Managing a wait when you have somewhere else to be | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Het lijkt nog lang te duren voordat ik aan de beurt ben.

   My turn still seems a long way off.

   Het lijkt

   it seems

   nog lang

   still a long time

   duren

   to last

   voordat

   before

   aan de beurt

   one’s turn

   ben

   am

   More detail

   Het lijkt uses lijken in the present tense: lijkt is the third-person singular form used with impersonal het. Here lijken means “seem,” not “resemble.” A reusable pattern is Het lijkt ... — “It seems ...”. nog lang combines nog (“still”) with lang (“long”) to describe an amount of time that continues to feel distant. In this sentence, lang describes duration, not physical length. Example: Het duurt nog lang. — “It will still take a long time.” duren is the infinitive “to last” or “to take (a period of time).” With te, the pattern te duren means “to last” after an expression such as Het lijkt ...: Het lijkt lang te duren. — “It seems to take a long time.” voordat is a subordinating conjunction meaning “before.” It introduces the event that must occur for the main situation to reach its reference point. In a subordinate clause, Dutch places the finite verb at the end: voordat ik ... ben — “before I am ...”. aan de beurt is the fixed expression for being someone’s turn. It is normally used with a form of zijn: Ik ben aan de beurt. — “It is my turn.” The expression does not itself identify whose turn it is; the person is shown by the accompanying subject or pronoun. ben is the first-person singular present form of zijn (“to be”), used with ik. In voordat ik aan de beurt ben, the verb appears at the end because the clause begins with the subordinating conjunction voordat. Together, Het lijkt nog lang te duren says that a long time still seems to pass before the relevant event. voordat ik aan de beurt ben specifies that event as the speaker becoming the person whose turn it is. The complete meaning is: “My turn still seems a long way off.”

2. Ik moet binnenkort ergens anders zijn.

   I need to be somewhere else soon.

   Ik

   I

   moet

   need to

   binnenkort

   soon

   ergens anders

   somewhere else

   zijn

   be

   More detail

   Ik is the first-person singular pronoun, “I.” It identifies the speaker as the person who has the need. It is distinct from jij or je, “you,” and hij/zij, “he/she.” moet is the present-tense singular form of moeten, “must” or “need to.” In this sentence it expresses the speaker’s need to do or be something. Dutch uses moeten with an infinitive: Ik moet werken means “I need to work.” The form moet is used with ik, jij/je, and hij/zij/het in the present; the infinitive is moeten. binnenkort means “soon” or “in the near future.” It places the situation relatively near in time without specifying an exact moment. For example, Ik vertrek binnenkort means “I am leaving soon.” ergens anders is a location expression meaning “somewhere else.” ergens means “somewhere,” while anders adds the meaning “else” or “different.” This is different from nergens, “nowhere,” which expresses absence of a location. For example, We ontmoeten elkaar ergens anders means “We will meet somewhere else.” The sentence does not specify which other place. zijn is the infinitive “to be.” After the modal verb moet, Dutch places the infinitive at the end: Ik moet ... zijn, “I need to be ... .” Here, zijn describes the speaker’s required location or state rather than an action of moving. Together, the pattern Ik moet + [place or situation] + zijn expresses that the speaker needs to be in a particular place or situation. Ik moet binnenkort ergens anders zijn therefore means “I need to be somewhere else soon.”

3. Laat me eerst uitleggen hoe de rij opschuift voordat je beslist of je wilt blijven.

   Let me explain how the queue is moving before you decide whether to stay.

