Checking a message before sending | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Kun je dit bericht controleren?

   Can you check this message?

   Kun je

   can you

   dit

   this

   bericht

   message

   controleren

   check

   More detail

   Kun je means “can you” here. The verb kunnen is the base form; kun je is its present-tense form with the subject je (“you”). In a yes/no question, the finite verb comes before the subject: Kun je ...? Compare the statement Je kunt ... (“You can ...”). Dutch also has kan je in informal usage, but the observed form here is kun je. dit means “this” and agrees with the singular neuter noun bericht in this sentence. It is a demonstrative form used with a singular neuter noun; it does not independently assert a numerical count beyond that grammatical pattern. Example: Dit boek is interessant. — “This book is interesting.” bericht means “message.” It is a neuter Dutch noun, as shown by the combination dit bericht; its plural is berichten. Depending on context, it can refer to a written or electronic message. Example: Ik lees een bericht. — “I am reading a message.” controleren is the infinitive “to check.” Its base form ends in -en, and it follows the finite verb in this question: Kun je dit bericht controleren? After the modal verb kunnen, Dutch uses an infinitive for the action. Example: Kun je de naam controleren? — “Can you check the name?” Together, Kun je asks about the addressee’s ability to perform the action, dit bericht identifies the message being checked, and controleren names that action. The complete utterance therefore means “Can you check this message?”

2. Ik kan het nu lezen.

   I can read it now.

   Ik kan

   I can

   het

   it

   nu

   now

   lezen

   read

   More detail

   Ik kan combines ik (“I”) with kan, the first-person singular present form of kunnen (“can; be able to”). The subject is therefore the speaker. In a main clause, a modal such as kan is followed by the other verb in its infinitive form. het is the object pronoun “it” here. In the supplied context, it refers to the message being checked. Dutch het can also be a definite article, but in this sentence it stands independently as the object of lezen. nu is the adverb “now”; it places the reading ability or action in the present moment. For example: Ik werk nu. — “I am working now.” lezen is the infinitive “to read.” It keeps this form after kan: Ik kan het lezen. — “I can read it.” The form kan expresses ability, while lezen names the action that is possible. Together, Ik kan + het + nu + lezen means “I can read it now.” The modal kan comes before the object and the time adverb, while the infinitive lezen comes at the end of this main clause.

3. Ziet het er duidelijk uit?

   Does it look clear?

   Ziet … er … uit

   looks

   het

   it

   duidelijk

   clear

   More detail

   Ziet … er … uit together represent the separable Dutch verb eruitzien, “to look” or “to appear.” The infinitive is eruitzien; in a present-tense main-clause question, ziet is the form of zien used with the singular subject het, while the separable parts er and uit occur later in the clause. Compare: Het ziet er goed uit. — “It looks good.” het is a neuter singular pronoun meaning “it” here. The fixed translation supports that pronoun meaning, but the supplied sentence does not identify exactly what “it” refers to. Dutch also uses het in some impersonal constructions, so its specific role depends on the construction and context. duidelijk means “clear” in this sentence. This form can also function adverbially without a spelling change, but here it describes how something appears in the eruitzien construction. Example: De uitleg ziet er duidelijk uit. — “The explanation looks clear.” This example introduces a new subject to show the reusable pattern. The sentence uses the yes/no-question pattern Ziet + subject + er + adjective + uit?: the finite verb ziet comes first, het is the subject, and er ... uit completes the separable verb. Together, Ziet het er duidelijk uit? means “Does it look clear?” or “Does it appear clear?”

4. Het belangrijkste punt is makkelijk te begrijpen.

   The main point is easy to understand.

   belangrijkste

   most important; main

   punt

   point

   makkelijk

   easy

   te begrijpen

   to understand

   More detail

   belangrijkste means “most important” here. It is the superlative of the adjective belangrijk (“important”): belangrijk → belangrijker (“more important”) → belangrijkste (“most important”). The superlative identifies the highest degree within a relevant group; here it describes punt. punt is a noun meaning “point.” In this sentence it refers to the main point or central idea being discussed. Dutch nouns are commonly introduced with an article; the form het punt uses the neuter definite article het. makkelijk means “easy” here. It is an adjective describing how readily the point can be understood. The same form can also function adverbially in other sentences, but here it follows is and describes the subject. te begrijpen means “to understand.” begrijpen is the base verb, and te introduces its infinitive in this construction. After an adjective such as makkelijk, te + infinitive expresses that an action is easy or difficult to carry out. For example: Dit boek is moeilijk te lezen. — “This book is difficult to read.” The sentence begins with Het belangrijkste punt, “the main point.” is links that noun phrase to the description makkelijk te begrijpen, literally presenting the point as easy to understand. Together, the complete utterance means: “The main point is easy to understand.”

5. Zie je fouten?

   Do you see any mistakes?

