Making a clinic appointment when you feel unwell | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Ik hoest en voel me vandaag moe.

   I have a cough and feel tired today.

   hoest

   cough

   voel me

   feel

   vandaag

   today

   moe

   tired

   More detail

   hoest is the present-tense form of hoesten (“to cough”) with ik (“I”): ik hoest means “I cough.” Here, the fixed translation presents this as the speaker having a cough. The noun “a cough” would be a different construction from the observed verb form. voel me combines voel, the present form of voelen (“to feel”) used with ik, and me, the first-person reflexive object. Together, ik voel me ... expresses the speaker’s own physical or emotional state. Example: Ik voel me beter. — “I feel better.” vandaag means “today” and places the statement in the current day. Example: Ik werk vandaag. — “I am working today.” moe is an adjective meaning “tired.” In ik voel me moe, it describes the speaker’s condition. Example: Zij is moe. — “She is tired.” The form moe is not a verb; Dutch can use moe worden for “become tired” and zich moe voelen for “feel tired.” Ik introduces the speaker, and en joins the two coordinated parts. The reusable pattern is Ik [verb] en voel me [time expression] [adjective], matching the order here: Ik hoest en voel me vandaag moe. Together, the utterance means that the speaker has a cough and feels tired today.

2. Je moet de kliniek bellen en om een afspraak vragen.

   You should call the clinic and ask for an appointment.

   Je moet

   you should

   kliniek

   clinic

   bellen

   call

   om … vragen

   ask for

   afspraak

   appointment

   More detail

   Je moet expresses advice in this sentence: “you should.” moeten is the base form; with singular je, it appears as moet. The same verb can express a stronger obligation in another context. Compare: Ik moet gaan. — “I have to go.” Here, however, the fixed translation presents it as advice. kliniek means “clinic.” Its usual definite form is de kliniek, as in the utterance; klinieken is the plural. The article de is not included in the selected phrase, but it combines with this noun in the sentence. bellen is the infinitive “to call.” After a modal verb such as moeten, Dutch uses an infinitive: Je moet bellen. — “You should call.” The infinitive stays bellen rather than taking a present-tense ending in this construction. om ... vragen is a reusable pattern meaning “to ask for something.” In the utterance, om introduces what is requested and vragen is the infinitive “to ask.” Example: Ik vraag om hulp. — “I ask for help.” The two parts are separated here because een afspraak comes between them. afspraak means “appointment.” It is normally a countable noun: een afspraak means “an appointment,” while twee afspraken means “two appointments.” The plural adds -en to the noun. Together, de kliniek bellen means “call the clinic,” and om een afspraak vragen means “ask for an appointment.” The modal Je moet applies to both coordinated actions, so Je moet de kliniek bellen en om een afspraak vragen. means “You should call the clinic and ask for an appointment.”

3. Wat moet ik zeggen als ik bel?

   What should I say when I call?

   Wat moet ik

   what should I

   zeggen

   say

   als

   when

   ik bel

   I call

   More detail

   Wat moet ik asks what the speaker is expected or advised to do. moet is the singular present form of moeten for ik, and ik means “I.” In a question, Dutch places the finite verb before the subject: Wat moet ik ...? This pattern can be reused with another infinitive, for example: Wat moet ik doen? — “What should I do?” zeggen means “to say.” It is the infinitive, and it follows the modal verb moet: moet ... zeggen means “should/must say.” The English “should” gives the intended advice-seeking meaning here; the Dutch modal itself is moeten. als introduces the time situation “when” here. It can also introduce a condition meaning “if,” so the surrounding clause determines the intended reading. In this utterance, it connects the question to the situation of making a call. ik bel means “I call.” bel is the first-person singular present form of bellen; with ik, the form is ik bel. Because this clause follows als, Dutch places its finite verb at the end: als ik bel. For example, Ik luister als je belt. — “I listen when you call.” Together, Wat moet ik zeggen (“What should I say”) and als ik bel (“when I call”) form the complete question: “What should I say when I call?” It asks for wording or guidance for the speaker’s upcoming call, without specifying any additional outcome.

4. Zeg dat je je niet goed voelt en graag een dokter wilt zien.

   Tell them you feel unwell and would like to see a doctor.