   Laat me

   let me

   eerst

   first

   uitleggen

   explain

   hoe

   how

   de rij

   the queue

   opschuift

   moves forward

   voordat

   before

   je

   you

   beslist

   decide

   of

   whether

   wilt

   want

   blijven

   stay

   More detail

   Laat me is a reusable way to say “let me ...”. Laat is the imperative of laten (“to let”), and me is the object pronoun “me”. Together they introduce something the speaker offers or asks to do: Laat me kijken = “Let me look.” eerst means “first” and places this action before another action. Uitleggen is the infinitive “to explain”. In Laat me eerst uitleggen, the infinitive follows the construction Laat me; the speaker asks to explain first. Hoe means “how” and introduces a clause describing the manner or process of an action. In the pattern hoe + clause, Dutch places the finite verb at the end of that embedded clause. De rij means “the queue” or “the line”. De is the definite article used with this noun; it is not a numerical statement. Example: De rij is lang. = “The queue is long.” Opschuift comes from the separable verb opschuiven, meaning “to move forward” or “to shift along”. Here it is the present-tense form with the third-person singular subject de rij: de rij schuift op in a main clause, but de rij opschuift in the embedded clause after hoe. The form describes the queue advancing. Hoe de rij opschuift is therefore an embedded clause: “how the queue moves forward”. The finite verb appears at the end because this is a subordinate clause introduced by hoe. Voordat means “before” and introduces a subordinate event that occurs earlier than the event in the main clause. Here, explaining happens before the deciding. It is a conjunction, and it places the finite verb of its clause at the end: voordat je beslist = “before you decide”. Je is an informal second-person pronoun. In this sentence, beslist and wilt show that it is singular; the same pronoun can also refer to informal plural “you” in contexts with plural verb forms. Here it is the subject of both beslist and wilt. Beslist is the present-tense second-person singular form of beslissen, “to decide”: je beslist = “you decide”. The ending -t marks this form in the ordinary present-tense pattern. Example: Je beslist morgen. = “You decide tomorrow.” Of introduces an indirect yes/no question and means “whether” here. The pattern beslissen of ... means “decide whether ...”; it does not mean the coordinating “or” in this sentence. Wilt is the second-person singular present form of willen, “to want”. Je wilt means “you want”. The infinitive that follows is placed at the end of this subordinate clause. Example: Je wilt leren. = “You want to learn.” Blijven is the infinitive “to stay” or “to remain”. In of je wilt blijven, it completes wilt: “whether you want to stay”. Putting the parts together: Laat me eerst uitleggen = “Let me explain first”; hoe de rij opschuift = “how the queue is moving forward”; and voordat je beslist of je wilt blijven = “before you decide whether you want to stay”. The complete utterance is: “Let me explain how the queue is moving before you decide whether to stay.”

4. Gaat de rij in een vast tempo vooruit?

   Is it moving at a steady pace?

   Gaat

   moves / goes

   de rij

   the queue

   vast

   steady / fixed

   tempo

   pace

   vooruit

   forward / onward

   More detail

   Gaat is the present-tense form of gaan for hij/zij/het and for a singular noun such as de rij. Its basic meaning is “go”; here, with de rij, it asks whether the queue is moving or progressing. Dutch yes/no questions commonly place the finite verb before the subject: Gaat de rij ...? means “Is the queue ...?” De rij means “the queue” or “the line.” Rij is the noun; de is its definite article. The article identifies a specific queue, while the form rij itself does not change here. Example: De rij groeit. — “The queue is growing.” Vast means “fixed” or “steady” here. It describes tempo, not rij: the pace is consistent rather than changing. In een vast tempo, the adjective has no -e because tempo is a singular neuter noun preceded by the indefinite article een. This is an adjective form chosen by the noun phrase, not a form of tempo. Tempo means “pace” or “rate.” The phrase in een vast tempo means “at a steady pace”: in introduces the manner or rate at which something proceeds, and een is an indefinite article, not by itself a claim about a numerical count. Example: Ze loopt in een rustig tempo. — “She walks at a calm pace.” Vooruit is an adverb meaning “forward” or “onward.” With movement or progress, it can indicate that something is advancing. It is not an inflected form of gaan and does not change for the subject. Example: De werkzaamheden gaan vooruit. — “The work is progressing.” Together, gaat ... vooruit asks whether the queue is advancing, while in een vast tempo specifies the manner of that progress. The whole utterance therefore means: “Is the queue moving at a steady pace?”

