Planning for a very hot day | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Het wordt vandaag echt heel warm.

   It's going to be really hot today.

   Het wordt

   it’s becoming / it’s going to be

   vandaag

   today

   echt

   really

   heel

   very

   warm

   hot; warm

   More detail

   Het wordt is a useful Dutch pattern for a change of state: literally, “it becomes,” and here naturally “it’s going to become.” Wordt is the present-tense form of worden (“to become”) for hij/zij/het; the infinitive is worden. In this weather statement, het is an impersonal subject, not a specifically identified object. For example: Het wordt donker. — “It’s getting dark.” Vandaag means “today” and places the situation on the current day. It is a time adverb and does not change form. For example: Vandaag werk ik thuis. — “Today I work from home.” Echt means “really” here and strengthens the description that follows. It can also mean “real” or “genuine” when it describes a noun, but that is a different use. For example: Dat is echt goed. — “That is really good.” Heel means “very” before an adjective and increases its intensity. In this use it is an adverb, not the adjective meaning “whole” or “entire.” For example: De koffie is heel heet. — “The coffee is very hot.” Warm means “warm” here and describes the temperature. It is an adjective. Its basic comparison is warm (“warm”), warmer (“warmer”), het warmst (“the warmest”). The following context uses the related superlative heetste for “hottest,” but that is a different adjective form and is not part of this utterance. Together, Het wordt presents a change toward a state, vandaag specifies when, and echt heel warm intensifies the temperature description. The complete meaning is: “It’s going to be really hot today.”

2. Laten we tijdens het heetste deel van de dag niet wandelen.

   Let's avoid walking during the hottest part of the day.

   Laten we

   let's

   tijdens

   during

   heetste

   hottest

   deel

   part

   dag

   day

   niet

   not

   wandelen

   walk

   More detail

   Laten we is a reusable Dutch construction for making a suggestion involving the speaker and at least one other person: “let’s …”. It is followed by an infinitive, as in Laten we beginnen (“Let’s begin”). The form laten here belongs to this suggestion pattern; it is not the ordinary meaning “to let” in isolation. tijdens introduces the time period in which something happens and means “during”. It is normally followed by a noun phrase: tijdens de pauze means “during the break”. heetste is the superlative of the adjective heet (“hot”): heet → heter (“hotter”) → heetste (“hottest”). In het heetste deel, the superlative describes deel; het is the accompanying definite article for this neuter noun phrase. The adjective expresses the highest degree within the relevant comparison, not merely “very hot”. deel means “part” or “portion”. The pattern het ... deel van ... can identify a part of a larger whole, for example het eerste deel van de film (“the first part of the film”). dag means “day”. In van de dag, van links this part to the whole: literally, “part of the day”. The phrase de dag uses the common-gender definite article de; this is separate from the het in het heetste deel, which belongs to the neuter noun deel. niet is the usual Dutch negation marker here. Placed before the infinitive wandelen, it negates the proposed activity: “not walk”. wandelen is the infinitive meaning “to walk”, often with the sense of taking a walk or walking for recreation. Dutch infinitives commonly end in -en; the same form follows Laten we: Laten we wandelen means “Let’s walk”. Together, Laten we ... niet wandelen makes a suggestion not to carry out the activity. tijdens het heetste deel van de dag specifies when the avoidance should apply. Thus the complete utterance means: “Let’s avoid walking during the hottest part of the day.”

3. Ik smeer me in met zonnebrand voordat we vertrekken.

   I'll put on sunscreen before we leave.

