Jogging as a hobby | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Ik ben na mijn werk begonnen met joggen.

   I started jogging after work.

   Ik ben

   I am

   na

   after

   mijn

   my

   werk

   work

   begonnen

   started

   met

   with

   joggen

   jogging

   More detail

   Ik ben means “I am” on its own, but here it combines with begonnen to form the Dutch perfect: ik ben begonnen = “I started” / “I have started.” The auxiliary is zijn (“to be”), and ben is its present-tense form with ik (“I”). The past participle begonnen comes from beginnen (“to begin, start”). na means “after” and introduces the later time in the sentence. For example: na het eten = “after eating” or “after the meal.” mijn means “my.” It is a possessive determiner related to ik (“I”). In standard Dutch, mijn generally stays the same before the noun, rather than changing for the owner's person or for the noun's gender or number. Here it accompanies werk. werk means “work.” It can refer to work as an activity or to one’s job, depending on context. The phrase na mijn werk therefore means “after work” here. begonnen is the past participle of beginnen. In the fixed sentence, ik ben begonnen expresses that the speaker started something. Dutch commonly uses beginnen met followed by a noun or an activity: Ik begin met lezen. = “I start reading.” met means “with.” In beginnen met, it is part of the reusable pattern “to start with” or “to start doing.” joggen means “jogging” here. It is an infinitive used as the activity after met; Dutch can use an activity infinitive in this pattern. Example: Zij begint met zwemmen. = “She starts swimming.” Together, na mijn werk gives the time “after work,” while ben begonnen met joggen gives the event “started jogging.” The complete utterance means: “I started jogging after work.”

2. Hoe gaat het tot nu toe?

   How is it going so far?

   Hoe gaat het

   How is it going?

   tot nu toe

   so far

   More detail

   Hoe gaat het is the common Dutch pattern for asking how a situation or experience is progressing. Hoe means “how” and asks about manner or state. Gaat is the present-tense form of gaan (“to go”) for het and other third-person singular subjects; in this expression, gaan is understood as “go” in the sense of “proceed,” not physical movement. Het is the neutral pronoun used as the subject of this fixed pattern; the wording itself does not identify a separate concrete referent. Compare: Hoe gaat het met je? — “How are you?” tot nu toe means “so far” or “up to now.” Nu means “now,” while tot ... toe forms a time expression reaching up to a stated point. It describes the period from an earlier starting point until now, without by itself saying what will happen next. Example: Tot nu toe gaat alles goed. — “So far, everything is going well.” Together, Hoe gaat het + tot nu toe asks how the situation is progressing up to the present: “How is it going so far?”

3. Mijn tempo is laag, maar ik word beter.

   My pace is slow, but I am improving.

   Mijn

   my

   tempo

   pace

   is

   is

   laag

   slow

   maar

   but

   ik word

   I am becoming

   beter

   better

   More detail

   Mijn means “my” and marks the speaker as the possessor. It is the first-person singular possessive form; compare jouw (“your,” singular informal) for possession by the listener. It is capitalized here because it begins the sentence, not because of its possessive function. tempo means “pace” or “speed,” here the rate at which the speaker is progressing. Dutch common nouns are normally written with a lowercase initial letter, as in this sentence. is is the present-tense form of zijn (“to be”) for a singular subject such as tempo. The pattern X is Y links a subject with a description: De route is lang. — “The route is long.” laag literally means “low.” With tempo, it describes a slow rate, which is why the fixed translation uses “slow.” It is the basic adjective form here, used after is; a predicative adjective does not take the attributive -e ending. Compare een laag tempo — “a low pace,” where laag also has no -e because this is an indefinite singular neuter noun phrase. In het lage tempo (“the low pace”), the adjective is lage. maar means “but” and joins two contrasting statements. It does not itself express the improvement; that meaning comes from the clause after it. ik word contains ik (“I”) and word, the first-person singular present form of worden (“to become”). With an adjective, worden presents a change toward a condition: Ik word moe. — “I am becoming tired.” This is different from ik ben moe (“I am tired”), which describes the condition rather than the change into it. beter means “better.” It is the comparative form of goed (“good”): goed → beter → best (“good” → “better” → “best”). Here it describes the speaker’s improvement; Dutch can use this comparative without stating a second item of comparison. Together, Mijn tempo is laag says “My pace is slow,” and maar ik word beter contrasts that current slow pace with the speaker’s improvement. The complete utterance therefore means: “My pace is slow, but I am improving.”

4. Heb je een vaste route?

   Do you have a regular route?

   Heb je

   do you have?

   vaste

   regular; fixed

   route

   route

   More detail

   Heb je is a reusable Dutch yes/no question pattern meaning “do you have?” The verb is hebben (“to have”). In the present tense, je hebt is the ordinary subject–verb order for “you have”; in a question, Dutch commonly places the verb first: heb je. The form heb is used here with je in this inverted question order. Example: Heb je tijd? — “Do you have time?” vaste describes route here as regular or established. Its base form is vast (“fixed”), and vaste is the form used before this noun. Route is a common-gender singular noun (de route), so an attributive adjective normally has the -e ending in een vaste route. Compare the neuter singular pattern een vast plan — “a fixed plan.” In this sentence, vaste does not mean that the route is physically immovable; it indicates a route followed regularly. route is a noun meaning “route” or “path.” Its plural is routes: vaste routes — “regular routes.” Together, Heb je + een vaste route forms the complete yes/no question: “Do you have a regular route?” The indefinite noun phrase een vaste route asks whether such a route exists for the person addressed; een does not by itself assert a numerical count.

5. Ik ren meestal rond het park.

   I usually run around the park.