5. Het tempo wisselt vandaag. Sommige aanvragen duren langer dan verwacht.

   The pace is uneven today. Some requests are taking longer than expected.

   tempo

   pace

   wisselt

   varies

   vandaag

   today

   Sommige

   some

   aanvragen

   requests

   duren

   take time

   langer

   longer

   verwacht

   expected

   More detail

   tempo means “pace” here: the rate at which something progresses. Its article is het: het tempo. Een vast tempo means “a steady pace,” as in the preceding question; vast describes the pace as steady rather than changing. wisselt comes from wisselen, “to vary” or “to change.” It is the present-tense third-person singular form used with the singular subject het tempo: het tempo wisselt. With a plural subject, the form is wisselen, as in the practice example De snelheden wisselen. — “The speeds vary.” Here, wisselen describes variation in the pace, not a person exchanging an object. vandaag means “today” and places the situation in the current day. It can appear at the beginning or end of a sentence: Vandaag wisselt het tempo. — “Today, the pace varies.” Sommige means “some” when referring to part of a plural group without identifying every member. It is used before a plural noun, as in sommige aanvragen; it is not a singular indefinite article. aanvragen is the plural of aanvraag, meaning “request” here. The singular is een aanvraag (“a request”), and the plural is aanvragen. Depending on context, aanvraag can also mean an application or a formal request, but the fixed translation supports “requests” here. duren means “to take time” or “to last.” It is the present-tense plural form used with sommige aanvragen: sommige aanvragen duren. With a singular subject, the form is duurt, as in the practice example De aanvraag duurt lang. — “The request takes a long time.” langer is the comparative form of lang, “long.” A useful comparison chain is lang → langer → het langst (“long” → “longer” → “the longest”). In langer dan verwacht, it compares the time required with an understood reference: the requests take more time than expected. verwacht comes from verwachten, “to expect,” and is used here in the compact expression dan verwacht, “than expected.” It is a past participle; the fuller passive wording can be dan werd verwacht, “than was expected.” Together, Het tempo wisselt vandaag says that the pace varies today. Sommige aanvragen duren langer dan verwacht says that some requests take more time than was expected. The complete utterance is therefore: “The pace is uneven today. Some requests are taking longer than expected.”

6. Als ik even wegga, kan ik dan op dezelfde plek in de rij terugkomen?

   If I step away for a moment, can I come back to the same place?

   Als ik

   if I

   even

   for a moment

   wegga

   step away

   kan ik

   can I

   dan

   then

   dezelfde

   the same

   plek

   place

   rij

   line

   terugkomen

   come back

   More detail

   Als ik introduces a condition: “if I …”. als is a common word for conditional “if”; it can also introduce a time-related clause in other contexts, but here it sets the condition for the question. ik is the first-person singular pronoun, “I”. even means “for a moment” here. It often makes a short duration sound natural and limited; it does not by itself specify an exact number of seconds. wegga comes from weggaan, “to go away” or “to leave”. In this subordinate clause, the finite verb is placed at the end: Als ik even wegga = “If I step away for a moment.” The form wegga is first-person singular present, agreeing with ik. In a main clause, the separable verb can appear as Ik ga even weg (“I step away for a moment”). kan ik combines kan, the first-person singular present form of kunnen (“can” or “be able to”), with ik. Because this is a main-clause question, the finite verb comes before the subject: Kan ik ...? means “Can I ...?” The modal kan expresses possibility or permission here; the fixed translation supports the question about whether returning is allowed or possible. dan means “then” in this conditional question. It connects the possible return with the condition just mentioned: “If I step away, can I then ...?” dezelfde means “the same”. It identifies a place as identical to the place already held, rather than merely another place. Dutch uses dezelfde with singular de-words and plural nouns, while hetzelfde is used with a singular het-word. The form here is dezelfde; the agreement is with the noun phrase dezelfde plek. plek is a noun meaning “place” or “spot”. In this utterance it means the person’s position in the line. Dutch commonly uses op een plek or op dezelfde plek for being at a place or position. Example: Ik wacht op dezelfde plek. — “I am waiting in the same place.” rij means “line” or “queue”. With in de rij, it refers to the line in which people are waiting. de is the definite article used with this noun; the article does not itself state a numerical count. terugkomen is the infinitive “to come back” or “to return”. It is a separable verb: in a finite main clause, Dutch normally separates it, as in Ik kom terug (“I come back”), but after a modal such as kan, the infinitive remains together: kan ... terugkomen. Together, Als ik even wegga gives the condition “If I step away for a moment”. kan ik dan terugkomen asks whether returning is possible or permitted after that. op dezelfde plek in de rij specifies the destination and position: “to the same place in the line”. The complete meaning is: “If I step away for a moment, can I come back to the same place?”