   smeer me in

   apply something to myself

   zonnebrand

   sunscreen

   voordat

   before

   vertrekken

   leave; depart

   More detail

   smeer me in expresses applying something to oneself. In this sentence, smeer is the first-person singular present form of smeren (“to apply/spread”), and me is the reflexive object referring to the speaker. in belongs with the separable verb insmeren; in a finite main clause, its parts appear apart: Ik smeer me in. The phrase itself does not specify what is applied; met zonnebrand supplies that information. Example: Ik smeer me in. — “I apply something to myself.” zonnebrand means sunscreen in this context. It is the substance applied, in the pattern me insmeren met zonnebrand (“put sunscreen on oneself”). The sentence does not state a numerical amount; zonnebrand names the substance. voordat introduces a time clause meaning “before.” It connects the main-clause action with the later action in that clause. In a Dutch subordinate clause introduced by voordat, the finite verb is placed at the end of the clause. vertrekken means “to leave” or “to depart.” Here it is the present-tense plural form used with we; it has the same spelling as the infinitive vertrekken. Thus we vertrekken means “we leave,” while vertrekken can also be the infinitive in another construction. Example: Voordat we vertrekken, drinken we water. — “Before we leave, we drink water.” Together, Ik smeer me in met zonnebrand says “I’ll put sunscreen on myself,” and voordat we vertrekken adds the time relation “before we leave.” The complete utterance therefore means: “I’ll put on sunscreen before we leave.”

4. Blijf ook in de schaduw wanneer je kunt.

   Stay in the shade whenever you can, too.

   Blijf

   stay

   ook

   also; too

   schaduw

   shade

   wanneer je kunt

   whenever you can

   More detail

   Blijf is the imperative form of blijven, “to stay” or “to remain.” Dutch imperatives normally omit the subject, so blijf gives a direct instruction without stating whether the addressee is one person or more than one. Example: Blijf hier. — “Stay here.” ook adds “also” or “too” to the instruction. Here it presents staying in the shade as an additional piece of advice. schaduw means “shade.” In the full phrase in de schaduw, the article de belongs to the noun phrase: in de schaduw means “in the shade.” Schaduw is a Dutch common-gender noun and therefore takes de, not het. Example: We zitten in de schaduw. — “We are sitting in the shade.” wanneer je kunt means “whenever you can.” wanneer introduces the relevant time or condition, and je kunt is the second-person singular present form of kunnen, “can” or “be able to.” Here it refers to occasions when staying in the shade is possible, without specifying why. Example: Kom wanneer je kunt. — “Come whenever you can.” Together, Blijf ... in de schaduw gives the instruction “Stay in the shade,” while wanneer je kunt limits it to occasions when that is possible. ook adds this instruction to other advice. The complete meaning is: “Stay in the shade whenever you can, too.”

5. Ik kan in deze hitte snel uitgedroogd raken.

   I could get dehydrated quickly in this heat.

   Ik kan

   I could

   deze

   this

   hitte

   heat

   snel

   quickly

   uitgedroogd

   dehydrated

   raken

   become / get

   More detail

   Ik kan combines ik (“I”) with kan, the present-tense form of kunnen used with ik. Here it expresses possibility: “could” or “might.” After a modal verb such as kan, the other verb remains in the infinitive and appears later. Example: Ik kan morgen komen. — “I may be able to come tomorrow.” deze means “this” and is used here with a singular de-word. It is also used with plural nouns; dit is used with a singular het-word. In this sentence, deze modifies hitte. hitte means “heat.” It is a singular de-word: de hitte, which is why the matching demonstrative is deze. Example: Deze hitte duurt al dagen. — “This heat has already lasted for days.” snel means “quickly” here and describes how fast the possible change may happen. The same form can be an adjective meaning “fast” when it describes a noun; before a singular indefinite noun, it commonly appears as snelle, as in een snelle trein — “a fast train.” In snel uitgedroogd raken, snel functions adverbially. uitgedroogd means “dehydrated” here. It is the past participle of uitdrogen (“to dehydrate” or “dry out”) and names the resulting state. In uitgedroogd raken, it combines with raken to express becoming dehydrated. Example: Je kunt snel uitgedroogd raken. — “You can become dehydrated quickly.” raken is the infinitive meaning “become” or “get” in a construction that indicates entering a state. Here it is the verb governed by kan, so it stays in the infinitive. Raken is used with particular state expressions, including uitgedroogd raken; it is not a universal replacement for every use of “become.” Example: De wond kan ontstoken raken. — “The wound can become inflamed.” Together, Ik kan expresses a possible outcome for the speaker. in deze hitte places that possibility in this heat, snel says the change may happen quickly, and uitgedroogd raken expresses becoming dehydrated. The complete meaning is: “I could get dehydrated quickly in this heat.”

6. Neem water mee en drink vaak.

   Carry water and drink often.

