object when telling someone what to use.
de
De means “the” and identifies the specific page mentioned by the speaker. In de pagina, it comes directly before pagina. A common reuse pattern is de + noun when referring to a specific known thing.
met
Met means “with” here and introduces the questions that are included on the page. In de pagina met de korte vragen, it connects the page with its contents. A common reuse pattern is noun + met + noun when describing something that has or contains another thing.
korte
Korte means “short” and describes the questions on the page. In de korte vragen, it comes directly before vragen. A common reuse pattern is an adjective before a noun when describing that noun.
vragen
Vragen means “questions” here and refers to the questions on the selected page. In de korte vragen, it is the noun after the adjective korte. A common reuse pattern is vragen beantwoorden for answering questions.
Wanneer
Wanneer means “when” and asks about the time by which the task should be finished. In Wanneer moet ik het afmaken?, it introduces a question about timing. A common reuse pattern is Wanneer moet ik ...? when asking when an action is required.
het
Het means “it” here and refers to the exercise or task that must be completed. In het afmaken and Maak het af, it is the object being finished. A common reuse pattern is het + verb when referring back to a previously mentioned thing.
afmaken
Afmaken means “finish” or “complete” the task. In Wanneer moet ik het afmaken?, it appears after moet and refers to completing the exercise. A common reuse pattern is iets afmaken for finishing a specific task.
af
Af contributes the idea of completion in Maak het af. Together with Maak, it tells the learner to finish the task completely. A common reuse pattern is iets afmaken, where af also indicates that the task is brought to completion.
les
Les means “class” or “lesson” here. In voor de les, it identifies the class that will take place after the work should be finished. A common reuse pattern is voor de les when referring to a time before class.
Kun
Kun means “can” here and is used to ask whether the other person is able or willing to look at the answers. In Kun je later naar mijn antwoorden kijken?, it starts the question. Kun is the form of kunnen used with je in this question.
je
Je means “you” and identifies the person being asked to look at the answers. In Kun je later naar mijn antwoorden kijken?, it follows Kun and is the subject of the question. A common reuse pattern is Kun je + verb? when making a request.
later
Later means “later” and refers to a time after the current moment. In Kun je later naar mijn antwoorden kijken?, it says when the answers could be checked. A common reuse pattern is later + action when postponing an action.
naar
Naar means “at” in the construction kijken naar, which means looking at something. In naar mijn antwoorden kijken, it introduces what is being looked at. A common reuse pattern is naar + object with kijken.
antwoorden
Antwoorden means “answers” here and refers to the learner’s completed responses. In mijn antwoorden, it is the thing the other person is asked to look at. A common reuse pattern is antwoorden geven or antwoorden controleren when working with answers.
kijken
Kijken means “look” here and names the action of examining the answers. In Kun je later naar mijn antwoorden kijken?, it follows Kun and combines with naar. A common reuse pattern is naar iets kijken for looking at something.
Breng
Breng means “bring” here and gives the instruction to bring the answers to the speaker. In Breng ze naar mij, it is the command at the beginning of the sentence. A common reuse pattern is Breng + object + naar + person.
ze
Ze means “them” here and refers back to the answers. In Breng ze naar mij, it is the object of Breng. A common reuse pattern is ze + verb when replacing previously mentioned plural things.
mij
Mij means “me” here and identifies the person who should receive the answers. In naar mij, it follows naar and marks the destination or recipient. A common reuse pattern is naar mij when saying that something comes to or is brought to the speaker.
als
Als means “when” here and introduces the condition or time for bringing the answers. In als je klaar bent, it means after or when you have finished. A common reuse pattern is als + clause for saying when an action should happen.
klaar
Klaar means “finished” or “ready” here, referring to being finished with the exercise. In je klaar bent, it describes the speaker’s state before the answers are brought. A common reuse pattern is klaar zijn met iets for being finished with something.
bent
Bent means “are” here and links je with the state klaar. In als je klaar bent, it completes the expression meaning “when you are finished.” Bent is the form of zijn used with je in this clause.
Grammar Points
deze + korte + zelfstandig naamwoord
deze korte vraag
DAY-zuh KOR-tuh VRAHKthis short question
Na deze krijgt het bijvoeglijk naamwoord kort de vorm korte vóór een zelfstandig naamwoord.
Dutch Vocabulary
deze
det
DAY-zuh
this
doen
verb
doon
do
eerst
adv
AIRST
first
gebruiken
verb
guh-BRUI-kuh(n)
use
gebruik
huiswerk
noun
HOWS-wurk
homework
maken
verb
MAH-kuh(n)
make; complete
maak
mijn
det
mine
my
oefening
noun
OO-fuh-ning
exercise
pagina
noun
pah-GHEE-nah
page
voor
prep
vorr
for; before
wat
pron
waht
what
welke
det
VEL-kuh
which
Quiz
Word Order
Arrange the words in the correct order.
Start by completing this exercise.
Show Answer
Maak eerst deze oefening.Which page should I use?
Show Answer
Welke pagina moet ik gebruiken?When should I finish it?
Show Answer
Wanneer moet ik het afmaken?Spelling
Tap the letters to spell the word.
my
Show Answer
mijnfirst
Show Answer
eerstthis
Show Answer
dezeexercise