Using the shared laundry room fairly | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Alle wasmachines zijn weer bezet.

   All the washing machines are full again.

   Alle

   all

   wasmachines

   washing machines

   zijn

   are

   weer

   again

   bezet

   full; occupied

   More detail

   Alle means “all” and applies to the plural noun that follows. It presents the whole set, not just some of the washing machines. Compare alle wasmachines (“all washing machines”) with een wasmachine (“a washing machine”) when referring to one. wasmachines is the plural of wasmachine, “washing machine.” It is a compound noun: was relates to washing/laundry, and machine means “machine,” but the reusable word to learn is the complete noun wasmachine. Dutch commonly forms its plural with -s here: wasmachine → wasmachines. Example: De wasmachine draait. — “The washing machine is running.” zijn is the present-tense plural form of zijn, “to be.” With a plural subject such as alle wasmachines, Dutch uses zijn; with a singular subject, it uses is: De wasmachines zijn bezet. — “The washing machines are occupied.” Zijn can also be an infinitive (“to be”), but here it is the finite verb agreeing with the plural subject. weer means “again.” It indicates that the situation has returned or recurred, without specifying how long the machines were available in between. Example: De machine werkt weer. — “The machine works again.” bezet means “occupied” or “in use.” In this laundry context, that corresponds naturally to “full” in the fixed translation: the machines are not available because they are occupied. Bezet is the past participle of bezetten (“to occupy”), used here as an adjective after zijn; it does not change for the plural subject in this sentence. Example: Alle stoelen zijn bezet. — “All the seats are occupied.” Together, Alle wasmachines identifies the complete plural set, zijn bezet says that set is occupied/unavailable, and weer adds that this is happening again. The whole utterance therefore means: “All the washing machines are full again.”

2. Kijk op het schema wanneer de volgende was klaar is.

   Check the schedule and see when the next load finishes.

   Kijk

   check

   schema

   schedule

   wanneer

   when

   volgende

   next

   was

   load of laundry

   klaar

   finished

   More detail

   Kijk is the imperative of kijken (“to look”). Here, Kijk op ... means “check/look at ...”; op is part of the useful pattern kijken op when directing attention to a source such as a schedule. For example: Kijk op de website. — “Check the website.” schema means “schedule” or “timetable.” The phrase op het schema therefore identifies the source of the information: “on the schedule.” The noun has the article het here; the article belongs to schema, not to the preceding verb pattern. wanneer introduces a time question or time clause: “when.” In this sentence it asks for the time at which something happens. Compare wanneer? (“when?”) with waar? (“where?”). For example: Weet je wanneer de winkel open is? — “Do you know when the shop is open?” volgende means “next” in de volgende was. It is the form of volgend used before the singular common-gender noun was with de. The useful pattern is de volgende + noun: “the next ...”. For example: de volgende trein — “the next train.” was is the noun “laundry” or, in this washing-machine context, “a load of laundry.” It is not the past-tense form of zijn here: its role is the noun after de volgende. For example: De was is klaar. — “The laundry is finished.” klaar means “finished” or “ready.” In klaar is, it describes the laundry’s state, while is is the present-tense form of zijn (“to be”). In the subordinate clause introduced by wanneer, Dutch places the finite verb is after klaar: wanneer de volgende was klaar is — “when the next load is finished.” Together, Kijk op het schema means “Check the schedule,” and wanneer de volgende was klaar is specifies what to find there: the time when the next load finishes. The complete utterance is therefore: “Check the schedule and see when the next load finishes.”

