Meal prep for a busy week | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Volgende week lijkt druk te worden, dus het zou helpen om alvast wat maaltijden klaar te maken.

   Next week looks busy, so preparing some meals in advance would help.

   Volgende

   next; following

   week

   week

   lijkt

   seems; looks

   druk

   busy

   te worden

   to become

   dus

   so; therefore

   het zou

   it would

   helpen

   help

   alvast

   in advance

   wat

   some

   maaltijden

   meals

   klaar

   ready

   te maken

   to make; to prepare

   More detail

   Volgende means “next” or “following.” In volgende week, it identifies the week that comes next; volgende is the form used before this noun. A useful contrast is vorige week = “last week.” Week is the noun “week”; its plural is weken. The phrase volgende week is a time expression and does not need a preposition here. Lijkt is the third-person singular present form of lijken, “to seem” or “to look.” The pattern iets lijkt ... presents an impression rather than a definite fact. Here, lijkt druk te worden means that the coming week appears likely to become busy. Druk is an adjective meaning “busy” in this sentence. It can also describe a place or period with a lot of activity, as in De winkel is druk = “The shop is busy.” Te worden is te plus the infinitive worden, “to become.” The pattern lijken te worden means “seem to become”; worden marks a change into a state, while druk names that state. The te-infinitive follows lijken in this construction. Dus connects a reason or situation to its consequence: “so” or “therefore.” It links the prediction about the week with the helpful suggestion that follows. Het zou contains het, an impersonal or anticipatory subject here, and zou, the singular form of zullen used for a conditional or tentative “would.” In this sentence, het does not identify a particular object; the following activity supplies what would help. Compare Het zou helpen = “It would help.” Helpen is the infinitive “to help.” In zou helpen, it follows the modal form zou; Dutch uses the infinitive rather than an English-style inflected verb after this form. The full pattern Het zou helpen om ... introduces an activity presented as useful. Alvast means “in advance” or “already for a later purpose.” It shows that the preparation happens before the meals are needed, not that the preparation is necessarily finished at the moment of speaking. Wat means “some” here, referring to an unspecified amount of meals. It does not state a precise number. In other contexts, wat can mean “what,” but that is not its role in this sentence. Maaltijden is the plural of maaltijd, “meal.” The plural ending is -en: één maaltijd = “one meal,” meerdere maaltijden = “several meals.” Klaar is an adjective meaning “ready.” In klaar te maken, it contributes the result that is intended: the meals are to be made ready, or prepared. The adjective itself does not mean “make.” Te maken is te plus the infinitive maken, “to make.” Together with klaar, klaar te maken is the reusable pattern “to make ready” or “to prepare.” The complete om ... te maken construction expresses the activity that would help; here, the meals are the object of maken. Taken together, Volgende week lijkt druk te worden says that the next week appears likely to become busy. Dus introduces the consequence, and het zou helpen om alvast wat maaltijden klaar te maken says that preparing some meals in advance would be helpful. The whole utterance therefore means: “Next week looks busy, so preparing some meals in advance would help.”

2. Maaltijden voorbereiden helpt, maar eet niet elke dag hetzelfde.

   Meal prep will help, but avoid eating the same thing every day.

