Borrowing cleaning supplies | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Heb je een schoonmaakdoek die ik kan gebruiken?

   Do you have a cleaning cloth I can use?

   Heb je

   do you have

   schoonmaakdoek

   cleaning cloth

   kan

   can; be able to

   gebruiken

   use

   More detail

   Heb je is the Dutch question form of hebben (“to have”) with je (“you”). In a yes/no question, the finite verb commonly comes before the subject: Heb je ...? = “Do you have ...?” The base form is hebben; hebt is used with je in a statement, as in Je hebt ... (“You have ...”). schoonmaakdoek means “cleaning cloth” here. It is a compound noun: schoonmaak relates to cleaning and doek means “cloth.” Dutch compounds are written as one word, so this form can be reused for similar noun combinations. The fixed sentence asks about one such cloth, but the indefinite article een does not by itself need to be taught as a numerical count here. kan is the present-tense form of the modal verb kunnen with ik (“I”), and here it means “can” or “am able to.” The form kan also occurs with a third-person singular subject, so its exact subject is determined by the sentence; in this utterance, the subject is the stated ik in ik kan gebruiken. gebruiken is the infinitive “to use.” After a modal verb such as kunnen, Dutch uses the infinitive: ik kan gebruiken = “I can use.” For example, Ik kan deze pen gebruiken. means “I can use this pen.” Together, Heb je een schoonmaakdoek asks whether the addressee has a cleaning cloth, and die ik kan gebruiken identifies it as one that the speaker can use. The relative word die links the cloth to the clause ik kan gebruiken; the complete utterance is therefore: “Do you have a cleaning cloth I can use?”

2. Er ligt er een in de doos.

   There is one in the box.

   Er ligt

   there is / there lies

   er een

   one (of them)

   in

   in

   doos

   box

   More detail

   Er ligt uses the Dutch verb liggen (“to lie”) in the present tense, third-person singular form ligt. With existential er, this says that something is located somewhere, with the idea that it is lying there. The base form is liggen; a reusable example is Er ligt een boek op tafel. — “There is a book lying on the table.” er een means “one (of them)” here. The second er refers back to the item being discussed, while een stands independently instead of repeating its noun. In the bounded context, the item is understood from the earlier question about a cleaning cloth; the sentence itself does not repeat that noun. This een is therefore not introducing a noun directly, as in een doek, but forms the concise “one” expression with er. in is the preposition “in” and introduces the container or location. The same pattern is reusable in Het ligt in de tas. — “It is in the bag.” doos is the noun “box.” Its plural is dozen; the singular noun appears here with de: de doos — “the box.” Together, Er ligt presents an item as being located, er een identifies it as one of the items under discussion, and in de doos gives its location. The complete meaning is: “There is one in the box.”

3. Heb je ook schoonmaakspray?

   Do you have cleaning spray too?

   Heb je

   do you have

   ook

   too; also

   schoonmaakspray

   cleaning spray

   More detail

   Heb je is the question form of hebben (“to have”) with je (“you”). In a yes/no question, Dutch commonly places the finite verb before the subject: Heb je ...? = “Do you have ...?” The verb form heb is the present-tense form used with je in this inverted order; in a regular statement, je hebt ... is used. Example: Heb je tijd? — “Do you have time?” ook means “too” or “also”. It adds the idea that this item is being asked about in addition to something already mentioned. Its position can affect emphasis, but here it straightforwardly contributes “too”. Example: Heb je ook water? — “Do you have water too?” schoonmaakspray is a Dutch compound noun meaning “cleaning spray”. It combines schoonmaak (“cleaning”) with spray (“spray”); the whole compound names a spray used for cleaning. Dutch commonly forms compounds by joining related elements into one written word. Example: Ik gebruik schoonmaakspray. — “I use cleaning spray.” Together, Heb je asks about possession or availability, ook adds “too”, and schoonmaakspray names the requested item. The complete utterance therefore means: “Do you have cleaning spray too?”

4. De spray staat ernaast.

   The spray is beside it.

   spray

   spray

   staat

   is located / stands

   ernaast

   beside it

   More detail

   spray is the noun meaning “spray.” In the sentence, it appears in the noun phrase De spray, where de is the definite article. The related compound schoonmaakspray means “cleaning spray,” as in the preceding sentence. staat is the present-tense form of staan for a singular third-person subject: “stands” or, for an object’s position, “is located.” Useful forms are ik sta (“I stand”), hij/zij/het staat (“he/she/it stands”), and wij staan (“we stand”). Dutch commonly uses staan to describe where an object or item is situated; it does not necessarily mean that the object is literally standing on its feet. ernaast means “beside it.” It is a compact Dutch location form: er refers to an understood item or place, and naast means “beside/next to.” The supplied sentence does not identify the specific referent of er, so this form expresses the relation without naming that referent. With a named noun, Dutch can use naast directly, as in De spray staat naast de doos. (“The spray is beside the box.”) Together, De spray identifies the item, staat presents its location, and ernaast gives that location as beside the understood referent. The complete utterance therefore means: “The spray is beside it.”

5. Ik moet dit bureau schoonmaken.

   I need to clean this desk.

