Waiting in the right line | Learn Dutch in English

Dutch lesson set in a contemporary Amsterdam everyday setting: At a public service area, two adults check which line is correct for renewing a membership card..

EN → NL / Level: A2

About This Lesson

Use Waiting in the right line to practice Dutch conversation, pronunciation, vocabulary, grammar, and quizzes.

Dialogue

A

Pardon, is dit de juiste rij?

par-DON, iss dit duh YOW-stuh RAY? Excuse me, is this the right line?
B

Deze rij is voor de informatiebalie.

DEH-zuh RAY iss voor duh in-for-MAH-tsee-BAH-lee. This queue is for the information desk.
A

Ik moet mijn lidkaart vernieuwen.

ik MOOT mine LIT-kahrt vur-NAY-wun. I need to renew my membership card.
B

Dan moet je in de rij bij het blauwe bord gaan staan.

dahn MOOT yuh in duh RAY bye ut BLOW-wuh BORT khahn STAHN. Then you should join the line by the blue sign.
A

Ik stond bijna op de verkeerde plek te wachten.

ik STONT BAI-nah op duh vur-KAIR-duh plek tuh VAKH-tun. I almost waited in the wrong place.
B

Het is verwarrend, omdat de twee rijen dicht bij elkaar zijn.

ut iss vur-WAH-runt, OM-daht duh TVAY RAY-un DIKHT bye uh-KAHR zine. It is confusing because both lines are close.
A

Ik ga nu naar die rij voordat er meer mensen komen.

ik khah noo nahr dee RAY voo-DAHT ur mayr MEN-sun KOH-mun. I'll move before more people arrive.
B

Die rij is nu korter.

dee RAY iss noo KOR-tur. That line is shorter now.

