Labeling food in a shared fridge | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Kan ik deze soep in de gedeelde koelkast zetten?

   Can I put this soup in the shared fridge?

   Kan ik

   Can I?

   deze

   this

   soep

   soup

   gedeelde

   shared

   koelkast

   fridge

   zetten

   put; place

   More detail

   Kan ik is a compact Dutch question pattern: kan is the present-tense form of kunnen for ik, meaning “can” here. Dutch places the finite verb before the subject in this yes/no question. The subject is still ik; the order does not change who is asking. Compare the ordinary statement Ik kan ... (“I can ...”) with the question Kan ik ...? (“Can I ...?”). deze means “this” and points to one nearby or otherwise identifiable item. In this sentence it agrees with soep, a singular common-gender de noun. The related form dit is used with singular het nouns; this contrast is grammatical, not a difference in physical distance. soep is the noun “soup.” Its plural is soepen, although the singular is used here because the utterance refers to the soup as one item or quantity. gedeelde means “shared” here. It is the adjective gedeeld with the attributive -e form before the definite noun phrase de gedeelde koelkast. The adjective describes the refrigerator as shared; it does not describe the soup. koelkast means “fridge” or “refrigerator.” It is a Dutch compound noun, written as one word, and takes the article de: de koelkast. The preposition in before it gives the destination or location “in the fridge.” zetten is the infinitive “put” or “place.” It is the lexical verb selected by kan; after a modal such as kunnen, the other verb remains an infinitive and appears at the end of this question. In this context, zetten presents putting the soup into the refrigerator, rather than describing its current location. For a stationary object, Dutch commonly uses staan: De soep staat in de koelkast. — “The soup is in the fridge.” Together, Kan ik deze soep in de gedeelde koelkast zetten? has the pattern Kan ik [object] [destination] zetten? The speaker asks whether they may put this soup in the shared fridge. The question expresses permission or acceptability in this context; it does not assert that the soup has already been put there.

2. Plak een label op de bak voordat je hem daar laat staan.

   Label the container before you leave it there.

   Plak

   label or stick

   een label

   a label

   bak

   container or bin

   voordat

   before

   je

   you

   hem

   it

   daar

   there

   laat staan

   leave standing

   More detail

   Plak is the singular informal imperative of plakken, “to stick” or “to attach.” In this sentence it means applying a label. The present-tense form is ik plak; the imperative is simply plak. Example: Plak de sticker hier. — “Stick the sticker here.” een label means “a label.” Label is a noun used for a tag or identifying marking. Een is an indefinite article; here it introduces one unspecified label, without needing to emphasize a numerical count. Example: Het label is duidelijk. — “The label is clear.” bak means a container, bin, or tub. In op de bak, the preposition op shows that the label is placed on the container’s surface. Bak is a common-gender de-word, as in de bak. voordat introduces an event that must happen earlier: “before.” It introduces the clause je hem daar laat staan. Example: Was je handen voordat je eet. — “Wash your hands before you eat.” je is the informal singular subject pronoun “you” here. It is the subject of laat, so the person doing the leaving is “you.” hem is the singular object pronoun “him” or “it.” In this utterance, the intended referent is the container, de bak, and the English translation represents it as “it.” As an object pronoun, hem appears after the subject je and before the verb group laat staan. daar means “there,” referring to a place already relevant in the situation. It adds the location to hem ... laat staan: you leave the container there. Example: Zet de doos daar. — “Put the box there.” laat staan is the relevant form of laten staan, literally “let stand,” and here means “leave [something] standing” or “leave [something] there.” Laat is the present-tense form used with je and also the singular imperative of laten; staan remains an infinitive. Example: Laat de tas daar staan. — “Leave the bag there.” Together, Plak een label op de bak gives the instruction to put a label on the container. voordat then places je hem daar laat staan earlier in time: before you leave the container there. The whole utterance therefore means “Label the container before you leave it there.”

3. Moet ik de datum er ook op schrijven?

   Should I write the date on it too?

   Moet ik

   should I / do I have to

   de datum

   the date

   er … op

   on it

   ook

   also / too

   schrijven

   write

   More detail

   Moet ik is a question pattern with the modal verb moeten (“must / have to”) before the subject ik (“I”). In a yes/no question, Dutch commonly places the finite verb before the subject: Moet ik ...? The infinitive comes later: Moet ik dat doen? = “Do I have to do that?” Here, the fixed translation supports the question about whether the speaker should write the date, rather than asserting that they must do so. de datum means “the date.” Datum is a noun whose plural is datums or, in some uses, data; the singular article in this sentence is de. The article does not itself express a numerical count; it marks the noun phrase as definite: “the date.” er ... op is a split pronominal adverb meaning “on it” here. The two parts are separated because ook and the verb phrase occur between them. In the supplied context, er refers to the previously mentioned container, while op contributes the relation “on.” Dutch often uses this pattern for a thing previously mentioned: Ik schrijf er mijn naam op. = “I write my name on it.” Do not treat er as an independently stated noun; its referent comes from context. ook means “also / too.” It adds the date-writing action to the already relevant labeling action. Its position can vary with emphasis, but in this sentence it occurs between er and op, without changing the meaning of “too.” schrijven is the infinitive “to write.” Its base form is schrijven; after the modal moeten, Dutch uses the infinitive rather than a finite form: Moet ik de datum schrijven? = “Should I write the date?” In a simple present statement with ik, the corresponding finite form is ik schrijf (“I write”); after moet, use schrijven, not schrijf. Together, Moet ik introduces the yes/no question, de datum is what is written, er ... op specifies that it is written on the contextually identified object, and ook adds this action to the labeling action. The complete meaning is: “Should I write the date on it too?”