   Maaltijden

   meals

   voorbereiden

   to prepare

   helpt

   helps

   eet

   eat

   elke dag

   every day

   hetzelfde

   the same thing

   More detail

   Maaltijden is the plural of maaltijd (“meal”): een maaltijd means “a meal”, while maaltijden means “meals”. Here it is the object of voorbereiden (“to prepare”). voorbereiden is the infinitive “to prepare” and commonly means preparing something in advance. It is separable in the present tense: ik bereid ... voor; the infinitive keeps the parts together: Ik bereid maaltijden voor. — “I prepare meals.” Together, Maaltijden voorbereiden is an infinitive clause used as the subject of the sentence: “Preparing meals” or “meal prep”. Although maaltijden is plural, the entire activity is treated as one subject, so the verb is singular. helpt is the present-tense form of helpen (“to help”) for hij/zij/het and for a singular subject. Here it agrees with the activity Maaltijden voorbereiden: “helps”. The base and present forms are helpen → helpt. Example: Vooruit plannen helpt. — “Planning ahead helps.” maar means “but” and connects the helpful recommendation with a contrasting instruction. After it comes eet, the imperative form of eten (“to eat”). In this sentence, the imperative addresses the listener or listeners; niet makes the instruction negative: “do not eat” or, in the fixed translation, “avoid eating”. Example: Eet niet te snel. — “Do not eat too quickly.” elke dag means “every day”. Elke is the form of “each/every” used here with the common-gender noun dag; the expression describes repeated frequency. Example: Ik wandel elke dag. — “I walk every day.” hetzelfde means “the same thing” in this sentence. It is the neuter singular form used independently, without a stated noun. Before a noun, Dutch uses forms such as dezelfde maaltijd — “the same meal” and hetzelfde gerecht — “the same dish”. The full structure is Maaltijden voorbereiden helpt (“Preparing meals helps”), followed by maar (“but”) and the negative imperative eet niet elke dag hetzelfde (“do not eat the same thing every day”). Thus the utterance advises meal preparation while also advising variety in what is eaten.

3. Ik dacht eraan om een grote hoeveelheid groentecurry te maken.

   I was thinking of making a big batch of vegetable curry.

   Ik

   I

   dacht eraan om

   was thinking of

   grote

   big

   hoeveelheid

   amount

   groentecurry

   vegetable curry

   te maken

   to make

   More detail

   Ik is the first-person singular pronoun: “I.” It identifies the speaker, and it does not change for grammatical gender. A useful contrast is ik denk (“I think”) versus ik dacht (“I thought” / “I was thinking”), where the verb carries the past-tense form. dacht eraan om contains the past-tense form dacht of denken (“to think”) and the reusable Dutch pattern eraan denken om ... te ..., meaning “to think about ...-ing” or “to be considering ...-ing.” Here, eraan points forward to the planned action expressed by om ... te maken; it is not a separate concrete object identified in the sentence. Dacht is the singular past form used with ik; the present form is denk. For example: Ik denk eraan om morgen te koken. — “I’m thinking of cooking tomorrow.” grote is the attributive form of the adjective groot (“big” or “large”). It describes hoeveelheid here. With this singular common-gender noun phrase, Dutch uses the -e form: een grote hoeveelheid. The adjective, not hoeveelheid, carries this inflection. For comparison: groot (“big”), groter (“bigger”), grootst (“biggest”); before a noun, the superlative has an ending as appropriate, such as de grootste hoeveelheid (“the biggest amount”). hoeveelheid means “amount” or “quantity.” It presents the curry as a quantity of food, without by itself specifying an exact measurement. In combination with grote, it gives the intended sense “a large amount”; the fixed translation naturally renders this as “a big batch.” For example: Een kleine hoeveelheid is genoeg. — “A small amount is enough.” groentecurry is a compound noun meaning “vegetable curry”: groente (“vegetable”) modifies curry (“curry”). Dutch commonly forms such compounds as one written word. The compound names the type of curry; the surrounding phrase says that a large amount of it is intended. te maken is the infinitive of maken (“to make”) with te. After the pattern eraan denken om, Dutch uses om ... te plus the infinitive to express the action being considered. Maken is the base form, while te maken is the corresponding “to make” form in this construction. For example: Zij probeert een soep te maken. — “She is trying to make a soup.” Together, Ik dacht eraan om introduces a past thought or consideration, een grote hoeveelheid specifies a large quantity, and groentecurry te maken identifies the contemplated action. The complete meaning is: “I was thinking of making a big batch of vegetable curry.”

4. Dat werkt als je het goed in porties verdeelt en veilig bewaart.

   That works if you portion it properly and store it safely.

