Renewing a library book | Learn Dutch in English

About This Lesson

Use Renewing a library book to practice Dutch conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

Ik wil een boek dat ik heb geleend verlengen.

ik vil un book daht ik hep ghuh-LAYNT ver-LENG-uhn. I'd like to renew a book I borrowed.

Je kunt het via je online account verlengen.

yuh kuhnt ut VEE-ah yuh ON-line uh-KOWNT ver-LENG-uhn. You can renew it through your online account.

Ik kan vandaag niet in mijn account komen.

ik kahn van-DAHKH neet in mine uh-KOWNT KOH-muhn. I can't get into my account today.

We kunnen je bij de balie helpen.

vuh KUH-nuhn yuh bye duh BAH-lee HELP-uhn. We can help you at the desk.

Heb ik mijn bibliotheekpas nodig?

hep ik mine BIB-lee-oh-TAYK-pahs NOH-dikh? Do I need my library card?

Neem je pas mee, zodat we je gegevens kunnen vinden.

naym yuh pahs may, soh-DAHT vuh yuh ghuh-GHAY-vuhns KUH-nuhn VIN-duhn. Bring your card so we can find your record.

Kan ik het boek daarna vandaag nog verlengen?

kahn ik ut book dar-NAH van-DAHKH nokh ver-LENG-uhn? Can I renew the book today after that?

Dat kan, tenzij iemand anders het heeft aangevraagd.

daht kahn, ten-ZAY EE-muhnt AHN-duhrs ut hayft AHNG-uh-vrahkht. You can, unless someone else has requested it.

Word by Word

Ik ‘Ik’ means ‘I’ and refers to the speaker. It appears as ‘Ik’ at the beginning of a sentence and as ‘ik’ elsewhere, as in ‘dat ik heb geleend’; use it as the subject when talking about yourself.

wil ‘wil’ expresses the speaker’s wish or intention in ‘Ik wil een boek dat ik heb geleend verlengen’. It is followed by the action the speaker wants to carry out, so this pattern is useful when making a request at a library desk.

een ‘een’ means ‘a’ and introduces one unspecified book in ‘een boek’. It is used directly before a singular noun, such as ‘een boek’, when asking for or mentioning an item.

boek ‘boek’ means ‘book’ and is the item the speaker wants to renew. In ‘een boek dat ik heb geleend’, it is followed by information identifying which book; ‘boek’ is useful when discussing borrowed library items.

dat In ‘een boek dat ik heb geleend’, ‘dat’ introduces information describing the book: the speaker borrowed it. In ‘Dat kan’, the capitalized form refers back to the possible renewal; use ‘dat’ to connect a noun with a describing clause or to refer back to something already mentioned.

heb ‘heb’ helps form the completed borrowing phrase ‘ik heb geleend’, showing that the borrowing happened before the current request. It is useful with a past action when describing something you have done or borrowed.

geleend ‘geleend’ means ‘borrowed’ in ‘boek dat ik heb geleend’. Together with ‘heb’, it describes the book the speaker previously borrowed; use this form when identifying something borrowed earlier.

verlengen ‘verlengen’ means to renew or extend, here referring to extending the borrowing period of a book. It appears as the action after ‘wil’ and ‘kunt’; use it when asking or explaining whether a library loan can be extended.

Je In ‘Je kunt het via je online account verlengen’, ‘Je’ means ‘you’, while in ‘je pas’ and ‘je gegevens’ the same word means ‘your’. Its meaning depends on whether it is the subject before a verb or comes before a noun; use it when speaking directly to one person.

kunt ‘kunt’ means ‘can’ or ‘are able to’ in ‘Je kunt het via je online account verlengen’. It is followed by the action ‘verlengen’, making ‘Je kunt ... verlengen’ useful for explaining what someone is able to do.

het ‘het’ refers to the book in ‘Je kunt het via je online account verlengen’ and ‘tenzij iemand anders het heeft aangevraagd’. In ‘het boek’, it is the article before ‘boek’; use it either to refer back to the book or directly before ‘boek’.