7. Je kunt je plek alleen behouden als je dicht bij de rij blijft.

   You can only keep your place if you stay close to the line.

   Je kunt

   you can

   plek

   place

   alleen

   only

   behouden

   keep

   als

   if

   dicht bij

   close to

   de rij

   the line

   More detail

   Je kunt means “you can” here. kunnen is the infinitive; kunt is its present-tense form with je in this sentence. Dutch often places a modal verb such as kunnen before an infinitive: Je kunt wachten. — “You can wait.” The form je kunt is a statement; in a question, Dutch can also use Kun je ...? — “Can you ...?” plek means “place” or “spot.” Its plural is plekken: twee plekken — “two places.” The possessive meaning is not built into plek; in this sentence, the following context makes it the place being retained. alleen means “only.” It limits the condition for keeping the place: the sentence says that keeping it is possible only under the condition that follows. Its scope combines with the conditional clause rather than meaning “alone” here. behouden means “to keep” or “retain.” It is the infinitive after kunt; the modal carries the finite verb marking, while behouden remains unchanged. For example, Je kunt je ticket behouden. means “You can keep your ticket.” als introduces a condition and means “if” here. A reusable pattern is X als Y: “X if Y.” In this sentence, the als-clause gives the condition for the possibility expressed in the main clause. dicht bij means “close to” or “near.” It is a fixed prepositional combination: dicht bij de deur — “close to the door.” dicht can also be used without bij in other constructions, but the relation to something is expressed here by dicht bij. de rij means “the line” or, in a queue context, “the queue.” rij is a noun with the article de; its plural is rijen. In this utterance, the fixed translation identifies the intended sense as a line or queue, not a generic row. Together, Je kunt je plek behouden means “you can keep your place.” The conditional part als je dicht bij de rij blijft means “if you stay close to the line.” blijft is the present-tense form of blijven (“to stay”) with je; it appears at the end of the als-clause. The complete utterance therefore means: “You can only keep your place if you stay close to the line.”

8. Dan moet ik beslissen of dit kan wachten.

   Then I need to decide whether this can wait.

