A weekly cleaning schedule | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. We hebben een beter schoonmaakschema voor het appartement nodig.

   We need a better cleaning schedule for the apartment.

   hebben

   have

   beter

   better

   schoonmaakschema

   cleaning schedule

   appartement

   apartment

   nodig

   needed

   More detail

   hebben is the form of hebben used with we (“we have”). In this sentence it participates in the reusable Dutch pattern iets nodig hebben: “to need something.” Dutch places nodig after the thing that is needed, even though English normally puts “need” before its object. beter means “better” here and is the comparative form of goed (“good”): goed → beter → best. It describes schoonmaakschema, so the sentence asks for an improved schedule, not merely a schedule. schoonmaakschema is a compound noun meaning “cleaning schedule”: schoonmaak refers to cleaning and schema to a schedule or plan. Dutch commonly combines nouns into one written word. The noun is neuter, as shown by het in het schoonmaakschema; the form beter itself does not show this gender distinction here. appartement means “apartment.” It is also a neuter noun: het appartement. In voor het appartement, voor means “for,” identifying the apartment that the schedule is intended for. nodig means “needed” or “necessary” in the construction nodig hebben. For example, We hebben meer tijd nodig. means “We need more time.” In the fixed sentence, nodig comes last because Dutch keeps this part of the construction after the object. Together, We hebben (“we need/have”), een beter schoonmaakschema (“a better cleaning schedule”), voor het appartement (“for the apartment”), and nodig form: “We need a better cleaning schedule for the apartment.” The indefinite article een introduces the requested schedule but does not by itself state a numerical count.

2. We hebben de klusjes niet eerlijk verdeeld.

   We have not been dividing the chores evenly.

   We hebben

   we have

   klusjes

   chores

   niet

   not

   eerlijk

   fairly; evenly

   verdeeld

   divided

   More detail

   We hebben introduces the subject we and the verb hebben (“have”). Here hebben is the finite auxiliary used with the following past participle. Its present-tense forms include ik heb, jij hebt, and we hebben. In this sentence, it does not mean possession. klusjes means “chores” here. It is the plural of klusje, “chore”; klusje is a diminutive form related to klus, “job/task”. The article de before it marks this plural noun phrase. Example: De klusjes zijn klaar. — “The chores are finished.” niet places the negation on the clause: the dividing was not done in the stated way. Its exact scope is completed by the surrounding words, so niet eerlijk means “not evenly/fairly,” rather than simply denying that any dividing occurred. eerlijk means “fairly” here, describing how the chores were divided. The same form can also be the adjective “fair” when it describes a noun, as in een eerlijke verdeling — “a fair division.” In this sentence it functions adverbially, modifying verdeeld. verdeeld is the past participle of verdelen, “to divide/distribute.” The pattern hebben + verdeeld forms a perfect construction: We hebben ... verdeeld means “we have divided ...”. With negation and eerlijk, the sentence says that the chores have not been divided evenly. Example: Ik heb de taken eerlijk verdeeld. — “I divided the tasks fairly.” Together, de klusjes ... verdeeld identifies the chores as what was divided, while niet eerlijk says the distribution was not even or fair. The complete utterance therefore means: “We have not been dividing the chores evenly.”

3. Ik kan zaterdagochtend de planken afstoffen.

   I can dust the shelves on Saturday morning.

   Ik kan

   I can

   zaterdagochtend

   Saturday morning

   planken

   shelves

   afstoffen

   to dust

   More detail

   Ik kan means “I can” here. kan is the present-tense form of kunnen with ik; it expresses ability or possibility. With this modal verb, the other verb normally stays in the infinitive and comes later: Ik kan koken. — “I can cook.” zaterdagochtend is a compound meaning “Saturday morning”: zaterdag (“Saturday”) + ochtend (“morning”). It functions as a time expression. Dutch can place such a time expression before the object and infinitive, as in this sentence. planken means “shelves” here. It is the plural of plank, “shelf” or, in other contexts, “board.” The plural ending is -en: één plank — “one shelf”; twee planken — “two shelves.” The fixed translation identifies the intended sense as shelves. afstoffen means “to dust.” It is a separable verb: in a main clause with a finite verb, the parts separate, as in Ik stof de planken af. — “I dust the shelves.” After kan, it remains an infinitive, so the complete form afstoffen appears at the end: Ik kan de planken afstoffen. — “I can dust the shelves.” Together, Ik kan + zaterdagochtend + de planken + afstoffen gives: “I can dust the shelves on Saturday morning.” The sentence presents dusting the shelves as an ability or available possibility, with zaterdagochtend specifying when it can happen.