   Ik

   I

   ren

   run

   meestal

   usually

   rond

   around

   park

   park

   More detail

   Ik is the first-person singular subject pronoun, “I.” It identifies the speaker as the person doing the action. The corresponding plural form is wij or we, meaning “we”; for example, Ik ren means “I run,” while We rennen means “We run.” ren is the present-tense form of rennen used with ik. The form changes with the subject: ik ren, but jij rent and wij rennen. Here, the present tense describes a usual activity. Example: Ik ren elke ochtend. — “I run every morning.” meestal is an adverb meaning “usually” or “most of the time.” It indicates the frequency of the running. Example: Zij komt meestal op tijd. — “She usually arrives on time.” rond is a preposition meaning “around” here. In rond het park, it introduces the place associated with the movement. Its meaning can vary by context, but here it describes running around the park. park is a noun meaning “park.” In het park, het is the definite article “the,” and park is a neuter noun. The article is learned with the noun; other Dutch nouns use de, as in de straat (“the street”). Example: Ik wandel in het park. — “I walk in the park.” Together, Ik ren gives “I run,” meestal adds the frequency “usually,” and rond het park specifies where the running takes place: “around the park.” Thus Ik ren meestal rond het park. means “I usually run around the park.”

6. Welk doel wil je bereiken?

   What goal are you working toward?

   Welk

   which / what

   doel

   goal

   wil je

   do you want

   bereiken

   achieve / reach

   More detail

   Welk means “which/what” when it comes before a noun. Here it agrees with doel, a singular neuter noun: het doel, so the form is welk. With a common-gender singular noun, Dutch uses welke, as in Welke route...? (“Which route...?”). This question asks the listener to identify one goal, rather than using wat by itself. Doel means “goal” or “aim.” Its plural is doelen. The phrase een doel bereiken is a reusable way to say “achieve/reach a goal.” Wil je is the inverted question pattern “do you want...?” Wil is the second-person singular present form of willen (“to want”); je is the subject “you.” In a yes/no or information question, the finite verb can come before the subject: Wil je...? In a statement, the usual order is Je wilt... (“You want...”); wilt is the same verb with the subject before it. Bereiken is the infinitive “to achieve” or “to reach.” After wil je, the other verb remains in the infinitive: Wil je het station bereiken? — “Do you want to reach the station?” Together, welk doel means “what goal,” wil je asks about the listener’s desire, and bereiken names the intended result. The complete utterance is therefore: “What goal are you working toward?” More literally, it asks, “Which goal do you want to achieve?”

7. Ik wil joggen zonder te stoppen.

   I want to jog without stopping.

   Ik wil

   I want

   joggen

   to jog

   zonder te stoppen

   without stopping

   stoppen

   to stop

   More detail

   Ik wil means “I want” here. wil is the present-tense form of willen used with ik; the infinitive is willen. Dutch commonly places an infinitive after wil: Ik wil rusten. — “I want to rest.” joggen is the infinitive “to jog.” After wil, it names the activity that is wanted, so Ik wil joggen means “I want to jog.” The form joggen is also used after other modal-like verbs such as kan (“can”): Ik kan joggen. — “I can jog.” zonder te stoppen means “without stopping.” Dutch uses zonder te plus an infinitive to express an action that does not occur alongside the main action: zonder te praten — “without speaking.” Here, te stoppen is the infinitive construction after zonder; te is not part of the base form. stoppen is the infinitive “to stop.” Its base form is stoppen; the te in te stoppen marks its use in the zonder te + infinitive construction. A separate example is Ik stop. — “I stop.” Together, Ik wil + joggen gives “I want to jog,” and zonder te stoppen adds the condition “without stopping.” The complete utterance therefore means: “I want to jog without stopping.”

8. Dat is realistisch als je het langzaam opbouwt.

   That is realistic if you build up slowly.

   Dat

   that

   is

   is

   realistisch

   realistic

   als je

   if you

   het

   it

   langzaam

   slowly

   opbouwt

   build up

   More detail

   Dat means “that” here. It is a demonstrative pronoun, but the fixed sentence does not uniquely identify what it refers to. Its form is singular neuter; the form itself does not name a particular object or activity. is is the present-tense form of zijn (“to be”) for a third-person singular subject. The basic pattern is X is Y, as in the example Dat is moeilijk. — “That is difficult.” realistisch is an adjective meaning “realistic” or “feasible.” It describes the subject Dat; Dutch adjectives used predicatively after zijn appear in this uninflected form here. Its opposite is onrealistisch (“unrealistic”), when that contrast is intended. als je introduces a condition: “if you.” je is the subject pronoun for “you” in this clause. A reusable pattern is als je ... plus a clause, for example Het lukt als je oefent. — “It works if you practise.” het is the object pronoun “it” in this sentence. The fixed translation supports that intended object reading, but does not specify the object more narrowly. Dutch het is also used in other grammatical roles, so its exact function must be determined from the sentence rather than from its form alone. langzaam is an adverb meaning “slowly.” It describes how the building-up happens. The adjective langzaam can also mean “slow” when it modifies a noun, as in een langzaam proces — “a slow process.” opbouwt comes from the separable verb opbouwen, “to build up” or “gradually increase.” In the present tense, the form with subject je is je bouwt op in a main clause, but in the subordinate als clause the verb appears together at the end: als je het langzaam opbouwt. The ending in opbouwt is compatible with second-person singular here because the subject is je; the same finite form can also occur with a third-person singular subject in other contexts. op is part of the verb, not a separate preposition in this use. Together, Dat is realistisch says “That is realistic.” The conditional clause als je het langzaam opbouwt adds the condition “if you build it up slowly.” The complete utterance therefore means: “That is realistic if you build up slowly.”