via ‘via’ means ‘through’ or ‘by using’ and identifies the route in ‘via je online account’. It is useful before a channel or method when explaining how to complete an action.

online ‘online’ describes the account as one accessed through the internet in ‘je online account’. It comes before ‘account’ and is useful when distinguishing an internet-based account from help received at the desk.

account ‘account’ means ‘account’ and refers here to the learner’s online library account. In ‘je online account’, it follows the describing word and possessive; use it when discussing access to an online service.

kan ‘kan’ means ‘can’ in ‘Ik kan vandaag niet in mijn account komen’, while ‘Kan’ begins the question ‘Kan ik het boek daarna vandaag nog verlengen?’ and asks whether something is possible. Use ‘kan’ to describe ability or possibility and ‘Kan ik ...?’ to ask about your own possibility.

vandaag ‘vandaag’ means ‘today’ and limits the account-access problem to the current day in ‘Ik kan vandaag niet in mijn account komen’. It is useful when stating when an action or problem applies.

niet ‘niet’ means ‘not’ and negates the ability to get into the account in ‘Ik kan vandaag niet in mijn account komen’. It is placed before the access phrase here; use it to turn a statement about an action into a negative one.

in ‘in’ means ‘in’ or ‘into’ in ‘in mijn account komen’, where it marks entering or accessing the account. It is useful before an account or place when describing getting into it.

mijn ‘mijn’ means ‘my’ and shows that the account belongs to the speaker in ‘mijn account’. It comes directly before the noun and is useful for identifying something connected to the speaker.

komen ‘komen’ means ‘come’ or, in ‘in mijn account komen’, ‘get into’. After ‘kan’, it describes the action the speaker is unable to complete; use the pattern ‘in ... komen’ when talking about gaining access to something.

We ‘We’ means ‘we’ and refers to the library staff in ‘We kunnen je bij de balie helpen’. The lowercase form ‘we’ appears in ‘zodat we je gegevens kunnen vinden’; use it as the subject when speaking for yourself and another person or group.

kunnen ‘kunnen’ means ‘can’ or ‘are able to’ in ‘We kunnen je bij de balie helpen’. It is followed by the action ‘helpen’; use it to explain what a group is able to do for someone.

bij ‘bij’ means ‘at’ in ‘bij de balie’ and marks the location where the staff can help. It is useful before a place or service point when saying where assistance is available.

de ‘de’ is the article before ‘balie’ in ‘bij de balie’. It introduces this specific desk or counter; use it directly before the noun in this location phrase.

balie ‘balie’ means ‘desk’ or ‘counter’ and refers to the library service desk in ‘bij de balie’. Use it when directing someone to the place where library staff provide help.

helpen ‘helpen’ means ‘help’ in ‘We kunnen je bij de balie helpen’. It names the action that the staff can provide after ‘kunnen’; use it when offering assistance to someone.

bibliotheekpas ‘bibliotheekpas’ means ‘library card’ and identifies the card the speaker may need at the desk. It is the item placed between ‘mijn’ and ‘nodig’ in ‘mijn bibliotheekpas nodig’; use it when discussing library identification.

nodig ‘nodig’ means ‘needed’ in ‘Heb ik mijn bibliotheekpas nodig?’. Together with ‘hebben’, it asks whether the speaker requires the item; use the pattern ‘Heb ik ... nodig?’ for this purpose.