   Dat

   that

   werkt

   works

   als

   if

   je

   you

   het

   it

   goed

   properly

   in

   in

   porties

   portions

   verdeelt

   divide

   veilig

   safely

   bewaart

   store

   More detail

   Dat means “that” here. It refers to something already under discussion, without the sentence itself specifying a more precise referent. Dutch demonstratives distinguish forms such as dit (“this”) and dat (“that”); dat is the form used here. werkt is the present-tense form of werken, “to work” or “to be effective,” with a third-person singular subject. In Dat werkt, the singular subject is Dat. Example: Deze oplossing werkt. — “This solution works.” als introduces a condition and means “if” here. The pattern als ... introduces the condition on which something is effective: Als je tijd hebt, koken we samen. — “If you have time, we will cook together.” je is the informal singular “you” in this sentence and is the subject of both later verbs. Dutch can also use je for a general or nonspecific “you,” but the fixed translation supports the direct “you” reading here. het is the singular neuter object pronoun “it.” In this sentence, it is the object of verdeelt, not the subject; the fixed translation identifies it as the thing being portioned. goed means “properly” here. It is also the adjective “good,” but Dutch can use the same form adverbially to describe how an action is done. Compare een goede verdeling (“a good division”) with het goed verdelen (“dividing it properly”). in marks the arrangement or result as being in portions here. Its precise contribution becomes clear with porties: in porties means “in portions.” porties is the plural of portie, “portion.” Example: Ik verdeel de soep in porties. — “I divide the soup into portions.” verdeelt is the present-tense form of verdelen, “to divide” or “to portion.” With the subject je, Dutch uses je verdeelt. Verdelen is a single verb, not a separable verb. Example: Je verdeelt het brood in stukken. — “You divide the bread into pieces.” veilig means “safely” here and describes the manner of storing. The form is also the adjective “safe”; Dutch can use it adverbially without changing its form. Example: Bewaar het veilig. — “Store it safely.” bewaart is the present-tense form of bewaren, “to store” or “to keep.” It agrees with the subject je: je bewaart. It names the second action coordinated with verdeelt. Example: Je bewaart de saus in de koelkast. — “You store the sauce in the fridge.” Together, Dat werkt gives “That works.” The conditional clause begins with als: als je het goed in porties verdeelt en veilig bewaart — “if you portion it properly and store it safely.” The subject je applies to both coordinated actions, so the complete utterance means: “That works if you portion it properly and store it safely.”

5. Zal ik een deel invriezen en de rest in de koelkast bewaren?

   Should I freeze some and keep the rest in the fridge?

   Zal ik

   Should I …? / Shall I …?

   deel

   part; portion

   invriezen

   freeze

   rest

   rest; remainder

   koelkast

   fridge; refrigerator

   bewaren

   keep; store

   More detail

   Zal ik is a useful Dutch way to ask whether the speaker should do something: Zal ik + infinitive ...? means “Shall I ...?” or, as here, “Should I ...?” zal is the first-person singular form of zullen; with ik, it frames a proposed action rather than stating that the action will definitely happen. Example: Zal ik helpen? — “Shall I help?” een deel means “a part” or, in this context, “some.” deel is a noun; its plural is delen. The indefinite article een introduces the noun but does not by itself assert a numerical count. Here, the translation’s “some” captures an unspecified portion of the food or other material already under discussion. invriezen means “to freeze” in the sense of putting something into a freezer for storage. It is an infinitive here because it follows zal ik. This is a separable verb: in a finite form, the parts can separate, as in Ik vries het in — “I freeze it.” The next-context example uses the imperative form Vries ... in — “Freeze ...”. de rest means “the rest” or “the remainder”: the part left after the portion mentioned before it. rest is a noun, and its plural is resten. In this sentence, de rest refers to the remaining amount, without specifying its exact size. in de koelkast means “in the fridge.” koelkast is the noun “refrigerator/fridge”; its plural is koelkasten. The preposition in marks the storage location here, and de is the definite article used with this noun. bewaren means “to keep” or “to store.” It is an infinitive, coordinated with invriezen after Zal ik: Zal ik ... invriezen en ... bewaren? Dutch does not need to repeat zal ik before the second verb. Example: Ik bewaar het brood in de kast. — “I keep the bread in the cupboard.” The full structure is Zal ik [een deel] invriezen en [de rest] in de koelkast bewaren? The speaker asks whether they should freeze an unspecified portion and store what remains in the fridge. The two proposed actions are joined by en (“and”), and the question leaves the choice open rather than asserting that either action has already happened.

