Deciding the next task | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Wat zullen we nu doen?

   What should we do now?

   Wat

   what

   zullen we

   shall we

   nu

   now

   doen

   do

   More detail

   Wat asks for an unspecified thing or action: “what.” In this sentence it introduces the information being requested. Compare wie “who” for a person and waar “where” for a place. Example: Wat lees je? — “What are you reading?” zullen we is a reusable question construction with zullen and the subject pronoun we (“we”). Here zullen helps ask what action the group should or will choose, so zullen we ...? is commonly understood as “shall we ...?” or “what shall we ...?” The pronoun we refers to the speaker together with at least one other person; it is not the singular “I.” Example: Zullen we wachten? — “Shall we wait?” nu means “now,” locating the proposed action at the present time. It can also occur elsewhere in a Dutch sentence, but here it comes before the lexical verb and specifies when the action is relevant. doen is the infinitive “to do.” After the modal-like verb zullen, Dutch uses the infinitive, which appears at the end of this question. The infinitive is also used in Wat doen we? — “What are we doing?” Here, however, zullen we adds the meaning of asking about the group’s intended or appropriate next action. Together, Wat asks which action or thing, zullen we frames the question around the group’s intended action, nu means at the present time, and doen supplies the action “do.” Thus Wat zullen we nu doen? means “What should we do now?”

2. Laten we beginnen met de korte lijst.

   Let's start with the short list.

   Laten we

   let’s

   beginnen

   begin; start

   met

   with

   korte

   short

   lijst

   list

   More detail

   Laten we is the Dutch construction for “let’s” when suggesting that the speaker and others do something together. It is followed here by the infinitive beginnen. For example: Laten we wachten. — “Let’s wait.” beginnen means “to begin” or “to start.” This is the infinitive form, useful after laten we. A common pattern is beginnen met + a noun or activity: We beginnen met de les. — “We start with the lesson.” met means “with” here. In this pattern, it introduces what the starting action is connected to: beginnen met de oefening — “start with the exercise.” korte means “short” and describes lijst. Its base form is kort. Because it comes before the definite article de noun lijst, the adjective appears as korte: de korte lijst. The adjective agrees with the noun phrase in this form; the noun itself is not the source of the adjective’s form. lijst means “list.” It is a noun referring to an ordered set of items. Its plural is lijsten: korte lijsten — “short lists.” Together, Laten we beginnen gives “Let’s start,” and met de korte lijst specifies what to start with: “with the short list.” The complete utterance therefore means “Let’s start with the short list.”

3. Zullen we die afmaken voordat we het bestand bekijken?

   Should we finish it before reviewing the file?

   Zullen we

   shall we

   die

   it

   afmaken

   finish

   voordat

   before

   bestand

   file

   bekijken

   review

   More detail

   Zullen we is a reusable way to make a suggestion or ask about a joint action: “Shall we …?” Zullen is the present-tense form of zullen with we, and the inversion places it before the subject. After this construction, the main action stays in the infinitive. die is a demonstrative pronoun. Here the fixed translation supports the meaning “it”; its specific real-world referent is not identified by the sentence itself. In other contexts, die can also refer to a singular common-gender noun or to plural nouns, so its form alone does not identify the referent. afmaken means to finish or complete something. It is a separable verb: af + maken, but after a modal such as zullen, the infinitive afmaken remains together at the end of the main clause. The related verb maken by itself means “make,” while afmaken adds the sense of bringing something to completion. Example: We maken het werk af. — “We finish the work.” voordat introduces a clause meaning “before.” It connects the proposed action with the later-in-time action in the subordinate clause. In a Dutch subordinate clause, the finite verb commonly appears at the end: voordat we vertrekken — “before we leave.” bestand means “file,” especially a computer file or other stored document. It is a noun; the usual definite form is het bestand. Example: Ik open het bestand. — “I open the file.” bekijken means “to look at,” “examine,” or, in this context, “review.” Here it is the action in the voordat clause. Bekijken is also the infinitive form; with we in the present, we bekijken has the same written verb form. Example: We bekijken de gegevens. — “We review the data.” Together, Zullen we die afmaken asks whether the speakers should finish it, and voordat we het bestand bekijken sets reviewing the file as the action that comes afterward. The complete meaning is: “Should we finish it before reviewing the file?”