   Zeg

   tell

   dat

   that

   je

   you

   voelt

   feel

   niet goed

   unwell

   graag

   gladly

   een dokter

   a doctor

   wilt

   want to

   zien

   see

   More detail

   Zeg is the informal singular imperative of zeggen (“to say/tell”). It addresses one person directly. Example: Zeg het maar. — “Go ahead, say it.” dat introduces the content of what is being said: Zeg dat ... means “Tell them that ...”. It is a conjunction here, not the demonstrative “that.” The first je is the subject of voelt, meaning “you.” The second je belongs to the reflexive expression zich voelen (“to feel”): with je, it becomes je voelt je (“you feel”). Example: Je voelt je beter. — “You feel better.” voelt is the present-tense form of voelen for je in this clause. The reflexive expression je voelen is not the same as simply using voelen without a reflexive object; it describes someone’s physical or emotional state. niet goed literally combines negation with “well,” and here means “unwell.” In Dutch, niet normally comes before the part it negates; je niet goed voelt therefore says that you do not feel well. graag expresses that the action is desired or welcomed. With willen, the combination graag willen commonly corresponds to “would like to.” Example: Ik wil graag helpen. — “I would like to help.” een dokter means “a doctor.” Dokter is the noun; een is the indefinite article. The article does not by itself assert a numerical count; it introduces a doctor as an unspecified person. wilt is a present-tense form of willen (“to want”). Here je ... wilt means “you want,” and the following infinitive states what you want to do. In a question with inversion, Dutch commonly has Wil je ...?, while je wilt ... is the ordinary order in this subordinate clause. zien is the infinitive of zien (“to see”). After wilt, the infinitive appears at the end of this clause: je wilt een dokter zien — “you want to see a doctor.” Together, dat je je niet goed voelt means “that you feel unwell.” The second part, en graag een dokter wilt zien, adds the desired action: “and would like to see a doctor.” The complete utterance is an informal command telling one person to communicate that they feel unwell and would like to see a doctor.

5. Ik wil ook vragen welke tijden beschikbaar zijn.

   I also want to ask what times are available.

   Ik wil

   I want

   ook

   also

   vragen

   ask

   welke

   which

   tijden

   times

   beschikbaar

   available

   zijn

   be

   More detail

   Ik wil means “I want” here. wil is the first-person singular present form of willen (“to want”): ik wil, jij wilt/je wilt, and hij wil. The infinitive willen is useful for saying what someone wants. Example: Ik wil helpen. — “I want to help.” ook adds “also” to the statement. Its position can vary for emphasis, but here it comes after Ik wil, before the action being added. vragen means “to ask”. It is the infinitive after the finite verb wil: Ik wil vragen — “I want to ask.” After verbs such as willen, Dutch normally uses an infinitive for the other action. Example: Zij wil wachten. — “She wants to wait.” welke means “which” and introduces a choice or identification question. It is used with plural nouns as well as with singular nouns of the relevant noun class; here it modifies plural tijden. Example: Welke dag past? — “Which day works?” tijden means “times” in this sentence. Its singular base form is tijd (“time”); the plural is tijden, with a vowel change as well as the plural ending. Here it refers to possible appointment times, not to duration. Example: Welke tijden zijn vrij? — “Which times are free?” beschikbaar means “available”. It is an adjective and does not change for the plural noun tijden in this position. Example: De kamers zijn beschikbaar. — “The rooms are available.” zijn means “are” here. It is the infinitive/base form of zijn (“to be”), but it appears at the end of the embedded question and agrees with plural tijden; compare singular is: De tijd is beschikbaar — “The time is available.” The pattern is Ik wil + infinitive for “I want to …”. The action is vragen, and what is being asked is an embedded question: welke tijden beschikbaar zijn (“which times are available”). In this embedded question, the finite verb zijn comes at the end, unlike a direct question such as Welke tijden zijn beschikbaar? — “Which times are available?” Together, the sentence means: “I also want to ask what times are available.”

6. Dat helpt hen een afspraak te vinden die voor jou uitkomt.

   That will help them find an appointment that works for you.