   Neem … mee

   carry along

   water

   water

   drink

   drink

   vaak

   often

   More detail

   Neem ... mee is the separable verb meenemen, “to take/carry along.” Here Neem is its imperative form: a direct instruction to one or more people, and mee adds the sense of carrying something along. In a separable construction, the object can stand between the verb and mee: Neem je jas mee. — “Take your coat along.” water means “water.” It is an uncountable noun in this use, so the sentence does not specify a number of containers or portions. Ik drink water. — “I drink water.” drink is the imperative of drinken, “to drink.” The imperative uses the stem drink; the present-tense form for ik is also drink, while jij normally has drinkt: Drink genoeg. — “Drink enough.” vaak is an adverb meaning “often” or “frequently.” It describes how regularly the drinking should happen, not how much someone should drink. For example, Zij komt vaak. means “She often comes.” Together, Neem water mee means “Carry water along,” and drink vaak means “drink often.” The complete imperative is therefore: “Carry water and drink often.”

7. Laten we later naar het park gaan als het koeler is.

   Let's visit the park later when it's cooler.

   Laten we

   Let's …

   later

   later

   naar

   to

   park

   park

   gaan

   go

   als

   when

   koeler

   cooler

   is

   is

   More detail

   Laten we introduces a suggestion involving the speaker and at least one other person: “let’s …”. In Dutch, laten is the verb used in this fixed pattern, while we is the subject pronoun “we.” The following verb stays in the infinitive: Laten we gaan means “Let’s go.” later means “later,” referring to a time after now. It is an adverb, so it does not change for person or number. Example: We vertrekken later. — “We leave later.” naar marks movement toward a destination and commonly corresponds to “to.” Here it is part of naar het park, “to the park.” For a location without movement, Dutch may use a different preposition, so learn naar with movement toward a place. park is a noun meaning “park.” In the full sentence it appears as het park; het is the definite article used with this noun in the source. Example: We lopen naar het park. — “We walk to the park.” gaan is the infinitive “go.” Its base form is gaan; in Laten we ... gaan, it follows the suggestion pattern and remains infinitive. Example: Laten we naar huis gaan. — “Let’s go home.” als introduces the time condition “when” in this sentence. It connects the main action with the condition het koeler is: the visit is to happen when the temperature is cooler. koeler means “cooler” here. It is the comparative form of the adjective koel (“cool”): koel → koeler (“cooler”). The comparative says that the condition is cooler than the relevant temperature at another comparison point, without specifying that point in the sentence. Example: Het wordt koeler. — “It is becoming cooler.” is is the present-tense form of zijn (“be”) for a singular third-person subject. In het ... is, the subject is the pronoun het (“it” in this weather/temperature expression), so is is required. Example: Het is koel. — “It is cool.” Together, Laten we later naar het park gaan means “Let’s go to the park later.” The time clause als het koeler is adds “when it’s cooler,” giving the complete meaning: “Let’s visit the park later when it’s cooler.”

8. Dat zal veiliger en comfortabeler zijn.

   That will be safer and more comfortable.

   Dat zal

   That will

   veiliger

   safer

   comfortabeler

   more comfortable

   zijn

   be

   More detail

   Dat zal means “that will” here. Dat is a Dutch demonstrative pronoun meaning “that”; its specific referent is understood from the situation. Zal is the present-tense form of the auxiliary zullen for the third-person singular. With an infinitive, zullen places the event in the future: Dat zal ... zijn = “That will be ...”. veiliger means “safer” in this sentence. It is the comparative of veilig (“safe”): veilig → veiliger (“safer”) → het veiligst (“the safest”). The comparative ending -er expresses a comparison, although the sentence does not state what it is safer than. comfortabeler means “more comfortable”. It is the comparative of comfortabel (“comfortable”): comfortabel → comfortabeler (“more comfortable”) → het comfortabelst (“the most comfortable”). Dutch commonly forms this type of comparative with -er; the English translation uses “more”. Zijn is the infinitive of zijn, “to be”. After the auxiliary zal, Dutch uses the infinitive at the end of the clause. For example, Het zal rustig zijn. means “It will be quiet.” Together, Dat zal + veiliger + en (“and”) + comfortabeler + zijn produces: “That will be safer and more comfortable.” The two comparative adjectives describe the future state expressed by zal ... zijn.