Word by Word

Pardon “Pardon” is a polite way to get someone’s attention before asking a question, like “Excuse me” here. Reuse it before a request or question when speaking to someone you do not want to interrupt abruptly.
is In “is dit de juiste rij?”, “is” connects the thing being identified with its description: whether this is the correct line. A common question pattern is “Is ...?” followed by the thing you are asking about.
dit “Dit” points to something nearby or currently being indicated; here it refers to the line where the speaker is standing. A new example is “Dit is mijn tas” for “This is my bag.”
de “De” is the definite article used here before “juiste rij” and “verkeerde plek”. Reuse “de” directly before a noun phrase such as “de rij” or “de plek”.
juiste “Juiste” means “correct” or “right” in “de juiste rij”, identifying the line the speaker needs. Reuse “de juiste” before a noun when selecting the correct person, place, or thing.
rij “Rij” means a line or queue of people, as in “de juiste rij” and “in de rij”. Reuse it in the common expression “in de rij” when talking about waiting in a queue.
Deze “Deze” means “this” and identifies the particular queue being discussed in “Deze rij”. Reuse “deze” before a nearby or currently relevant noun.
voor In “voor de informatiebalie”, “voor” shows what the queue is intended for: the information desk. Reuse “voor” before a person, place, or service that something is meant for.
informatiebalie “Informatiebalie” means “information desk”, the service point for which “Deze rij” is intended. Reuse it in “voor de informatiebalie” when directing someone to that desk.
Ik “Ik” means “I” and is the subject of the speaker’s statements about their own needs and movement. Reuse it at the start of a sentence such as “Ik moet ...” or “Ik ga ...”.
moet In “Ik moet mijn lidkaart vernieuwen”, “moet” expresses that the speaker needs to renew the card. Reuse “Ik moet” before an action that is necessary for you.
mijn “Mijn” means “my” and shows that the membership card belongs to the speaker. Reuse “mijn” directly before the noun for something belonging to you.
lidkaart “Lidkaart” means “membership card”, the document the speaker needs to renew. Reuse it after a possessive such as “mijn lidkaart” when talking about that card.
vernieuwen “Vernieuwen” means “to renew” and names the action required for the membership card. It appears after “moet” in “Ik moet mijn lidkaart vernieuwen”; reuse “moet ... vernieuwen” when saying something needs to be renewed.
Dan “Dan” means “then” and introduces the consequence or advice that follows the information just given. Reuse it at the beginning of a response such as “Dan moet je ...” when giving the next step.
je “Je” means “you” and refers to the person being advised where to stand. Reuse it as the subject in a pattern such as “moet je ...” when telling someone what they need to do.
in In “in de rij”, “in” shows being inside or part of the queue. Reuse the fixed expression “in de rij” when talking about joining or waiting in a line.
bij In “bij het blauwe bord”, “bij” means “by” or “near” and gives the location of the line. Reuse “bij” before a place or landmark to identify something nearby.
het “Het” is the definite article in “het blauwe bord”; the same form appears capitalized as “Het” at the beginning of “Het is verwarrend”. Reuse “het” before a noun phrase when that article is required, as in “het bord”.
blauwe “Blauwe” means “blue” and helps identify the correct sign in “het blauwe bord”. Reuse it before a noun when describing something as blue, as in “het blauwe ...”.
bord “Bord” means “sign” or “board”, here the blue sign used as a landmark. Reuse it in “het blauwe bord” when referring to that sign.
gaan In “gaan staan”, “gaan” contributes the movement toward taking a position, while “staan” specifies standing. Reuse “gaan staan” when telling someone to go and stand somewhere.
staan In “in de rij ... gaan staan”, “staan” means to stand or remain standing in the queue. Together with “gaan”, it describes moving into a standing position; reuse “gaan staan” for taking a place while standing.
stond In “Ik stond bijna op de verkeerde plek te wachten”, “stond” says that the speaker was standing while waiting. It is the past form of “staan”; reuse “stond ... te wachten” to describe having been standing and waiting.
bijna “Bijna” means “almost” and shows that the speaker came close to waiting in the wrong place but did not do so. Reuse it before an action or description that nearly happened.
op In “op de verkeerde plek”, “op” marks the location where the speaker was standing. Reuse “op” before a place expression when describing being at a particular spot.
verkeerde “Verkeerde” means “wrong” in “de verkeerde plek”, identifying the spot that was not suitable. Reuse “de verkeerde” before a noun when selecting the incorrect place, choice, or item.
plek “Plek” means “place” or “spot”, here the location where the speaker almost waited. Reuse it in “op de verkeerde plek” when describing a particular location.
te In “te wachten”, “te” marks the infinitive used after “stond” to describe the action taking place while standing. Reuse “te” directly before an infinitive in a pattern such as “staan te wachten”.
wachten “Wachten” means “to wait”, here describing waiting in the wrong spot. It follows “te” in “te wachten”; reuse “te wachten” when describing an ongoing wait.
verwarrend “Verwarrend” means “confusing” and describes the situation in which the two queues are close together. Reuse it after “Het is” to describe something that causes confusion.
omdat “Omdat” means “because” and introduces the reason the situation is confusing. Reuse “omdat” before a clause that explains why something is the case.
twee “Twee” means “two” and specifies the number of queues in “de twee rijen”. Reuse it directly before a plural noun when stating that there are two of something.
rijen “Rijen” means “lines” or “queues” and refers to the two separate queues. It is the plural form related to “rij”; reuse “twee rijen” when comparing two lines.
dicht “Dicht” means “close” in the expression “dicht bij elkaar”, describing the small distance between the two queues. Reuse “dicht bij elkaar” when saying that two things are near one another.
elkaar In “dicht bij elkaar”, “elkaar” means “each other” or “one another”, referring mutually to the two queues. Reuse it in expressions that describe the relationship or position of two or more things relative to one another.
zijn In “de twee rijen dicht bij elkaar zijn”, “zijn” connects the two queues with their condition of being close together. Reuse “zijn” to describe the state or location of plural things.
ga In “Ik ga nu naar die rij”, “ga” means “am going” and describes the speaker’s movement toward the other queue. Reuse “Ik ga naar ...” before a destination.
nu “Nu” means “now” and emphasizes that the speaker will move at this moment. Reuse it to specify that an action is happening or will happen immediately.
naar In “naar die rij”, “naar” marks the destination or direction of the speaker’s movement. Reuse “naar” before a place or destination after a verb of movement.
die “Die” means “that” and identifies the other queue in “naar die rij”; the same form appears capitalized as “Die” at the start of the final sentence. Reuse “die” before a noun when referring to a specific thing farther away or already identified.
voordat “Voordat” means “before” and introduces the event that should not happen first: more people arriving. Reuse it before a clause to put one action or event earlier than another.
er In “voordat er meer mensen komen”, “er” introduces the people who will arrive; it does not refer to a specific location here. Reuse “er” in a clause that presents or introduces people or things.
meer “Meer” means “more” and indicates additional people beyond those already present. Reuse “meer” directly before a noun, as in “meer mensen”.
mensen “Mensen” means “people” and refers to the additional people who may arrive. Reuse “meer mensen” when talking about additional people.
komen “Komen” means “come” or “arrive”, here describing more people arriving at the service area. Reuse it after a subject or expression for people who are coming, such as “mensen komen”.
korter “Korter” means “shorter” and says that the selected queue has fewer people or less waiting than before. It is used in “Die rij is nu korter”; reuse “is korter” when comparing the length of a line or another thing.

Grammar Points

omdat + bijzin: het werkwoord staat achteraan

omdat twee rijen dicht bij elkaar komen

OM-daht TVAY RAY-un DIKHT bye uh-KAHR KOH-mun

because two lines are close to each other

Na omdat komt het werkwoord aan het einde van de bijzin: komen.

voordat + bijzin: het werkwoord staat achteraan

voordat meer mensen komen

voo-DAHT mayr MEN-sun KOH-mun

before more people come

Na voordat staat het werkwoord aan het einde van de bijzin: komen.

Dutch Vocabulary

bij prep
bye by; near
blauwe adj
BLOW-wuh blue
dan adv
dahn then
dit pron
dit this
in prep
in in
informatiebalie noun
in-for-MAH-tsee-BAH-lee information desk
juiste adj
YOW-stuh right; correct
lidkaart noun
LIT-kahrt membership card
mijn det
mine my
pardon intj
par-DON excuse me
rij noun
RAY line; queue
vernieuwen verb
vur-NAY-wun to renew

Quiz

Word Order

Arrange the words in the correct order.

Excuse me, is this the right line?

Show AnswerPardon, is dit de juiste rij?

This queue is for the information desk.

Show AnswerDeze rij is voor de informatiebalie.

I need to renew my membership card.

Show AnswerIk moet mijn lidkaart vernieuwen.

Spelling

Tap the letters to spell the word.

my

Show Answermijn

to renew

Show Answervernieuwen

excuse me

Show Answerpardon

membership card

Show Answerlidkaart