Clarifying vague feedback | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. In de feedback staat dat het voorstel sterker moet zijn, maar dat vind ik vaag.

   The feedback says the proposal should be stronger, but that feels vague.

   feedback

   feedback

   staat

   says; states

   voorstel

   proposal

   sterker

   stronger

   moet zijn

   should be

   dat

   that

   vind

   find; consider

   vaag

   vague

   More detail

   feedback is a Dutch loanword used here as a mass noun for written or spoken comments. The definite article appears in de feedback; de is the article selected for this noun in this phrase. staat is the present-tense form of staan for het or another singular subject. Literally, staan means “stand”, but in In de feedback staat dat ... it is a reusable impersonal pattern meaning that the feedback says or indicates something. This does not mean that the feedback is physically standing. voorstel means “proposal”. Its plural is voorstellen. In het voorstel, het is the definite article used with this noun here; it does not itself mean “proposal”. sterker is the comparative form of the adjective sterk (“strong”). The useful chain is sterk → sterker → sterkst (“strong” → “stronger” → “strongest”). Here, sterker describes the proposal as needing a greater degree of strength or effectiveness than it currently has; the sentence does not specify what aspect should be stronger. moet zijn combines moet, the third-person singular present form of moeten, with zijn (“be”). With the singular subject het voorstel, moet expresses necessity or an expected improvement, naturally translated here as “should”. The construction iets moet zijn can be reused with another adjective: Het antwoord moet duidelijk zijn. — “The answer should be clear.” The first dat introduces the content of what the feedback says: staat dat ... means “says that ...”. It is a conjunction here, not the demonstrative “that”. The later dat is a different use: it refers back to the preceding proposition, namely that the proposal should be stronger. Its exact referent is therefore the stated idea, rather than a newly named noun. vind is the first-person singular present form of vinden, with subject ik. Besides “find” in the physical sense, vinden can express an assessment: iets vaag vinden means “consider something vague” or “find something vague”. A useful pattern is Ik vind het duidelijk. — “I find it clear.” vaag is an adjective meaning “vague” or insufficiently specific. Dutch uses it unchanged after vinden in this assessment pattern: Ik vind dat vaag means “I find that vague.” It is not the comparative form; the comparative is vager (“vaguer”), and the superlative is vaagst (“vaguest”). The opening In de feedback means “in the feedback”. It sets the source of the statement. staat dat het voorstel sterker moet zijn then says that the feedback states that the proposal should be stronger. After maar (“but”), dat vind ik vaag means “I find that vague”: ik is the subject of vind, and the second dat is the proposition just mentioned. Together, the utterance means: “The feedback says the proposal should be stronger, but that feels vague.”

2. Vraag welk onderdeel moet worden herzien: het bewijs, de toon of de structuur.

   Ask which part needs revision: the evidence, tone, or structure.

   Vraag

   ask

   welk

   which

   onderdeel

   part

   moet worden herzien

   needs to be revised

   bewijs

   evidence

   toon

   tone

   structuur

   structure

   More detail

   Vraag is the imperative of vragen (“to ask”). It gives a direct instruction: “Ask …”. The imperative does not state an explicit subject here. welk means “which” and appears before onderdeel. Dutch uses welk with a singular het-word, while welke is used with de-words and plurals: welk onderdeel (“which part”), but welke toon (“which tone”). The choice is determined by the noun’s article and number, not by the meaning of “which” alone. onderdeel means “part” or “component”. It is a singular neuter noun: het onderdeel. In this sentence it refers generally to one part of the material that may need revision; the sentence itself does not identify a specific part at this point. moet worden herzien expresses “must be revised” or, naturally here, “needs to be revised”. moet is the third-person singular present form of moeten (“must, have to”) and agrees with singular onderdeel. worden herzien is a passive construction: worden is the passive auxiliary and herzien is the past participle of herzien (“to revise”). With a modal verb, Dutch places the modal before the passive infinitive construction: Het onderdeel moet worden herzien (“The part must be revised”). bewijs means “evidence”. In the full noun phrase it is het bewijs; the article is part of the noun phrase and does not assert a quantity. Example: Het bewijs is overtuigend. — “The evidence is convincing.” toon means “tone”, as in the tone of a text or communication. It is a singular de-word: de toon. Example: De toon is te scherp. — “The tone is too harsh.” structuur means “structure”, including the organization of a text. It is a singular de-word: de structuur. Example: De structuur is duidelijk. — “The structure is clear.” The colon introduces the three possible parts being named: het bewijs, de toon, or de structuur. of means “or” and connects the alternatives. Together, Vraag welk onderdeel moet worden herzien means “Ask which part needs revision,” and the list specifies the alternatives as “the evidence, tone, or structure.”