   Ik moet

   I need to / I must

   dit

   this

   bureau

   desk

   schoonmaken

   clean

   More detail

   Ik moet combines ik (“I”) with the present-tense form moet of moeten (“must” / “need to”). The subject is first-person singular, so moeten becomes moet; the infinitive that follows remains unchanged. Dutch places that infinitive at the end of this simple clause. Example: Ik moet werken. — “I need to work.” dit means “this.” It is the singular neuter demonstrative used here with bureau, which is a neuter het-word: dit bureau. The corresponding demonstrative for a common-gender singular noun is deze, as in deze tafel (“this table”). bureau means “desk” in this sentence. It is a noun and can also refer to an office or bureau in other contexts, so the fixed translation identifies the intended sense here. schoonmaken means “to clean.” It is an infinitive, the form selected after moet. Dutch also uses it as a separable verb: in a finite main clause, the parts can separate, as in Ik maak het bureau schoon. — “I clean the desk.” Here, after the modal verb, the complete infinitive stays together at the end. Together, dit bureau identifies the desk being referred to, while moet ... schoonmaken expresses the speaker’s need or obligation to clean it. The complete utterance means: “I need to clean this desk.”

6. Gebruik maar een beetje.

   Use only a small amount.

   Gebruik

   use

   maar

   only

   een beetje

   a small amount

   More detail

   Gebruik is the imperative of gebruiken (“to use”). Dutch uses this stem for a direct instruction; the form does not show whether one person or several people are being addressed. Example: Gebruik deze doek. — “Use this cloth.” maar is but in many contexts, but here it limits or softens the instruction. With a quantity expression, maar een beetje means “only a small amount” or “just a little.” Its restrictive meaning comes from the combination, not from maar alone. een beetje means “a small amount” or “a little.” Beetje is a noun meaning “small amount”; een is the indefinite article, not by itself a statement that there is a numerical count of one. For a countable plural quantity, Dutch instead uses een paar (“a few” / “a couple”). Example: Doe er een beetje water bij. — “Add a little water.” Together, Gebruik maar een beetje. forms a direct instruction: “Use only a small amount.” The thing to be used is left implicit; the sentence specifies that its quantity should be small. The pattern Gebruik maar [quantity] can be reused with another quantity, for example Gebruik maar weinig. — “Use only a little.”

7. Ik veeg het bureau af en leg ze allebei terug.

   I will wipe the desk and put both back.

   Ik

   I

   veeg

   wipe

   bureau

   desk

   af

   off

   leg

   put

   ze

   them

   allebei

   both

   terug

   back

   More detail

   Ik is the first-person singular pronoun, “I.” It identifies the speaker as the subject. Dutch subject pronouns include ik “I,” jij/je “you” (singular), and hij/zij/ze “he/she.” veeg is the present-tense form of vegen, “to wipe” or “to sweep,” used here with ik. A useful pattern is ik veeg = “I wipe” or, depending on context, “I am going to wipe.” Example: Ik veeg de tafel. — “I wipe the table.” bureau means “desk.” Its usual article is het: het bureau = “the desk.” The article belongs to the noun phrase; bureau itself names the piece of furniture. af is the separable part of afvegen, “to wipe off.” In a main clause, the conjugated verb and this particle can separate: Ik veeg het bureau af = “I wipe the desk off.” The particle adds the idea of removing something from a surface. With an object pronoun, the same pattern remains: Ik veeg het af. — “I wipe it off.” leg is the first-person singular present form of leggen, “to put” or “to lay.” The form is ik leg; with hij/zij/het it is legt. Example: Ik leg het boek terug. — “I put the book back.” ze means “them” here, as an unstressed object pronoun. The fixed translation and the surrounding context identify it as referring to the items being put back, without specifying their individual identities. Dutch ze can also have other functions in other contexts, so its exact role comes from the sentence. allebei means “both,” referring to two items or people. It emphasizes that the two items are included together: Ik leg ze allebei terug. — “I put both of them back.” Beide is a more formal alternative in many contexts, but allebei is common in everyday speech. terug means “back,” indicating return to an earlier place or position. It follows the verb phrase here: leg ... terug = “put ... back.” Together, Ik veeg het bureau af uses the separable verb afvegen: “I wipe the desk off.” The conjunction en joins this with leg ze allebei terug: “I put both of them back.” The complete utterance is therefore “I will wipe the desk and put both back,” with ze allebei referring to the two items understood from the context.

8. Leg ze samen in de doos.

   Keep them together in the box.

   Leg

   put; place

   ze

   them

   samen

   together

   in

   in

   doos

   box

   More detail

   Leg is the imperative of leggen, “to put” or “to place.” The imperative addresses one or more people directly and uses the verb stem here: leggen → leg. For example: Leg het boek hier. — “Put the book here.” ze is the object pronoun meaning “them” here. The fixed translation and the preceding context identify the referent as both previously mentioned objects. In Dutch, ze can also have other grammatical uses in other contexts, but here it is the plural object pronoun. samen means “together.” It adds the arrangement: the objects should be kept or placed as a group rather than separately. Example: We werken samen. — “We work together.” in introduces the location “in.” The following phrase de doos means “the box”: doos is the noun “box,” and de is the definite article used with this noun. Example: Leg het speelgoed in de doos. — “Put the toys in the box.” Together, Leg ze samen in de doos. means “Keep them together in the box.” Literally, it gives the instruction to put the two objects together inside the box. The pattern Leg [object] samen in [place]. is reusable when telling someone to place an object or objects together in a specified location.