6. Vries een paar porties in.

   Freeze a few portions.

   Vries … in

   freeze ...

   een paar

   a few

   porties

   portions

   More detail

   Vries … in is the separable verb invriezen, “to freeze” or “to put into the freezer.” In this sentence it is an imperative: Vries starts the command, while in appears at the end of the clause. The command addresses an understood “you.” In a non-imperative clause, the parts stay separated too: Je vriest de porties in. — “You freeze the portions.” een paar expresses a small, non-exact number: “a few” or “several.” It does not specify the exact count. For comparison, een alone is an indefinite article, while een paar is the quantity expression. porties is the plural of portie, “portion.” The singular refers to one portion; the plural form used here refers to more than one. Example: Ik verdeel het eten in porties. — “I divide the food into portions.” Together, the imperative Vries … in, the quantity expression een paar, and the plural noun porties give the reusable pattern Vries [een paar porties] in. The complete meaning is: “Freeze a few portions.”

7. Geef elk bakje een label, zodat je makkelijk kunt kiezen.

   Label each container so it is easy to choose.

   Geef

   give; assign

   elk

   each

   bakje

   container

   een label

   a label

   zodat

   so that

   je

   you

   makkelijk

   easily

   kunt

   can

   kiezen

   choose

   More detail

   Geef is the imperative of geven (“to give”). It is used here as an instruction. Dutch imperatives commonly omit the subject: Geef hem een boek. means “Give him a book.” elk means “each” and distributes the action over individual items. It is the singular form used before a het-word such as bakje; compare elke tafel (“each table”), where tafel is a de-word. Elk bakje therefore means “each container,” not one unspecified container. bakje means “small container” or “small bowl.” It is a diminutive related to bak (“container” or “tray”), and diminutives in Dutch are het-words. Example: Het bakje is leeg. — “The small container is empty.” een label means “a label.” label is the noun; its definite form is het label and its plural is labels. Here een marks an indefinite singular noun phrase; it is not by itself a claim about a numerical quantity. Together with geven, the phrase expresses assigning or putting a label on each container. zodat introduces a subordinate clause expressing the intended result: “so that.” Example: Schrijf het duidelijk, zodat iedereen het kan lezen. — “Write it clearly so that everyone can read it.” je is the unstressed second-person subject pronoun, referring here to the person being instructed. In je ... kunt, it functions as the subject of the subordinate clause. makkelijk is an adverb meaning “easily” in this sentence. The related adjective is also makkelijk, as in een makkelijke keuze (“an easy choice”); the adverb describes how the choosing can be done. kunt is the second-person singular present form of the modal verb kunnen (“can; be able to”). In a subordinate clause, the finite modal appears before the infinitive: je kunt kiezen. After a modal, the following verb remains an infinitive rather than taking a finite ending. Example: Je kunt zelf kiezen. — “You can choose for yourself.” kiezen is the infinitive “to choose.” Its past-tense and participle forms are irregular: koos (“chose”) and gekozen (“chosen”). In this utterance it stays in the infinitive because kunt carries the tense and person marking. The imperative Geef combines with elk bakje een label to express assigning a label to every container. The zodat clause gives the purpose or intended result: je kunt makkelijk kiezen, “you can choose easily.” Together, the utterance means: “Label each container so that you can choose easily.”

8. Ik heb voor de lunch ook een evenwichtige maaltijd nodig, niet alleen rijst.

   I also need something balanced for lunch, not just rice.