3. Ik denk dat de inleiding het probleem misschien niet duidelijk genoeg uitlegt.

   I think the introduction may not explain the problem clearly enough.

   Ik denk

   I think

   dat

   that

   inleiding

   introduction

   probleem

   problem

   misschien

   perhaps

   niet

   not

   duidelijk

   clearly

   genoeg

   enough

   uitlegt

   explains

   More detail

   Ik denk is the first-person singular present of denken (“to think”): ik denk = “I think.” It introduces the speaker’s assessment rather than presenting the following statement as certain. Compare Ik denk dat hij komt. — “I think that he is coming.” dat introduces the subordinate clause that contains the thought. In Dutch, a finite verb commonly moves toward the end of a clause introduced by dat; here, uitlegt comes at the end of that clause. This dat means “that,” not the demonstrative “that.” inleiding means “introduction.” It is a noun used here with the definite article de: de inleiding. A useful related noun is onderdeel (“part” or “section”), but it is not interchangeable with inleiding; an introduction is specifically the opening section or presentation of a subject. probleem means “problem” and takes the definite article het: het probleem. The article is part of the noun phrase, while the noun itself remains probleem in the singular. Example: We bespreken het probleem. — “We are discussing the problem.” misschien means “perhaps” or “maybe.” It marks the statement as uncertain: Misschien komt hij. — “Maybe he is coming.” In this sentence it applies to the possibility that the introduction does not explain clearly enough. niet is the negation word “not.” Here it negates the explaining described by uitlegt, so the intended meaning is that the introduction may fail to explain the problem clearly enough. Dutch negation placement can vary with sentence structure, but this position is natural before the descriptive phrase duidelijk genoeg. duidelijk means “clear” or, in this use, “clearly.” Dutch can use this form adverbially without an added adverb ending: Hij spreekt duidelijk. — “He speaks clearly.” It describes how the explaining is done here, rather than describing the problem itself. genoeg means “enough.” After an adjective or adverb, the pattern duidelijk genoeg means “clearly enough”: the required degree of clarity has not been reached when combined with niet. Example: Ze spreekt niet duidelijk genoeg. — “She does not speak clearly enough.” uitlegt is the third-person singular present form of uitleggen, “to explain.” Its subject here is singular de inleiding, so the form is uitlegt. In a main clause, the separable verb appears as De inleiding legt het probleem uit. — “The introduction explains the problem.” In the subordinate clause after dat, it appears together as dat de inleiding het probleem uitlegt. Together, Ik denk dat means “I think that,” and the subordinate clause says that de inleiding may niet duidelijk genoeg explain het probleem. The complete meaning is: “I think the introduction may not explain the problem clearly enough.”

4. Vraag dan om een concreet voorbeeld van wat ze veranderd willen zien.

   Then ask for a specific example of what they want changed.

   Vraag … om

   ask for

   concreet

   specific; concrete

   voorbeeld

   example

   wat

   what

   ze

   they

   veranderd

   changed

   willen zien

   want to see

   More detail

   Vraag ... om is a reusable way to say “ask for ...”. Vraag is the imperative of vragen (“to ask”); the subject is understood as “you”. om introduces what is being requested. For example: Vraag om hulp. — “Ask for help.” The word dan means “then” and connects this instruction to what should happen next. concreet means “specific” or “concrete”. It is an adjective describing the noun voorbeeld; Dutch adjectives often take -e before a noun in this kind of phrase. Voorbeeld means “example”. Together, een concreet voorbeeld means “a specific example”; een marks an indefinite noun phrase but does not itself state a numerical count. For example: Geef een concreet voorbeeld. — “Give a specific example.” wat means “what” here and introduces the content of the requested example: it refers to the thing or things that are to be changed. Ze is the plural pronoun “they” and is the subject of the embedded clause. The sentence does not identify who ze refers to beyond that plural reading. veranderd is the past participle of veranderen (“to change”). Here it describes the intended changed state in wat ze veranderd willen zien: the speaker asks for an example of what they want to see changed. The participle is not the form that carries the plural subject agreement; willen does that job in this clause. For example: Ik wil de tekst veranderd zien. — “I want to see the text changed.” willen zien combines willen (“to want”) with zien (“to see”). Willen is the present-tense plural form matching ze; zien remains an infinitive after it. In the embedded clause, these verb forms occur toward the end, with veranderd before them: wat ze veranderd willen zien. The intended structure is “what they want to see changed,” rather than simply “what they want to see.” As a whole, Vraag dan om een concreet voorbeeld van wat ze veranderd willen zien. means “Then ask for a specific example of what they want changed.” The imperative Vraag gives the instruction, om een concreet voorbeeld names the requested item, and van wat ze veranderd willen zien specifies its content.

