About This Lesson
Use Holding a Place in Line to practice Dutch conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.
Dialogue
A
Kun je mijn plek even vrijhouden?
kuhn yuh mine plek AY-vuhn VRY-how-duhn? Can you save my place for a minute?
B
Ik kan je plek vrijhouden terwijl je weg bent.
ik kahn yuh plek VRY-how-duhn ter-VYLE yuh wekh bent. I can hold your spot while you are away.
A
Ik heb mijn portemonnee laten liggen.
ik hep mine por-tuh-MOH-nay LAH-tuhn LIG-uhn. I left my wallet behind.
B
Probeer snel terug te komen.
proh-BAIR snel tuh-RUKH tuh KOH-muhn. Try to come back soon.
A
Ik ga hem nu halen.
ik ghah uhm nyoo HAH-luhn. I will grab it now.
B
Ik blijf hier in de rij staan.
ik BLYV heer in duh RYE stahn. I will stay here in line.
A
Ik heb hem gevonden en ben meteen teruggekomen.
ik hep uhm ghuh-VON-duhn en ben muh-TAYN tuh-RUKH-ghuh-KOH-muhn. I found it and came right back.
B
Je kunt hier weer in de rij gaan staan.
yuh kuhnt heer vair in duh RYE ghahn stahn. You can step back in here.Word by Word
Kun
In “Kun je mijn plek even vrijhouden?”, “Kun” means “can” and helps make a request. It is a form of kunnen used at the start of this question. The opening “Kun je” is a useful way to ask one person to do something.
je
In “Kun je mijn plek even vrijhouden?”, “je” means “you”, the person being asked. It refers directly to one person in the request. The same pronoun appears in “je plek vrijhouden” and can be used when addressing someone directly.
mijn
In “mijn plek”, “mijn” means “my” and shows that the place belongs to the speaker. It comes before the noun it describes. Reuse “mijn” before something that belongs to you, as in “mijn plek”.
plek
In this dialogue, “plek” means a place or position in the line. In “je plek vrijhouden”, it is the position that someone keeps available. The same word can name a physical place or a person’s position.
even
In “mijn plek even vrijhouden”, “even” means briefly or for a moment. It makes the request sound limited in duration. It can be placed before an action, as in “even vrijhouden”.
vrijhouden
In “mijn plek even vrijhouden”, “vrijhouden” means to keep a place available for someone. The meaning comes from keeping the place open rather than using it. “Je plek vrijhouden” is a reusable phrase for holding someone’s place.
Ik
“Ik” means “I” and identifies the speaker as the person doing the action. It begins sentences such as “Ik kan” and “Ik blijf”. Use it when speaking about yourself.
kan
In “Ik kan je plek vrijhouden”, “kan” means “can” or “am able to”. It shows that the speaker is able and willing to hold the place. It appears after “Ik” when the speaker describes an action they can do.
terwijl
In “terwijl je weg bent”, “terwijl” means “while” and introduces the time during which something else happens. It connects holding the place with the other person being away. Use it to connect two actions or situations occurring at the same time.
weg
In “je weg bent”, “weg” means “away” from the current place. Together with “bent”, it describes the other person’s state while they are not there. The phrase “weg bent” can be reused when someone is away.
bent
In “je weg bent”, “bent” is the form of zijn used with “je” and means “are”. Here it helps describe that the person is away. It can follow “je” when describing the person’s current state.
heb
In “Ik heb mijn portemonnee laten liggen”, “heb” is the form of hebben used with “Ik”. Together with “laten liggen”, it helps express that the wallet was left behind. This form can introduce a report about something the speaker has done or experienced.
portemonnee
In “mijn portemonnee”, “portemonnee” means “wallet”. It is the item the speaker left behind. It can be used after a possessive such as “mijn” to name something that belongs to the speaker.
laten
In “laten liggen”, “laten” helps express leaving something in the place where it is. Its meaning here comes from the combination with “liggen”, not from “laten” alone. “Laten liggen” is a useful phrase for saying that an item was left somewhere.
liggen
In “laten liggen”, “liggen” contributes the idea that the wallet remains where it was left. Together, “laten liggen” means to leave something somewhere. This combination is useful when an item has been left behind.