   heb … nodig

   need

   voor de lunch

   for lunch

   ook

   also

   evenwichtige

   balanced

   maaltijd

   meal

   niet alleen

   not only

   rijst

   rice

   More detail

   heb ... nodig expresses “need” in Dutch. The verb is hebben; heb is its present-tense form with ik (“I”). nodig is the required or necessary element in this construction, but it is not the verb: hebben carries the verb inflection. The two parts can be separated by other sentence elements. Example: Ik heb tijd nodig. — “I need time.” voor de lunch means “for lunch.” voor introduces the purpose or occasion, and de lunch is the noun phrase “lunch.” Example: Dit is voor de lunch. — “This is for lunch.” ook means “also” or “as well.” Here it adds this need to something already relevant; it does not change who needs it or when. evenwichtige is the form of the adjective evenwichtig, “balanced.” In een evenwichtige maaltijd, the adjective appears before the noun with the -e ending. Example: een gezonde maaltijd — “a healthy meal.” The ending belongs to evenwichtige, not to maaltijd. maaltijd means “meal.” It is a countable noun: een maaltijd means “a meal,” while maaltijden is its plural. The article een marks an indefinite noun phrase; it does not by itself assert a numerical count. Example: We eten twee maaltijden. — “We eat two meals.” niet alleen means “not only.” It introduces a contrast in which the statement is not limited to the item that follows. A reusable pattern is niet alleen X, maar ook Y — “not only X, but also Y.” This sentence does not explicitly include the maar ook continuation. rijst means “rice.” As a food substance, it is generally used as an uncountable noun. Here it is the item that is not sufficient by itself in the contrast; the sentence does not specify which other foods make up the balanced meal. Together, Ik heb ... nodig means “I need ...”; voor de lunch specifies that the need concerns lunch; and ook adds this need. een evenwichtige maaltijd is “a balanced meal,” while niet alleen rijst contrasts that meal with rice alone. The complete meaning is: “I also need something balanced for lunch, not just rice.”

9. Voeg eieren, bonen of kip toe, afhankelijk van waar je zin in hebt.

   Add eggs, beans, or chicken, depending on what you feel like eating.

   Voeg … toe

   add

   eieren

   eggs

   bonen

   beans

   kip

   chicken

   afhankelijk van

   depending on

   waar je zin in hebt

   what you feel like

   More detail

   Voeg ... toe is the separable verb toevoegen, “to add.” In this sentence, voeg is the imperative form: it gives the instruction to add something. The particle toe appears at the end of the clause, after the things being added. This split is a normal Dutch pattern for separable verbs. Example: Voeg suiker toe. — Add sugar. eieren is the plural of ei, “egg.” The plural ending is -eren, so this is not formed by simply adding -s or -en. Here it names eggs as possible ingredients. Example: Ik koop eieren. — I am buying eggs. bonen is the plural of boon, “bean.” The singular and plural forms differ in their vowel spelling as well as in the plural ending. Here it is another possible ingredient. Example: Bonen zijn voedzaam. — Beans are nutritious. kip means “chicken.” In this food context it refers to chicken as an ingredient or meat; the same noun can refer to the bird in another context. Unlike eieren and bonen, the form shown here is not marked as plural. Example: We eten kip. — We are eating chicken. afhankelijk van means “depending on.” It introduces the condition that determines which option is appropriate. Afhankelijk is related to the verb afhangen (“to depend”), while van introduces what the dependence is on. Example: De keuze is afhankelijk van de prijs. — The choice depends on the price. waar je zin in hebt expresses “what you feel like,” using the Dutch construction zin hebben in iets, literally having a desire for something. hebt is the present-tense form of hebben for je; in belongs to the construction and is placed before the final verb in this clause. Waar asks which thing is meant. Example: Waar heb je zin in? — What do you feel like? In the fixed sentence, the translation makes the intended activity explicit as eating, so the clause means “what you feel like eating.” Together, the imperative Voeg ... toe tells someone to add one or more ingredients. eieren, bonen, and kip are the alternatives, joined by of (“or”). The final part says that the choice depends on what the person feels like eating, giving the complete meaning: add eggs, beans, or chicken according to that preference.