5. Zou dat defensief klinken?

   Would that sound defensive?

   Zou dat

   would that...

   defensief

   defensive

   klinken

   sound

   More detail

   Zou dat combines zou, the singular form of the conditional/past form of zullen, with dat, a demonstrative pronoun. Here zou contributes “would,” presenting a possible result rather than stating that it actually sounds that way. Dat means “that”; the supplied sentence does not identify what “that” refers to. In this yes/no question, the finite verb comes before the subject: Zou dat ...? = “Would that ...?” defensief is an adjective meaning “defensive.” It describes the way something might be perceived or sound. The related adjective aanvallend means “aggressive” in the sense of attacking, but it is not a synonym for defensief. klinken is the infinitive “to sound.” After zou, Dutch uses the infinitive: zou ... klinken = “would ... sound.” The same verb can also describe literal sound, for example: Dat klinkt goed. — “That sounds good.” Together, Zou dat + defensief + klinken forms a yes/no question about the possible impression of an unspecified statement or wording: “Would that sound defensive?” The question asks whether the proposed wording could be perceived as defensive; it does not assert that it is defensive.

6. Niet als je zegt dat je aan hun verwachtingen wilt voldoen.

   Not if you say you want to match their expectations.

   Niet als

   Not if

   zegt

   say

   wilt

   want

   voldoen

   meet

   verwachtingen

   expectations

   More detail

   Niet als combines a negation with als (“if/when”) and rejects the condition that follows: “not if …”. Here it frames the whole statement as a condition, rather than negating only one word. zegt is the present-tense form of zeggen, “to say”, for je or another singular subject: ik zeg, je zegt, hij zegt. In this sentence, je zegt means “you say”. The clause introduced by dat gives the content of what is said: dat je ... wilt voldoen. wilt comes from willen, “to want”. With je, both je wilt and je wil occur; je wilt is the form used here. The following infinitive expresses what the person wants to do: je wilt voldoen = “you want to meet”. voldoen is an infinitive meaning “to meet” in the construction aan iets voldoen, literally “satisfy a requirement or standard”. The preposition aan belongs to this construction, so aan hun verwachtingen voldoen means “meet their expectations”. Voldoen can also mean “satisfy” in contexts such as satisfying a requirement. verwachtingen is the plural of verwachting, “expectation”. The possessive hun specifies whose expectations they are: “their expectations”. The plural ending -en marks more than one expectation. Together, je zegt dat je aan hun verwachtingen wilt voldoen means “you say you want to meet their expectations”. Placing Niet als before this clause produces the complete meaning: “Not if you say you want to match their expectations.” The Dutch wording uses aan ... voldoen for the idea expressed by “match/meet expectations” in the fixed translation.

7. Ik kan vragen of ze meer gegevens willen of een zelfverzekerdere toon.

   I can ask whether they want more data or a more confident tone.

   Ik kan

   I can

   vragen

   ask

   ze

   they

   meer

   more

   gegevens

   data

   willen

   want

   zelfverzekerdere

   more confident

   toon

   tone

   More detail

   Ik kan combines ik (“I”) with kan, the first-person singular present form of kunnen (“can, be able to”). Here it expresses ability or possibility. The following infinitive names the action that is possible: Ik kan vragen = “I can ask.” vragen is the infinitive meaning “to ask.” In this sentence it follows the modal kan; Dutch commonly uses a modal finite verb with another verb in the infinitive. For example: Ik kan komen. — “I can come.” ze means “they” here, as confirmed by the fixed translation. It is a third-person plural pronoun and serves as the subject of willen in the embedded yes-or-no question. The form ze can also have other functions in Dutch, but this sentence uses it as the plural subject “they.” meer means “more.” It compares an amount or degree with a reference amount understood from the situation. It can be used with a noun: meer tijd — “more time.” gegevens means “data” or “information/details” here. It is the plural form of gegeven (“piece of data” or “given fact”), although gegevens is very commonly used as a collective term for data or information. The plural form is appropriate for the data being requested. willen means “want” here. With the plural subject ze, it is the present-tense form “they want”; it also has the same written form as the infinitive “to want.” In the subordinate clause introduced by of (“whether”), the finite verb comes at the end: of ze meer gegevens willen — “whether they want more data.” zelfverzekerdere is the comparative form of the adjective zelfverzekerd (“confident”): zelfverzekerd → zelfverzekerder (“more confident”). Before the noun toon, the comparative has the attributive ending -e, giving zelfverzekerdere. This adjective describes the tone, not the data: een zelfverzekerdere toon means “a more confident tone.” toon means “tone” in this sentence. It is a singular noun, and the indefinite article een before it introduces an unspecified tone; it does not by itself assert a numerical count. The adjective and noun together form een zelfverzekerdere toon — “a more confident tone.” The sentence begins with the ability statement Ik kan vragen (“I can ask”). The question introduced by of offers two alternatives: ze meer gegevens willen (“they want more data”) or een zelfverzekerdere toon (“a more confident tone”). Together, the utterance means: “I can ask whether they want more data or a more confident tone.”