Probeer
In “Probeer snel terug te komen”, “Probeer” means “try” and gives a direct suggestion. It asks the other person to make an effort to return. Use it when encouraging someone to do an action.
snel
In “snel terug te komen”, “snel” means soon or quickly. Here it asks the person to return without much delay. It can be placed with an action to show that the action should happen promptly.
terug
In “terug te komen”, “terug” adds the meaning “back” to the movement. It shows that the person is coming toward the earlier place, the line. It is useful with a movement action when someone returns.
te
In “te komen”, “te” marks the infinitive after “Probeer”. The verb “komen” follows it in this action phrase. This pattern is used when describing what someone should try to do.
komen
In “terug te komen”, “komen” means “come”, while “terug” adds “back”. The full phrase describes returning to the line. It is used after “te” in “Probeer snel terug te komen”.
ga
In “Ik ga hem nu halen”, “ga” introduces an immediate plan to fetch the wallet. It is the form of gaan used with “Ik” here. The pattern “Ik ga” can introduce something the speaker is going to do.
hem
In “hem nu halen”, “hem” refers back to the wallet and is the thing being fetched. It avoids repeating “portemonnee” because the item is already known. This pattern is useful when referring to an already mentioned object.
nu
In “hem nu halen”, “nu” means “now”. It shows that the speaker plans to fetch the wallet immediately. It can be used with an action to mark the present time.
halen
In “hem nu halen”, “halen” means to get or fetch something. Here the object being fetched is “hem”, referring to the wallet. It is used with the thing someone goes to get.
blijf
In “Ik blijf hier in de rij staan”, “blijf” means “stay” or “remain”. It says that the speaker will remain in the line while the other person is away. It is the form used after “Ik” when saying that you will continue in a place or situation.
hier
In “Ik blijf hier”, “hier” means “here” and points to the speaker’s current location. In the dialogue, that location is the line. It can be used with a verb of staying to identify where someone remains.
in
In “in de rij staan”, “in” places the speaker within the line or queue. It shows the location of the person who is standing. The phrase “in de rij staan” is a useful expression for being in a queue.
de
In “de rij”, “de” is the article before “rij”. It forms the noun phrase meaning “the line”. The same article appears in the expression “in de rij”.
rij
In this dialogue, “rij” means the line or queue where people are waiting. It appears in “in de rij staan”, which describes standing in the queue. Use this word when talking about a line of people.
staan
In “in de rij staan”, “staan” means “stand”. Together with “in de rij”, it expresses being or waiting in line. This phrase is useful when describing someone’s position in a queue.
gevonden
In “heb hem gevonden”, “gevonden” means “found” and says that the wallet has been located. It is used with “heb” in the speaker’s report about finding it. The same form can follow “heb” when reporting that an object was found.
en
In “gevonden en ben meteen teruggekomen”, “en” means “and”. It links finding the wallet with coming back. Use it to join two actions, phrases, or clauses.
ben
In “ben meteen teruggekomen”, “ben” works with “teruggekomen” to express that the speaker came back. It is the form of zijn used with “Ik” in the full sentence. This auxiliary pattern is used when reporting the completed return.
meteen
In “meteen teruggekomen”, “meteen” means right away or immediately. It emphasizes that the speaker returned without delay. It can be placed before an action to show that it happened immediately.
teruggekomen
In “ben meteen teruggekomen”, “teruggekomen” means “came back” or “returned”. It describes the speaker’s return to the line after finding the wallet. It is used with “ben” when reporting this completed return.
kunt
In “Je kunt hier weer in de rij gaan staan”, “kunt” means “can” or “are able to”. It says that the other person can perform the action that follows. The opening “Je kunt” is useful for introducing an action someone can do.
weer
In “weer in de rij gaan staan”, “weer” means again or back in the sense of returning to an earlier situation. Here it marks rejoining the line. It can be used before an action that happens another time or resumes an earlier situation.
Grammar Points
proberen + te + infinitief
Ik probeer snel terug te komen.
ik proh-BAIR snel tuh-RUKH tuh KOH-muhn.I try to come back soon.
After proberen, Dutch uses te before the infinitive: proberen terug te komen.
Dutch Vocabulary
even
adv
AY-vuhn
for a moment; just
even vrijhouden
halen
verb
HAH-luhn
to get; to fetch
Ik ga hem nu halen.
laten liggen
phrase
LAH-tuhn LIG-uhn
to leave behind
Ik heb mijn portemonnee laten liggen.
mijn
det
mine
my
mijn plek
plek
noun
plehk
place; spot
mijn plek
portemonnee
noun
por-tuh-MOH-nay
wallet
mijn portemonnee
proberen
verb
proh-BAIR-uhn
to try
probeer
Probeer snel terug te komen.
snel
adv
snel
soon; quickly
Probeer snel terug te komen.
terugkomen
verb
tuh-RUKH-koh-muhn
to come back
terug te komen
Probeer snel terug te komen.
terwijl
conj
ter-VYLE
while
terwijl je weg bent
vrijhouden
verb
VRY-how-duhn
to save; to hold open
Kun je mijn plek even vrijhouden?
weg
adj
wekh
away
je weg bent
Quiz
Word Order
Arrange the words in the correct order.
Can you save my place for a minute?
Show Answer
Kun je mijn plek even vrijhouden?I left my wallet behind.
Show Answer
Ik heb mijn portemonnee laten liggen.Try to come back soon.
Show Answer
Probeer snel terug te komen.Spelling
Tap the letters to spell the word.
while
Show Answer
terwijlwallet
Show Answer
portemonneeplace; spot
Show Answer
plekfor a moment; just