   Dan

   then

   moet ik

   I need to

   beslissen

   decide

   of

   whether

   dit

   this

   kan

   can

   wachten

   wait

   More detail

   Dan means “then” here: it links the decision to a condition or situation established in the surrounding conversation. It can also mean “so” in other contexts, but “then” is the supported meaning here. moet ik combines the present form moet of moeten (“must/need to”) with the subject ik (“I”). In this sentence, it expresses the speaker’s necessity: “I need to …”. Because Dan starts the main clause, the finite verb comes before the subject, giving Dan moet ik ...; this is a common Dutch main-clause word order pattern. Compare: Ik moet gaan. — “I need to go.” beslissen is the infinitive “to decide”. After moet, Dutch uses an infinitive, so moet ik beslissen means “I need to decide”. The useful form chain is beslissen — “to decide”; ik beslis — “I decide”; ik heb beslist — “I have decided”. of introduces the content of the decision: “whether”. In this use it introduces an embedded yes-or-no clause, not the alternative meaning “or”. For example: Ik weet niet of hij komt. — “I do not know whether he is coming.” dit means “this”. It is a singular neuter demonstrative form and can stand for a thing or situation. The supplied sentence identifies it only as “this”; it does not specify exactly what the referent is. Dutch contrasts dit with dat (“that”) for this demonstrative use. kan is the present form of kunnen (“can/be able to”). Here it agrees with the singular subject dit and expresses possibility or suitability: “can”. A modal such as kan is followed by an infinitive. Do not confuse it with mag, which normally expresses permission. Example: Dit kan wachten. — “This can wait.” wachten is the infinitive “to wait”. In kan wachten, it is the action made possible by kan. It can also be used with op when naming what someone is waiting for: Ik wacht op de bus. — “I am waiting for the bus.” Together, Dan moet ik beslissen means “Then I need to decide”, and of dit kan wachten specifies the decision: “whether this can wait”. The complete utterance is therefore: “Then I need to decide whether this can wait.”

9. Als deze dienst vandaag belangrijk is, is dichtbij blijven de veiligste keuze.

   If this service is important today, staying close is the safer choice.

   Als

   if

   deze

   this

   dienst

   service

   vandaag

   today

   belangrijk

   important

   dichtbij

   close

   blijven

   stay

   veiligste

   safest

   keuze

   choice

   More detail

   Als introduces a condition: “if.” It connects the condition to the main clause that follows. Example: Als ik tijd heb, bel ik je. — “If I have time, I’ll call you.” deze means “this” and points to a specific nearby or otherwise identifiable thing. Here it modifies dienst, matching the intended meaning “this service.” Dutch uses deze with singular de-words and with plural nouns; dit is used with a singular het-word. Example: deze keuze — “this choice”; dit plan — “this plan.” dienst means “service” here. It is a singular de-word: de dienst. The plural is diensten. In other contexts, dienst can also refer to a work shift or a religious service, but “service” is the meaning supported here. vandaag is the adverb “today.” It places the condition in the current day and does not change form. Example: Vandaag werk ik thuis. — “Today I work at home.” belangrijk means “important.” It is the base form of the adjective and appears after is, where Dutch uses the adjective predicatively: De dienst is belangrijk. — “The service is important.” Its comparative is belangrijker (“more important”), and its superlative is belangrijkst (“most important”). dichtbij means “close” or “nearby.” In dichtbij blijven, it describes the location maintained by the subject of blijven. Example: Blijf dichtbij. — “Stay close.” blijven is the infinitive “to stay” or “to remain.” The related present-tense forms include ik blijf (“I stay”), hij blijft (“he stays”), and wij blijven (“we stay”). Here, the infinitive phrase dichtbij blijven functions as a subject: “staying close.” Example: Dichtbij blijven is verstandig. — “Staying close is sensible.” veiligste is the superlative form of the adjective veilig (“safe”): veilig, veiliger (“safer”), veiligst (“safest”). Before the singular de-word keuze, the attributive superlative has the form veiligste: de veiligste keuze — “the safest choice.” keuze means “choice.” It is a singular de-word: de keuze; its plural is keuzes. The phrase de veiligste keuze means “the safest choice,” with de identifying a particular choice within the comparison. Together, Als deze dienst vandaag belangrijk is means “If this service is important today.” The subject of the main clause is the infinitive phrase dichtbij blijven, meaning “staying close.” The linking verb is connects that subject to de veiligste keuze, so the complete utterance means: “If this service is important today, staying close is the safer choice.”

10. Ik kan de andere persoon een bericht sturen en de vertraging uitleggen.

    I can message the other person and explain the delay.