4. Dan dweil ik na de lunch de keuken.

   Then I'll mop the kitchen after lunch.

   Dan

   then

   dweil

   mop

   na de lunch

   after lunch

   keuken

   kitchen

   More detail

   Dan means “then” here, marking the time or sequence of the action. It can also begin a Dutch main clause; when it does, the finite verb normally comes next. dweil is the finite present form of dweilen (“to mop”). In this sentence it agrees with ik: ik dweil = “I mop / I’ll mop.” The future meaning comes from the context, not from a special future inflection. Compare wij dweilen = “we mop.” Although dweil can also be an imperative in another context, the following ik makes it the first-person verb here. The subject ik appears after the verb because Dan occupies the first position of the main clause. This is a reusable Dutch word-order pattern: Morgen ga ik ... = “Tomorrow I’m going ...” na de lunch means “after lunch.” na introduces the time that follows an event or period. The article de belongs to the noun phrase de lunch; it does not itself assert a numerical quantity. keuken is the noun “kitchen.” Its usual singular form with the article is de keuken; the plural is keukens. Together, Dan dweil ik na de lunch de keuken. means “Then I’ll mop the kitchen after lunch.” The structure is Dan + finite verb + subject + time phrase + object: “Then mop I after lunch the kitchen.” In natural English, this is “Then I’ll mop the kitchen after lunch.”

5. Zullen we de badkamer elke zondag schoonmaken?

   Should we clean the bathroom every Sunday?

   Zullen we

   shall we

   badkamer

   bathroom

   elke

   every

   zondag

   Sunday

   schoonmaken

   clean

   More detail

   Zullen we is a reusable Dutch way to propose an action: “shall we …?” Here we is the subject, and zullen is the present form of zullen. In this question, it introduces a suggestion rather than simply stating a future event. Dutch commonly places the finite verb before the subject in a yes/no question: Zullen we ...? badkamer is the noun meaning “bathroom.” It is a compound noun, written as one word. In this sentence it appears with the definite article de: de badkamer (“the bathroom”). elke means “every” or “each” and presents a repeated occurrence. It is used here with the singular noun zondag: elke zondag (“every Sunday”). This pattern is useful for regular schedules, for example: elke ochtend — “every morning.” zondag is the noun “Sunday.” With elke, it remains singular because the pattern refers to each Sunday in the recurring series: elke zondag. schoonmaken means “to clean.” Its infinitive form is used after zullen; after this modal-like auxiliary, Dutch uses the bare infinitive, without te. For example: Zullen we morgen koken? — “Shall we cook tomorrow?” Together, Zullen we introduces the suggestion, de badkamer identifies what is to be cleaned, elke zondag specifies the recurring time, and schoonmaken names the proposed action. The complete meaning is: “Should we clean the bathroom every Sunday?”

6. Zondag is logisch, omdat de badkamer snel vies wordt.

   Sunday makes sense because it gets dirty quickly.

   Zondag

   Sunday

   logisch

   logical; makes sense

   omdat

   because

   badkamer

   bathroom

   snel

   quickly

   vies

   dirty

   wordt

   becomes; gets

   More detail

   Zondag means “Sunday” here and is the grammatical subject: Sunday is being presented as the day that makes sense. Dutch day names are normally written with a lowercase letter; Zondag is capitalized here because it begins the sentence. Example: Maandag is druk. — “Monday is busy.” logisch is an adjective meaning “logical” or, in this sentence, “makes sense.” The related predicate pattern is iets is logisch: “something makes sense.” Here is is the third-person singular present form of zijn (“to be”), because Zondag is singular. Example: Dat is logisch. — “That makes sense.” omdat introduces the reason: “because.” In a Dutch omdat clause, the finite verb normally comes at the end. That is why wordt appears after vies, rather than directly after the subject. de badkamer means “the bathroom.” Badkamer is a compound noun, literally combining “bath” and “room,” but it is used as the ordinary word for “bathroom.” Its article is de, so the phrase is de badkamer. Example: De badkamer is klein. — “The bathroom is small.” snel means “quickly” here. It describes how fast the change happens: the bathroom gets dirty quickly. The same form can also mean “quick” when it describes something such as a person or vehicle, so its role is determined by the sentence. vies is an adjective meaning “dirty.” In vies wordt, it describes the new condition reached by the subject. Example: De vloer wordt vies. — “The floor gets dirty.” wordt is the third-person singular present form of worden, “to become” or “to get.” The form chain is worden → wordt for hij/zij/het in the present tense. Here it expresses a change of state, not simply a permanent description: the bathroom becomes dirty. Compare De badkamer is vies — “The bathroom is dirty,” which describes its state, with De badkamer wordt vies — “The bathroom gets dirty,” which focuses on the change. Together, Zondag is logisch says that Sunday makes sense as the relevant day. omdat de badkamer snel vies wordt gives the reason: the bathroom gets dirty quickly. The complete meaning is “Sunday makes sense because the bathroom gets dirty quickly.”