4. We kunnen de lijst snel afmaken als we het werk verdelen.

   We can get through it quickly if we split the work.

   We kunnen

   we can

   lijst

   list

   snel

   quickly

   afmaken

   finish; complete

   als we

   if we

   werk

   work

   verdelen

   divide; split

   More detail

   We kunnen means “we can.” we is the subject, and kunnen is the present-tense form of kunnen for “we”; it expresses ability or possibility here. In Dutch, a modal verb such as kunnen is followed by another verb in the infinitive: We kunnen vertrekken. — “We can leave.” lijst means “list.” The complete noun phrase is de lijst; de is the definite article, so this refers to a specific list in this utterance. Dutch nouns with de are in the common-gender article group; the article itself does not identify whether the noun refers to one or more items without further context. snel means “quickly” here. It describes how the completing happens. The same form can also mean “fast” when describing speed, but here it functions as an adverb. afmaken means “to finish” or “to complete.” Its base form is afmaken; in this sentence it remains an infinitive after kunnen: kunnen afmaken. Dutch afmaken is a separable verb in finite forms: Ik maak de lijst af. — “I finish the list.” After a modal verb, the infinitive stays together at the end of the main clause. als we introduces the condition “if we.” als is a conjunction, and we is the unstressed form of wij, meaning “we.” In the subordinate clause introduced by als, the finite verb normally comes at the end: als we het werk verdelen — “if we divide the work.” werk means “work.” In het werk, het is the definite article for this noun. Here werk refers to the work as a task or body of work, not to a single job position or workplace. verdelen means “to divide” or “to split.” It is an infinitive here, but because it is the finite verb of the als clause, its form is also used for the present tense with we: We verdelen het werk. — “We divide the work.” The subject we makes the action shared by the speakers and possibly others included with them. Together, We kunnen de lijst snel afmaken means “We can finish the list quickly.” The conditional clause als we het werk verdelen adds the condition “if we split the work.” Thus the whole utterance means: “We can get through it quickly if we split the work.”

5. Dan doe ik het eerste deel.

   Then I'll take the first part.

   Dan

   then

   doe ik

   I’ll do / handle

   eerste

   first

   deel

   part

   More detail

   Dan means “then” and places this action after the earlier situation. It can introduce the next step in a plan. Example: Dan gaan we. — “Then we’ll go.” doe ik uses doe, the first-person singular present form of doen (“to do”), with ik (“I”). Here doen means taking responsibility for or handling something. After an element such as Dan at the start, Dutch uses verb–subject order: Dan doe ik ... (“Then I ...”). The present tense can describe a planned action, which is why the translation uses “I’ll.” eerste means “first.” It is the irregular ordinal form corresponding to één (“one”); in this sentence it identifies position in an order rather than stating a quantity. Example: de eerste dag — “the first day.” deel means “part” or “section.” Its plural is delen. Here it refers to one portion of the work. Example: Dit deel is kort. — “This part is short.” Together, Dan doe ik means “Then I’ll handle,” and het eerste deel means “the first part.” het is the definite article used with the neuter noun deel; with the adjective, the phrase is het eerste deel. The whole utterance therefore means “Then I’ll take the first part,” assigning that portion of the divided work to the speaker.

6. Ik doe de rest.

   I'll handle the rest.

   Ik

   I

   doe

   handle; do

   de rest

   the rest

   More detail

   Ik means “I.” It is the first-person singular pronoun, used for the speaker. The same form is used regardless of the speaker’s gender. Example: Ik leer Nederlands. — “I am learning Dutch.” doe is the present-tense first-person singular form of doen (“to do”). In this sentence, doen is used in the practical sense “to handle” or “to take care of,” rather than simply describing an unspecified action. The present form is ik doe; with another subject, the form changes, for example wij doen — “we do/handle.” de rest means “the rest,” referring to what remains after the first part. rest is a noun, and de is the definite article used with it. Example: Ik neem de rest mee. — “I’ll take the rest with me.” Together, Ik doe de rest. literally has the structure “I do/handle the rest.” In the supplied context, it follows the statement about taking the first part, so the whole utterance means “I’ll handle the rest.”