   Dat

   That

   helpt

   helps

   hen

   them

   afspraak

   appointment

   te vinden

   to find

   voor jou

   for you

   uitkomt

   works

   More detail

   Dat means “that” here and functions as the subject of the sentence. In this use it points to an already understood situation or proposition, rather than identifying a newly named noun. Dutch demonstratives include dit and dat for singular neuter contexts, and deze and die for singular de-nouns or plurals; the correct choice depends on the noun or reference, not just on English “this/that.” helpt is the present-tense third-person singular form of helpen (“to help”): helpen → helpt. Dutch commonly uses the pattern iemand helpen iets te doen, “to help someone do something.” The present form can describe a current result or a future result understood from context, so the fixed translation’s “will help” is compatible with the Dutch form; Dutch does not mark that future meaning in helpt itself. hen is the object form meaning “them.” It refers to the people who will find the appointment, as specified by the fixed translation. In standard Dutch, compare hen for a direct object or after a preposition with hun for an indirect object or possession. Example: Ik zie hen. — “I see them.” afspraak means “appointment” here. Its base form is the singular noun afspraak; the plural is afspraken. With the indefinite article een, een afspraak is an indefinite singular noun phrase. Example: Ik heb een afspraak. — “I have an appointment.” te vinden means “to find.” vinden is the infinitive, and te marks it in this infinitival construction. The phrase hen een afspraak te vinden completes the help pattern: “to help them find an appointment.” The form vinden is irregular in its present tense: ik vind, hij/zij vindt; do not treat vindt as the infinitive. voor jou means “for you” in this sentence. jou is the stressed form of the second-person singular pronoun after the preposition voor; the unstressed form is commonly je: voor jou can contrast with voor je when emphasis is not needed. Here it identifies the person for whom the appointment must be suitable, not the person who finds it. uitkomt comes from the separable verb uitkomen. In this context uitkomen voor iemand means “to suit someone” or “to work for someone,” not the literal sense “to come out.” In the relative clause, the verb appears at the end as the joined form uitkomt, because Dutch subordinate clauses place the finite verb at the end. The third-person singular present form is komt ... uit in a main clause but uitkomt in this clause. Example: Deze tijd komt voor mij uit. — “This time works for me.” The relative word die links een afspraak to the description voor jou uitkomt: literally, “an appointment that works for you.” The complete structure is Dat + helpt hen + een afspraak te vinden + die voor jou uitkomt: “That helps them find an appointment that works for you.”

7. Ik ga de kliniek nu bellen.

   I will call the clinic now.

   Ik ga

   I will / I am going to

   kliniek

   clinic

   nu

   now

   bellen

   call

   More detail

   Ik ga means “I will / I am going to” here. Ik is the first-person singular subject, “I.” ga is the present-tense form of gaan (“to go”) for ik. With an infinitive, the pattern ik ga + infinitive commonly expresses a planned or imminent action, rather than physical movement. Example: Ik ga eten. — “I am going to eat.” kliniek means “clinic.” The phrase uses de kliniek, with de marking the noun phrase as definite: “the clinic.” kliniek is singular here; its plural form is klinieken, as in de klinieken (“the clinics”). nu means “now.” It places the action at the present time. Example: Ik bel nu. — “I am calling now.” bellen means “to call.” It is the infinitive, used after ga in the pattern gaan + infinitive. Its present-tense forms include ik bel (“I call / I am calling”) and jij belt (“you call / you are calling”); the -t in belt belongs to the second-person form, not to bellen itself. Together, Ik ga + de kliniek + nu + bellen produces: “I will call the clinic now.” The construction presents calling the clinic as the speaker’s immediate plan, and nu makes the timing explicit.

8. Schrijf je klachten op, zodat je ze duidelijk kunt uitleggen.

   Write your symptoms down so you can explain them clearly.

   Schrijf … op

   write down

   je

   your

   klachten

   symptoms

   zodat

   so that

   je

   you

   ze

   them

   duidelijk

   clearly

   kunt uitleggen

   can explain

   More detail

   Schrijf ... op is the separable-verb construction from opschrijven, “to write down.” Here Schrijf is the imperative form addressed to one person: “Write.” The separable part op appears at the end of this clause. In a modal construction, the infinitive stays together: Je kunt het opschrijven = “You can write it down.” The first je in je klachten is a possessive form meaning “your.” It does not itself state a number; klachten is the noun that is plural. Dutch je can also be a subject pronoun meaning “you,” as in the second je later in the sentence. klachten means “symptoms” in this fixed sentence. Its singular is klacht, which can mean “symptom” in a health context or “complaint” in another context. The plural ending -en gives klachten. Example: Ik heb twee klachten. — “I have two symptoms.” zodat introduces the purpose or result clause “so that.” It connects the writing-down instruction with what this makes possible. A useful pattern is ..., zodat ... = “..., so that ...”. The second je is the subject “you.” Because it is the subject of the subordinate clause, it is the person who will be able to explain the symptoms; its form is the same as the possessive je, but its grammatical role is different. ze is the object pronoun “them” here, referring to the symptoms identified by the translation and sentence meaning. In this use it is a plural object pronoun. Example: Ik lees ze. — “I read them.” duidelijk means “clearly” here and describes how the explaining is done. The same form can also be used as an adjective before a noun, for example een duidelijke uitleg — “a clear explanation”; in that phrase, duidelijke is the adjective form modifying uitleg. kunt uitleggen combines kunt, the second-person singular present form of kunnen (“can, be able to”), with the infinitive uitleggen (“to explain”). After a modal such as kunnen, the lexical verb remains an infinitive: Je kunt het uitleggen — “You can explain it.” Uitleggen is one word here; its parts are not separate words in this position. The clause order places the finite modal before the infinitive, as is typical in this subordinate clause. Together, Schrijf je klachten op means “Write your symptoms down.” zodat je ze duidelijk kunt uitleggen gives the purpose: “so that you can explain them clearly.” The whole utterance is therefore: “Write your symptoms down so you can explain them clearly.”