4. Zo weten mensen hoe lang het al in de koelkast staat.

   That helps people know how long it has been inside.

   Zo

   that way

   weten

   know

   mensen

   people

   hoe lang

   how long

   het

   it

   al

   already

   koelkast

   refrigerator

   staat

   is located

   More detail

   Zo means “that way” here. It presents the way of doing something as leading to the result that follows. Example: Zo leer je sneller. — “That way you learn faster.” weten is the base form “to know,” and it is also the present-tense form used with a plural subject such as mensen. Its present-tense forms include ik weet, jij/u weet, hij/zij/het weet, and wij/jullie/zij weten. Thus, mensen weten means “people know”; the singular form is weet. Example: Wij weten het antwoord. — “We know the answer.” mensen means “people” and is the plural of mens, “person.” Its plural subject controls the plural verb form weten. hoe lang asks about duration: “how long.” Here it begins the embedded question hoe lang het al ... staat. Example: Hoe lang woon je hier? — “How long have you lived here?” het is the neuter singular pronoun “it” here. The fixed translation confirms that it refers to the thing whose time inside is being asked about, without identifying that thing more precisely. Example: Ik zie het. — “I see it.” al adds the idea that the state has continued up to the relevant moment: “already” or, in a duration question, “for some time now.” In hoe lang het al ... staat, it helps express “how long it has been ...”. Example: Ik wacht al een uur. — “I have already been waiting for an hour.” koelkast means “refrigerator” or “fridge.” The full phrase in de koelkast means “in the refrigerator”; de is the article used with this noun. Example: De melk staat in de koelkast. — “The milk is in the refrigerator.” staat is the singular present form of staan, “to stand” or “to be located.” Dutch uses staan for the position or location of some objects, so het ... staat in de koelkast says that it is located there. The plural form is staan, as in De flessen staan in de koelkast. — “The bottles are in the refrigerator.” Together, hoe lang het al in de koelkast staat asks how long the thing has continued to be located in the refrigerator. The whole utterance means: “That helps people know how long it has been inside.”

5. Welke plank is voor eigen eten?

   Which shelf is for personal food?

   Welke

   which

   plank

   shelf

   is

   is

   voor

   for

   eigen

   personal

   eten

   food

   More detail

   Welke asks “which” and selects one item from a known or relevant set. It appears directly before plank, the noun it determines. Dutch uses welke with de-words and plural nouns; with a singular het-word, the corresponding form is welk. Example: Welke stoel neem je? — “Which chair are you taking?” plank means “shelf” here. Its useful base form is de plank; the plural is planken. Example: De plank is leeg. — “The shelf is empty.” is is the present-tense third-person singular form of zijn, “to be.” It links the shelf with the purpose phrase that follows. The present forms include ik ben, jij bent, and hij/zij/het is; these forms must be learned rather than formed by adding a regular ending. voor means “for” and introduces the intended purpose or user of something. In this sentence it connects the shelf with what it is intended for. Example: Deze doos is voor boeken. — “This box is for books.” eigen means “own” or “personal.” In eigen eten, it specifies food belonging to or intended for the individual concerned, rather than shared food. Eigen does not change for the gender or number of the noun it modifies. Example: Zij neemt haar eigen tas. — “She takes her own bag.” eten means “food” in this phrase. Here it is a noun, not the verb eten, “to eat”; the noun is commonly used as het eten. As a verb, eten can appear in a sentence such as Wij eten nu. — “We are eating now.” Together, Welke plank asks which shelf is meant, and is voor eigen eten identifies its intended purpose as being for personal food. The whole utterance therefore means: “Which shelf is for personal food?”

6. Gebruik de bovenste plank, weg van het eten dat voor iedereen is.

   Use the top shelf, away from the shared items.