7. Daarna kunnen we alles bekijken wat niet duidelijk is.

   After that, we can review anything unclear.

   Daarna

   after that

   kunnen we

   we can

   alles

   everything; anything

   bekijken

   review; look at

   wat

   what; that which

   niet

   not

   duidelijk

   clear

   is

   is

   More detail

   Daarna is a time adverb meaning “after that” or “afterwards.” It points back to an earlier event without specifying a new time. Example: Daarna ga ik naar huis. — “After that, I go home.” kunnen we combines the modal verb kunnen with the subject pronoun we. In this sentence, kunnen means “are able to” or “can,” and we means “we.” With a modal verb, the other verb normally appears later in the infinitive: We kunnen het bekijken. — “We can look at it.” The order kunnen we is also natural here because the sentence begins with Daarna; the finite verb comes before the subject after that initial element. alles means “everything” in this sentence. It is a pronoun, so it can stand on its own rather than modifying a noun. The following clause specifies which things are meant: alles wat ... means “everything that ...” or, in this translation, “anything ...”. bekijken is the infinitive meaning “to look at,” “to examine,” or “to review.” It is the lexical verb governed by kunnen; the modal carries the finite form, while bekijken stays in the infinitive. Example: We kunnen het document bekijken. — “We can review the document.” wat introduces the clause describing alles. Here it means “what” or “that which,” not a question word asking for information. The pattern alles wat + clause is reusable: alles wat belangrijk is — “everything that is important.” niet negates the following description. In niet duidelijk, it changes “clear” into “not clear.” Dutch normally places niet before the adjective or other element being negated in this kind of clause. duidelijk is an adjective meaning “clear” or “easy to understand.” In this sentence it describes whether something is clear, rather than modifying a noun directly. Its opposite is onduidelijk, “unclear.” Example: De instructie is duidelijk. — “The instruction is clear.” is is the present-tense form of zijn, “to be,” for a singular subject. In wat niet duidelijk is, it completes the description “that which is not clear.” The finite verb appears at the end of this subordinate relative clause, as is typical in Dutch. Together, alles wat niet duidelijk is means “everything that is not clear,” and kunnen ... bekijken expresses the ability or possibility of reviewing it. With Daarna and we, the complete utterance means: “After that, we can review anything unclear.”

8. Ik open het bestand als de lijst klaar is.

   I'll open the file when the list is done.

   Ik

   I

   open

   open

   bestand

   file

   als

   when

   lijst

   list

   klaar

   done

   More detail

   Ik is the first-person singular pronoun, meaning “I.” It identifies the speaker as the one who will perform the action. The corresponding plural pronoun is wij or we, meaning “we,” as in Wij openen het bestand. — “We open the file.” open is the first-person singular present-tense form of openen, “to open.” Dutch uses the present tense here for a planned or expected future action; the English translation expresses that with “I’ll open.” The same form can also describe a present action: Ik open de deur. — “I open the door” or “I’m opening the door,” depending on context. bestand is a neuter noun meaning “file.” In this sentence it appears in the definite noun phrase het bestand, “the file”; het is the definite article used with this noun. Its plural is bestanden: De bestanden zijn groot. — “The files are large.” als introduces the condition or time point here and is best translated as “when.” In als de lijst klaar is, it links the opening to the time when the list is finished. A useful reusable pattern is als + clause, as in Ik bel je als ik thuis ben. — “I’ll call you when I’m home.” lijst is a common-gender noun meaning “list.” Here it occurs as de lijst, “the list,” with the definite article de. The phrase refers to the list identified by the conversation, without adding any further information about its contents. klaar is an adjective meaning “ready” or “done.” In this sentence, applied to de lijst, it means that the list is finished. It is used predicatively after is, so it does not receive an ending: De taak is klaar. — “The task is done.” The verb is is the third-person singular present form of zijn, “to be.” The subordinate clause als de lijst klaar is has Dutch subordinate-clause word order: the finite verb is comes at the end. The main clause comes first, Ik open het bestand, and the als clause specifies when that action occurs. Together, Ik open het bestand als de lijst klaar is. means “I’ll open the file when the list is done.”