8. Dat geeft hun twee duidelijke richtingen om uit te kiezen.

   That gives them two clear directions to choose from.

   Dat

   that; it

   geeft

   gives

   hun

   them

   twee

   two

   duidelijke

   clear

   richtingen

   directions

   om uit te kiezen

   to choose from

   More detail

   Dat is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “that” or, as here, “it/that.” It is the subject of the sentence and refers to something already understood from the situation; the supplied translation does not require identifying a more specific noun. Dutch contrasts dat with die: dat is used with a singular neuter noun or independently for such a referent, while die is used with a singular common-gender noun or with plural referents. Example: Dat is duidelijk. — “That is clear.” geeft is the present-tense form of geven (“to give”) for a third-person singular subject. The useful pattern is iemand geeft iemand iets: “someone gives someone something.” In this sentence, Dat is the giver-like subject, hun identifies the recipients, and the thing given is expressed by twee duidelijke richtingen. Example: Zij geeft hem een keuze. — “She gives him a choice.” hun means “them” here as an indirect object: they are the people who receive the options. In standard Dutch, hun is used for a third-person plural indirect object without a preposition; after a preposition, Dutch normally uses hen, as in Ik praat met hen — “I talk with them.” The form hun itself does not show the recipients’ gender. twee means “two” and states the number of options. It is a cardinal number, not an article. It comes before the adjective and noun in twee duidelijke richtingen. duidelijke is the inflected form of the adjective duidelijk, “clear.” It describes richtingen, which is plural, so the adjective has the ending -e: duidelijke. The base form is duidelijk; the comparative is duidelijker (“clearer”), and the superlative is het duidelijkst (“the clearest”). Example: We hebben duidelijke afspraken. — “We have clear agreements.” richtingen is the plural of the noun richting, “direction.” The ending -en marks the plural here: één richting, twee richtingen. In this utterance, the word refers to alternative directions or courses that can be selected; it does not by itself specify a physical direction. Example: Welke richting kiezen we? — “Which direction do we choose?” om uit te kiezen is an infinitive construction meaning “to choose from.” It contains kiezen (“to choose”) with the separable element uit (“from/out of”); in this om ... te construction, they appear together as om uit te kiezen. The selected options are expressed before the construction: twee duidelijke richtingen om uit te kiezen means “two clear directions to choose from.” Example: Er zijn drie kleuren om uit te kiezen. — “There are three colors to choose from.” Together, Dat geeft hun means “That gives them,” and twee duidelijke richtingen identifies two clear options. The final construction om uit te kiezen explains the purpose or availability of those directions: they are options from which the recipients can choose. The whole utterance therefore means: “That gives them two clear directions to choose from.”

9. Zodra ik weet welke richting het voorstel op moet, kan ik het snel aanpassen.

   Once I know the direction, I can revise it quickly.