   Gebruik

   use

   bovenste

   top; uppermost

   plank

   shelf; plank

   weg van

   away from

   eten

   food

   voor iedereen

   for everyone

   More detail

   Gebruik is the imperative of gebruiken (“to use”). It gives a direct instruction; Dutch normally leaves the subject jij or u unspoken in this form. Compare Ik gebruik de plank (“I use the shelf”) with Gebruik de plank (“Use the shelf”). bovenste means “top” here in the sense of highest or uppermost. It is the superlative form associated with boven (“above/up”), and the -e form appears before the common-gender noun plank in de bovenste plank. A useful comparison is boven (“above”), hoger (“higher”), hoogste (“highest”) when the adjective is based on hoog; bovenste is the established form for “uppermost/top” in this kind of phrase. plank means “shelf” here. It is a common-gender noun, so its definite article is de: de plank (“the shelf”). In another context, plank can also mean a board, but “shelf” is the intended meaning in this utterance. weg van is a prepositional construction meaning “away from.” It marks the thing or area from which something should be kept separate. For example, Zet het weg van het raam means “Put it away from the window.” eten means “food” in this sentence. With the neuter definite article het, het eten refers to food as a substance or category rather than counting individual items. The phrase het eten dat voor iedereen is means “the food that is for everyone”; the relative word dat links this description to het eten. voor iedereen means “for everyone.” voor introduces the intended recipients, and iedereen is the pronoun “everyone,” referring to all people in the relevant group without specifying a number. Here it describes the food as intended for everyone, matching the translation’s “shared items.” Together, Gebruik de bovenste plank means “Use the top shelf.” The comma introduces weg van het eten dat voor iedereen is, “away from the food that is for everyone,” which specifies what the shelf should be kept away from. The complete utterance is therefore: “Use the top shelf, away from the shared items.”

7. Ik laat het daar staan en neem het binnenkort mee naar huis.

   I'll keep it there and take it home soon.

   Ik

   I

   laat

   leave; keep

   het

   it

   daar

   there

   staan

   stand; be left standing

   neem … mee

   take along

   het

   it

   binnenkort

   soon

   huis

   house; home

   More detail

   Ik means “I” and is the first-person singular subject pronoun. It identifies the speaker as the person doing both actions. laat is the present-tense first-person singular form of laten. Here, with the infinitive staan, it means “leave” or “let remain”: Ik laat ... staan = “I leave ... standing / leave ... where it is.” The form changes with the subject: ik laat, but jij laat and hij/zij laat also have laat in the present; the infinitive is laten. The first het is an object pronoun meaning “it.” Its exact referent is supplied by the surrounding situation, but the sentence does not grammatically identify it further here. Dutch het can also be the definite article “the” before a neuter noun; in this sentence it is a pronoun because it stands for the thing being left and is not followed by a noun. daar means “there,” referring to a location. Together, het daar ... places the object at that location. staan is the infinitive of staan, “to stand.” In laten staan, it describes leaving something in a standing or stationary position. Dutch uses staan in combinations where English may say that an object is “left” somewhere, even when the main idea is that it remains in place. neem ... mee is the separable-verb construction from meenemen, “take along” or “bring with oneself.” neem is the first-person singular present form of nemen, and mee is the particle that adds the idea of taking something along. In a main clause, the particle is separated: Ik neem het mee = “I take it along.” In an infinitive or after certain verb structures, the combined form appears as meenemen. The second het is again an object pronoun meaning “it.” It refers to the thing being taken, as indicated by the fixed translation; the repeated form does not itself add a new noun or a plural meaning. binnenkort means “soon” or “before long.” It is an adverb of time and modifies the taking action here: the speaker plans to take it home soon. It does not itself specify an exact date or time. huis means “house,” but in the fixed phrase naar huis it means “home.” Dutch normally uses this destination expression without an article: Ik ga naar huis = “I go home.” The preposition naar marks the destination, while huis supplies the destination noun. The utterance combines two coordinated actions: Ik laat het daar staan (“I leave it standing there”) and neem het binnenkort mee naar huis (“take it home soon”). The subject Ik applies to both verbs, and the conjunction en links them. Thus the whole meaning is: “I’ll keep it there and take it home soon.”

8. Zo loopt de koelkast niet vol met oud eten.

   That way the fridge does not fill up with old food.

   Zo

   that way

   loopt … vol

   fills up

   koelkast

   fridge

   oud

   old

   eten

   food

   More detail

   Zo means “that way” here. It refers to a manner or arrangement already understood from the context. A reusable pattern is Zo + clause, meaning “That way, …”. loopt ... vol is the separated form of the Dutch verb vollopen, meaning “to fill up” or “to become full.” The form loopt is the present-tense form used with the singular subject de koelkast; vol appears later because vollopen is separable in this clause. This is different from ordinary lopen, which often means “to walk” or “to run.” For example, Het bad loopt vol. means “The bath is filling up.” Koelkast means “fridge” or “refrigerator.” Its plural is koelkasten. The singular form here is compatible with one fridge, while the sentence does not identify which fridge beyond the available context. Oud means “old” and describes eten here. Its comparison forms are ouder (“older”) and oudst (“oldest”). Example: Dit brood is oud. — “This bread is old.” Eten means “food” here: food considered as a substance or category, without asserting a particular number of items. Dutch eten can also be the verb “to eat,” but in this sentence it is a noun modified by oud. Together, Zo introduces the intended manner, de koelkast is the subject, loopt ... vol describes becoming full, niet negates that event, and met oud eten specifies what would fill the fridge. The complete utterance means: “That way, the fridge does not fill up with old food.”