    Ik kan

    I can

    andere

    other

    persoon

    person

    bericht

    message

    sturen

    send

    vertraging

    delay

    uitleggen

    explain

    More detail

    Ik kan combines Ik (“I”) with kan, the singular present form of kunnen (“can; be able to”). The speaker presents the action as possible or within their ability. After a modal such as kan, the other verb stays in the infinitive: Ik kan ... sturen (“I can send ...”). andere means “other” here and describes persoon. It has the attributive form used before this singular noun with the definite article: de andere persoon. The word andere can also be used with other nouns, while anders is the related adverb/adjective form used in different structures, as in Het is anders (“It is different”). persoon means “person”. It is a common-gender noun, so the definite article here is de: de persoon. Its plural is personen; the form changes rather than simply adding an unchanged ending. bericht means “message”. It is a neuter noun: het bericht in the singular and de berichten in the plural. In this sentence it appears with the indefinite article een in een bericht; that marks an unspecified message, not necessarily a numerical claim that there is exactly one. sturen means “send”. It is the infinitive selected by kan. A useful pattern is iemand een bericht sturen: “send someone a message,” where the person is the recipient and the message is what is sent. Example: Ik stuur haar een bericht. — “I send her a message.” vertraging means “delay”. It is a common-gender noun: de vertraging; its plural is vertragingen. In de vertraging, the definite article presents the delay as identifiable in the situation, without adding details about its cause or length. uitleggen means “explain”. It is a separable verb in finite forms: for example, Ik leg de vertraging uit means “I explain the delay.” After the modal kan, however, the infinitive remains together at the end: kan ... uitleggen. The conjunction en joins two actions with the same understood subject, Ik: Ik kan ... sturen en ... uitleggen. The first action is sending een bericht to de andere persoon; the second is explaining de vertraging. Thus the whole utterance means: “I can message the other person and explain the delay.” It states the speaker’s ability or possibility, not that the actions have already happened.

11. Dat zou hen moeten helpen begrijpen waarom je te laat bent.

    That should help them understand why you are running late.

    Dat

    That

    zou … moeten

    should

    hen

    them

    helpen

    help

    begrijpen

    understand

    waarom

    why

    je

    you

    te laat

    running late

    bent

    are

    More detail

    Dat means “that” here and points to an idea or situation. The supplied sentence does not identify its exact referent. Dutch dat is also the neuter singular form of the demonstrative “that”; its grammatical form does not by itself identify the referent. zou moeten is a useful Dutch combination meaning “should” here. zou is a form of zullen, and moeten remains an infinitive after it. This expresses an expected or recommended result, unlike present-tense moet, which commonly expresses an obligation such as “must” or “has to.” hen is the third-person plural object form, “them.” Compare zij or ze as a third-person plural subject and hun in a possessive use such as “their.” Here hen is the object affected by helpen. helpen is the infinitive “to help.” Dutch commonly places another infinitive after it: iemand helpen begrijpen means “to help someone understand.” A construction with om te can also be used in suitable versions, but it is not present here. begrijpen is the infinitive “to understand.” The reusable pattern here is iemand helpen begrijpen ...: “help someone understand ...” waarom means “why” and introduces the reason being understood. Example: Ik weet waarom hij vertrekt — “I know why he is leaving.” je is an unstressed Dutch personal pronoun meaning “you.” In this sentence it is the subject of bent; the form itself does not specify the person’s identity or gender. Standard Dutch uses jij or je for an informal singular “you,” while jullie is the usual second-person plural form. te laat is the expression used here for “running late.” Its literal contribution includes te (“too”), but together the expression can describe being late relative to an expected time. Here the fixed translation establishes the intended meaning. This te is part of the expression, not the infinitive marker in te begrijpen. bent is the second-person singular present form of zijn, “to be.” The pattern is je bent — “you are.” With jullie, Dutch uses zijn: jullie zijn — “you are” (plural). Together, Dat zou hen moeten means “That should help them” once helpen is included. begrijpen states what the help enables them to do: understand. The clause waarom je te laat bent specifies what they should understand: why you are running late. The complete utterance therefore means “That should help them understand why you are running late.”