10. Als de restjes saai lijken, kan ik het bijgerecht veranderen.

    If the leftovers feel boring, I can change the side dish.

    restjes

    leftovers

    saai

    boring

    lijken

    seem

    kan ik

    I can

    bijgerecht

    side dish

    veranderen

    change

    More detail

    restjes means leftovers here. Its singular base is restje; restjes is the plural form. The ending -je marks a diminutive in Dutch, but a diminutive can refer to ordinary leftover portions, not necessarily something the speaker considers physically small. Example: Ik bewaar de restjes. — “I keep the leftovers.” saai means boring in this sentence. It is an adjective and does not take a plural ending here: de restjes zijn saai uses the same saai with a plural subject. Its comparative is saaier (“more boring”) and its superlative is het saaiste (“the most boring”). lijken means seem or appear. In de restjes saai lijken, it is the finite present-tense form for the plural subject de restjes; it happens to have the same spelling as the infinitive lijken. Dutch places this finite verb at the end of an als-clause: Als de restjes saai lijken means “If the leftovers seem boring.” Example: De soep lijkt warm. — “The soup seems warm.” kan ik expresses “I can.” kan is the present-tense form of kunnen (“can, be able to”) for ik; ik kan is the ordinary subject–verb order. Here kan ik occurs because the main clause begins with the conditional clause, so the finite verb comes before the subject in the main clause: Als ..., kan ik ... (“If ..., I can ...”). This construction expresses ability or possibility in the stated situation, not a claim that the change has already happened. bijgerecht means side dish. It is a singular noun; its plural is bijgerechten. The word combines bij (“alongside”) with gerecht (“dish”), but the useful meaning here is the established noun “side dish.” The article is het: het bijgerecht (“the side dish”). Example: Het bijgerecht is klaar. — “The side dish is ready.” veranderen means change or alter. It is an infinitive after the modal verb kan: ik kan het bijgerecht veranderen (“I can change the side dish”). After a modal such as kunnen, the following lexical verb remains in the infinitive rather than being conjugated for ik. Example: Ik kan het recept veranderen. — “I can change the recipe.” Together, Als de restjes saai lijken sets the condition: “If the leftovers seem boring.” In that subordinate clause, de restjes is the subject, saai describes them, and lijken is placed at the end. kan ik het bijgerecht veranderen then states the option available to the speaker: “I can change the side dish.” The complete utterance is: “If the leftovers feel boring, I can change the side dish.”

11. Kleine veranderingen maken vooraf bereide maaltijden aangenamer.

    Small changes make prepared meals more enjoyable.

    Kleine

    small

    veranderingen

    changes

    maken

    make

    vooraf bereide

    prepared in advance

    maaltijden

    meals

    aangenamer

    more enjoyable

    More detail

    Kleine means “small” here. It is the adjective klein in its plural form, agreeing with veranderingen. In Dutch, an adjective before a plural noun normally ends in -e: kleine veranderingen (“small changes”). veranderingen means “changes” here. Its singular base form is verandering; the plural adds -en: verandering → veranderingen. The related verb is veranderen (“to change”), but the noun refers to the changes themselves. Example: Een kleine verandering helpt. — “A small change helps.” maken means “make” here. Its base form is also maken; in the present tense, maken is used with a plural subject such as kleine veranderingen. With a singular subject, the form is maakt: De verandering maakt het eten aangenamer. — “The change makes the food more enjoyable.” vooraf bereide means “prepared in advance.” Bereide comes from the verb bereiden (“to prepare”) and is a participial adjective before the plural noun maaltijden. Vooraf means “beforehand” or “in advance” and specifies when the preparation happened. The two parts together form the reusable pattern vooraf bereide + noun, as in vooraf bereide soep — “soup prepared in advance.” maaltijden means “meals.” Its singular base form is maaltijd; the plural is maaltijden. Example: We eten drie maaltijden per dag. — “We eat three meals a day.” aangenamer means “more enjoyable” here. It is the comparative form of the adjective aangenaam (“enjoyable” or “pleasant”): aangenaam → aangenamer. The comparative ending -er expresses a comparison or a greater degree. Example: De kamer is aangenamer met licht. — “The room is more pleasant with light.” Together, kleine veranderingen is the plural subject, maken is the plural present-tense verb, vooraf bereide maaltijden means “meals prepared in advance,” and aangenamer describes the result. The whole utterance therefore means: “Small changes make prepared meals more enjoyable.”