   Zie

   see

   je

   you

   fouten

   mistakes

   More detail

   Zie is the present-tense form of zien (“to see”) for the second-person singular in this question. Dutch yes/no questions commonly place the finite verb before the subject: Zie je ...? means “Do you see ...?” Here Zie is not an imperative such as “Look!”; the following subject je and the question structure show that it is a finite verb. je is the unstressed second-person singular pronoun meaning “you” here, and it is the subject of zie. In Dutch, subject–verb inversion in a yes/no question places this pronoun after the finite verb. The stressed counterpart is jij, as in Zie jij de fout? (“Do you see the mistake?”), while je is the usual unstressed form in this sentence. fouten is the plural of the noun fout, meaning “mistake” or “error.” The plural ending is -en: fout → fouten. Dutch uses this bare plural in the question; together with the question’s open possibility, it corresponds naturally to “any mistakes” in the fixed translation. The noun itself does not specify how many mistakes there are. The pieces combine as Zie je (“Do you see”) + fouten (“mistakes”), giving the complete meaning “Do you see any mistakes?” It is a concise yes/no question asking whether the addressee notices one or more mistakes.

6. Ik zie aan het einde één kleine spelfout.

   I see one small spelling mistake near the end.

   Ik

   I

   zie

   see

   aan het einde

   near the end

   één

   one

   kleine

   small

   spelfout

   spelling mistake

   More detail

   Ik is the Dutch first-person singular subject pronoun, “I.” It identifies the speaker as the one carrying out the action. A useful contrast is jij or je for “you” when addressing one person. zie means “see” here. It is the present-tense first-person singular form of zien, “to see”: ik zie. The same verb has other forms, such as je ziet (“you see”) and hij ziet (“he sees”); the -t appears in those third-person and second-person forms, not in ik zie. aan het einde means “near/at the end.” This is a fixed location expression: aan introduces the relevant position, and het einde is “the end.” The sentence places the spelling mistake toward the end, without specifying an exact position. één means “one” here, with an accent marking emphasis on the exact number. It identifies a single spelling mistake. The unaccented form een is the indefinite article “a/an,” so één and een are distinguished in writing when the number needs emphasis. kleine means “small” and describes spelfout. Its base form is klein. In this phrase, kleine is the attributive form used before the singular noun spelfout; the adjective agrees with the noun phrase in the form required here. For example, een kleine fout means “a small mistake.” spelfout means “spelling mistake.” It is a Dutch compound made from spel in the sense of spelling and fout, “mistake/error.” Its plural is spelfouten, with the plural ending added to the compound’s final part. For example, Ik zie een spelfout. means “I see a spelling mistake.” Together, Ik zie gives “I see,” aan het einde locates what is seen near the end, and één kleine spelfout identifies it as exactly one small spelling mistake. The complete utterance therefore means: “I see one small spelling mistake near the end.”

7. Ik verbeter dat nu.

   I will fix that now.

   Ik

   I

   verbeter

   fix; improve

   dat

   that

   nu

   now

   More detail

   Ik is the Dutch first-person singular pronoun, meaning “I.” It identifies the speaker as the agent of the action. A useful contrast is jij or je for “you”: Ik verbeter de tekst. — “I improve the text.” verbeter is the first-person singular present form of verbeteren, “to improve” or “to fix.” The stem is verbeter-; the ending is not separately visible here because Dutch present-tense forms use the stem for ik: ik verbeter, while jij verbetert has -t. In this utterance, the action is understood as fixing the previously mentioned spelling mistake. The Dutch present can also refer to an immediate planned action, so with nu this corresponds to “I will fix it now.” dat means “that” here and stands independently as a demonstrative pronoun for the item to be fixed. In this context, the item is the spelling mistake mentioned earlier. Dutch contrasts singular neuter demonstratives such as dit (“this”) and dat (“that”); the choice depends on the demonstrative and noun-grammar context, not simply on English word order. Example: Ik verbeter dat. — “I improve/fix that.” nu means “now,” locating the fixing at the present moment. It can be contrasted with later, “later”: Ik verbeter dat later. — “I will fix that later.” Together, Ik verbeter dat nu means “I will fix that now.” The sentence presents the speaker as the person who will immediately correct the identified item, with the Dutch present form verbeter expressing the immediate action.

8. Daarna is het klaar om te versturen.

   After that, it should be ready to send.

   Daarna

   after that; afterwards

   is

   is

   het

   it

   klaar

   ready

   om te versturen

   to send

   More detail

   Daarna means “after that” or “afterwards.” It is an adverb that places this event after an already mentioned event. Example: Daarna ga ik naar huis. — “After that, I go home.” is is the present-tense form of zijn (“to be”) for a singular subject in the third person. Here it links the subject to its state: “is.” Dutch present tense does not itself express the English expectation in “should”; that nuance comes from the fixed translation and context. het is the neuter singular subject pronoun, translated here as “it.” In this utterance, it refers to the thing being discussed and worked on; the Dutch form marks the pronoun’s grammatical class, not a newly specified participant. Compare the plural pronoun ze or zij for “they” in a plural reference. klaar is an adjective meaning “ready.” In is klaar, it describes the subject’s state. Example: De brief is klaar. — “The letter is ready.” om te versturen is the construction om te + infinitive. versturen is the base verb “to send” or “to dispatch”; the te-infinitive expresses the action for which something is ready. In klaar om te versturen, the natural meaning is “ready to send” or “ready to be sent,” with the item being sent understood from context. Example: Het pakket is klaar om te versturen. — “The package is ready to be sent.” Together, Daarna sets the time sequence, is het klaar says that it is ready, and om te versturen specifies the intended next action. The complete meaning is: “After that, it should be ready to send.”