   Zodra

   once; as soon as

   weet

   know

   welke

   which

   richting

   direction

   voorstel

   proposal

   op moet

   should go in a direction

   kan ik

   I can

   snel

   quickly

   aanpassen

   adjust; revise

   More detail

   Zodra introduces a time condition: the next event happens once the condition is fulfilled. It is close to wanneer (“when”), but zodra emphasizes that the second event follows as soon as the first one is true. Example: Zodra hij klaar is, bellen we. — “As soon as he is ready, we will call.” weet is the present-tense form of weten (“to know”) for ik: ik weet. The same verb has jij weet and hij/zij weet, while the plural form is wij weten. In this sentence it means knowing or having established the relevant direction, not merely hearing about it. welke means “which” when selecting from possible options. It is used here with richting, as in welke richting? — “which direction?” Compare welk voorstel? — “which proposal?”: welk is used with a het-word, whereas welke is used with a de-word or a plural. Richting is a de-word: de richting. richting means “direction.” Its plural is richtingen, as also seen in the preceding context. Example: We kiezen een andere richting. — “We choose a different direction.” voorstel means “proposal” or “draft proposal,” depending on context. It is a het-word: het voorstel; its plural is voorstellen. Here het voorstel is the thing whose intended direction is being considered. op moet belongs to the directional pattern iets een richting op moet / iets een kant op moet: “something needs to go in a direction” or “something needs to head in a certain direction.” Moet is the singular present form of the modal verb moeten (“must; need to”); het voorstel moet ... uses the singular form because het voorstel is singular. In the subordinate clause, the modal comes at the end: welke richting het voorstel op moet. The op contributes the directional “in/along that way” meaning here; it is not the object of moeten by itself. kan ik means “I can” in this main clause. Kan is the singular present form of kunnen (“can; be able to”): ik kan, while wij kunnen is plural. Because the sentence begins with the subordinate clause introduced by zodra, the main clause has inversion: kan ik, rather than ik kan. snel is an adverb meaning “quickly” here. The same form can also be an adjective meaning “fast,” as in een snelle trein — “a fast train.” In this sentence it describes how the revising is done, so it is adverbial. aanpassen means “to adjust,” “adapt,” or, for a text or proposal, “revise.” It is an infinitive used after the modal kan; Dutch keeps the infinitive at the end of this main clause: kan ik het aanpassen. Aanpassen is separable when it is finite: Ik pas het voorstel aan. — “I revise the proposal.” The pronoun het refers to the proposal in this sentence and agrees with the het-word voorstel. Together, Zodra ik weet welke richting het voorstel op moet means “Once I know which direction the proposal needs to go in.” This subordinate clause gives the condition. kan ik het snel aanpassen means “I can revise it quickly”: kan expresses ability, het refers back to het voorstel, snel describes the speed of the revision, and aanpassen names the revision. The complete utterance therefore means: “Once I know which direction the proposal needs to go in, I can revise it quickly.”

10. Duidelijke aanwijzingen kunnen onnodig herschrijven voorkomen.

    Clear guidance can save unnecessary rewriting.

    Duidelijke

    clear

    aanwijzingen

    guidance

    kunnen

    can

    onnodig

    unnecessarily; avoidably

    herschrijven

    rewriting; rewriting again

    voorkomen

    prevent

    More detail

    Duidelijke means “clear” here and describes the plural noun aanwijzingen. Its base form is duidelijk; with a plural noun, the attributive form is duidelijke. Compare duidelijk advies (“clear advice”) with duidelijke aanwijzingen (“clear guidance/instructions”). aanwijzingen means “guidance” here. It is the plural of aanwijzing, which can mean an indication, instruction, or piece of guidance depending on context. Here the fixed translation supports the guidance sense. Example: De aanwijzing is nuttig. — “The instruction is useful.” kunnen expresses “can” here. Because its subject, duidelijke aanwijzingen, is plural, kunnen is the present-tense form used with a plural subject; it is also the infinitive form of the modal verb. A modal is followed by an infinitive: Zij kunnen helpen. — “They can help.” The modal presents the prevention as possible, not as something that necessarily happens. onnodig means “unnecessarily” or “needlessly” here: it characterizes the rewriting as avoidable. Dutch uses the same form onnodig as an adjective and as an adverb. Example: Hij maakt het onnodig moeilijk. — “He makes it unnecessarily difficult.” herschrijven means “rewriting” in this sentence and is also the infinitive “to rewrite.” It is the complete verb to learn; her- contributes the idea of doing something again, while schrijven means “write.” Here herschrijven names the activity that can be prevented. Example: Ik moet de tekst herschrijven. — “I have to rewrite the text.” voorkomen means “prevent” here. It is the infinitive of the verb voorkomen, and it remains an infinitive because it follows the modal kunnen. In the pattern iets voorkomen, the object is something whose occurrence is stopped or avoided: Dit kan fouten voorkomen. — “This can prevent errors.” The same form can have other meanings in other contexts, but the object and sentence meaning here support “prevent.” Together, Duidelijke aanwijzingen is the plural subject, kunnen adds possibility, and onnodig herschrijven voorkomen means preventing or avoiding unnecessary rewriting. Thus the whole utterance means: “Clear guidance can save unnecessary rewriting.” The English “save” is a natural rendering of the result; the Dutch verb more directly presents the action as preventing that rewriting.