7. Ik leg het schema op de koelkast.

   I'll put the schedule on the fridge.

   Ik

   I

   leg

   put; place

   schema

   schedule

   koelkast

   fridge

   More detail

   Ik means “I” and is the first-person singular subject form. Dutch subject pronouns include ik “I,” jij/je “you” (singular), and wij/we “we”; the verb form must match the subject. leg is the present-tense first-person singular form of leggen, “to put/place.” The useful pattern is ik leg = “I put/place.” Dutch can use the present tense for a planned or intended action, which is why this sentence is naturally translated with “I’ll put.” Do not confuse leggen “put/place something” with liggen “lie/be situated”: Ik leg het boek op tafel means “I put the book on the table,” while Het boek ligt op tafel means “The book is on the table.” het is the definite article “the” here. schema is a neuter het-word, so its definite form is het schema. Een schema means “a schedule”; the article een marks an indefinite noun phrase, not a stated numerical count. schema means “schedule” here. Its plural is schema’s, “schedules.” Example: Ik bekijk het schema. — “I look at the schedule.” op de koelkast is the location phrase “on the fridge.” op expresses position on a surface, and de is the definite article used with koelkast, a de-word. koelkast means “fridge” and is a compound containing koel “cool” and kast “cupboard/cabinet,” but it functions as one noun. Contrast in de koelkast — “in the fridge,” where in changes the location relationship. Putting the parts together, Ik leg supplies the actor and the placing action, het schema is the thing being placed, and op de koelkast gives its destination or resulting location. The complete meaning is: “I’ll put the schedule on the fridge.”

8. Dat zou ons moeten helpen om elke taak te onthouden.

   That should help us remember each task.

   Dat

   that

   zou … moeten

   should

   ons

   us

   helpen

   help

   elke

   each

   taak

   task

   onthouden

   remember

   More detail

   Dat is a demonstrative pronoun used here as the subject. It means “that,” with the specific thing or situation left to the surrounding context; the translation confirms this intended reading. As a pronoun, it is different from die, which is used for certain other demonstrative references. zou moeten is a useful Dutch pattern for “should” or “would be expected to.” zou is the singular form of the conditional/past form of zullen, while moeten remains an infinitive after it. Together they express an expected or advisable result, not a firm statement that the result has already happened. For example: Dat zou werken. — “That should work.” ons is the object form meaning “us.” The related subject form is wij or the less emphatic we: Wij helpen hen. — “We help them.” Here ons receives the effect of helping; it is not the subject of the sentence. helpen means “to help.” It is an infinitive, and it follows the modal construction zou moeten. A useful pattern is iets helpt iemand — “something helps someone.” In this sentence, Dat is the thing that helps, and ons is the group helped. elke means “each” or “every” and is used before a singular countable noun: elke taak means “each task.” It is not itself a statement that there is a particular numeric total; it presents the tasks one by one as a group. Compare alle taken, “all tasks,” where the noun is plural. taak is the noun “task.” Its plural is taken: een taak — “a task”; twee taken — “two tasks.” The form stays singular after elke. onthouden means “to remember” or “to retain.” It is an infinitive after om te: om iets te onthouden means “to remember something.” The infinitive is also the form used after a modal verb, as in moeten onthouden, “must remember.” The sentence combines the parts as Dat zou ons moeten helpen (“That should help us”) and om elke taak te onthouden (“to remember each task”). Thus the complete meaning is: “That should help us remember each task.”