Neem ‘Neem’ gives the instruction to bring or take something along in ‘Neem je pas mee’. It is used at the beginning of a direct instruction; use this form when telling someone to bring an item.

pas ‘pas’ means ‘card’ in ‘je pas’ and refers to the library card mentioned earlier. It follows the possessive ‘je’; use it when referring to the card someone should bring to the desk.

mee ‘mee’ contributes the meaning ‘along’ or ‘with you’ in ‘Neem je pas mee’. Together with ‘Neem’, it makes clear that the card should be brought to the desk; use ‘Neem ... mee’ when instructing someone to bring something.

zodat ‘zodat’ means ‘so that’ and introduces the purpose of bringing the card in ‘zodat we je gegevens kunnen vinden’. It links the instruction to its reason; use it before a clause explaining what the action will make possible.

gegevens ‘gegevens’ means ‘details’ or ‘record information’ in ‘je gegevens’. Here it refers to the library information the staff need to locate; use it after a possessive when talking about someone’s stored details.

vinden ‘vinden’ means ‘find’ in ‘je gegevens kunnen vinden’. It is the action the staff can perform after ‘kunnen’; use it when describing locating a record or information.

daarna ‘daarna’ means ‘after that’ and places the renewal after the earlier step of getting help and bringing the card in ‘het boek daarna vandaag nog verlengen’. Use it to show the next action in a sequence.

nog ‘nog’ means ‘still’ or ‘yet’ in ‘vandaag nog verlengen’, showing that renewal remains possible during today. It is useful with a time expression when asking whether something can still happen within that period.

tenzij ‘tenzij’ means ‘unless’ and introduces the exception in ‘tenzij iemand anders het heeft aangevraagd’. It is useful when an action is possible except under one stated condition.

iemand ‘iemand’ means ‘someone’ and refers to an unspecified person in ‘iemand anders’. It is the person who may have requested the book; use it when the person is unknown or not named.

anders ‘anders’ means ‘else’ or ‘other’ in ‘iemand anders’, identifying a person different from the people in the conversation. Use it after ‘iemand’ when referring to another, unspecified person.

heeft ‘heeft’ helps form the completed request phrase ‘heeft aangevraagd’, showing that the request has already been made. It is useful when explaining that someone has already taken an action affecting the book.

aangevraagd ‘aangevraagd’ means ‘requested’ in ‘het heeft aangevraagd’, referring to someone else’s request for the book. Together with ‘heeft’, it explains why renewal may not be allowed; use it when a requested item may no longer be available.

Grammar Points

tenzij + bijzin

Tenzij iemand anders de gegevens vindt.

ten-ZAY EE-muhnt AHN-duhrs duh ghuh-GHAY-vuhns vint.

Unless someone else finds the details.

After tenzij, the subordinate clause places the conjugated verb at the end.

Daarna + werkwoord + onderwerp

Daarna vind ik de gegevens.

dar-NAH vint ik duh ghuh-GHAY-vuhns.

After that, I find the details.

When daarna starts the sentence, Dutch places the verb before the subject.

Dutch Vocabulary

account noun

uh-KOWNT account

Je kunt het via je online account verlengen.

balie noun

BAH-lee desk; counter

We kunnen je bij de balie helpen.

bibliotheekpas noun

BIB-lee-oh-TAYK-pahs library card

Heb ik mijn bibliotheekpas nodig?

geleend verb

ghuh-LAYNT borrowed

Ik wil een boek dat ik heb geleend verlengen.

helpen verb

HELP-uhn to help

We kunnen je bij de balie helpen.

komen verb

KOH-muhn to get; to come

Ik kan vandaag niet in mijn account komen.

nodig adj

NOH-dikh needed; necessary

Heb ik mijn bibliotheekpas nodig?

online adj

ON-line online

Je kunt het via je online account verlengen.

pas noun

pahs card

Neem je pas mee, zodat we je gegevens kunnen vinden.

vandaag adv

van-DAHKH today

Ik kan vandaag niet in mijn account komen.

verlengen verb

ver-LENG-uhn to renew; to extend

Ik wil een boek dat ik heb geleend verlengen.

via prep

VEE-ah via; through

Je kunt het via je online account verlengen.

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

Do I need my library card?

Show Answer

Heb ik mijn bibliotheekpas nodig?

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

today

Show Answer

vandaag

online

Show Answer

online

to help

Show Answer

helpen

account

Show Answer

account