3. Een machine is binnenkort klaar, maar de persoon die de machine heeft aangezet is er niet.

   One should be done soon, but the person who started it isn't around.

   machine

   machine

   binnenkort

   soon

   klaar

   ready; done

   persoon

   person

   aangezet

   started; turned on

   er niet

   not around; not there

   More detail

   machine means “machine.” It is a common-gender Dutch noun: de machine is “the machine.” The indefinite article een is used here with a singular noun, but een is also used with singular neuter nouns, so it is not selected solely because machine is common gender. Example: Een machine staat daar. — “A machine is standing there.” binnenkort means “soon” or “before long.” It is an adverb and does not change form. With is ... klaar, it places the state in the near future: De machine is binnenkort klaar. — “The machine will be ready soon.” klaar means “ready” or “done” in this sentence. It is a descriptive word used after zijn (“to be”): is klaar means “is ready/is done.” It does not carry a tense ending here; is carries the present-tense form of zijn. The same word can describe completion of a task as well as readiness for use, so the intended sense comes from the machine context. persoon means “person.” In de persoon, the definite article presents this as the particular person identified by the following relative clause. The clause die de machine heeft aangezet means “who started/turned on the machine”: die is the relative pronoun referring to de persoon, and it is the subject of that clause. aangezet is the past participle of the separable verb aanzetten, “to turn on” or “to start.” In the perfect construction heeft aangezet, heeft is the auxiliary and aangezet is the participle. Here, the object is de machine, so the clause says that this person turned on or started the machine. Example: Zij heeft het licht aangezet. — “She turned on the light.” er niet is the fixed part of the expression is er niet, meaning “is not there” or, naturally here, “isn’t around.” In this use, er is a location/presence element rather than a direct translation of a specific English pronoun, and niet supplies the negation. The negation applies to the person’s being present; it does not negate the earlier statement that the machine will be ready. The sentence first states Een machine is binnenkort klaar: a machine will be ready soon. maar then introduces a contrast. de persoon die de machine heeft aangezet identifies the person by the action of starting the machine, and is er niet says that this person is not present. Together: “A machine will be ready soon, but the person who started the machine isn’t around.”

4. Geef die persoon een paar minuten voordat je hun was verplaatst.

   Give them a few minutes before moving their laundry.

   Geef

   give

   die

   that

   persoon

   person

   een paar

   a few

   minuten

   minutes

   voordat

   before

   je

   you

   hun

   their

   was

   laundry

   verplaatst

   move

   More detail

   Geef is the imperative of geven (“to give”). Dutch commonly forms this command with the verb stem: Geef ... means “Give ...”. Example: Geef me het boek. — “Give me the book.” die persoon means “that person”. Die is a demonstrative determiner pointing to a specific person; persoon is the noun “person”. The demonstrative is separate from the noun, so the reusable pattern is die + noun: die auto means “that car”. een paar means “a few” here and expresses a small quantity. Minuten is the plural of minuut, “minute”: een minuut is “one minute”, while een paar minuten is “a few minutes”. voordat is the conjunction “before” and introduces the event that must not happen yet. It is followed here by its own clause, je hun was verplaatst. je is the subject pronoun “you” in this clause. Hun is the possessive form meaning “their”; it marks the laundry as belonging to the relevant person or people, rather than identifying who performs the moving. In this sentence, the fixed translation supports the intended reading “their laundry”. Was is the noun “laundry” here. It is not the past-tense form of zijn (“was”), because hun directly determines it as a possessed noun. The phrase hun was therefore means “their laundry”. Verplaatst comes from the verb verplaatsen, “to move” or “to relocate”. With present-tense subject je, the form is je verplaatst; in this subordinate clause it describes the moving that occurs after the waiting period. Example: Je verplaatst de stoel. — “You move the chair.” Together, Geef die persoon een paar minuten means “Give that person a few minutes”. The clause voordat je hun was verplaatst adds “before you move their laundry”. The complete utterance is therefore: “Give them a few minutes before moving their laundry.” It is a direct request to wait briefly before carrying out the move.

5. Hoe lang is een redelijke wachttijd voordat ik de was verplaats?

   How long is fair before I move it?

   Hoe lang

   how long

   is

   is

   redelijke

   reasonable

   wachttijd

   waiting time

   voordat

   before

   de was

   the laundry

   verplaats

   move

   More detail

   Hoe lang asks about duration: literally, “how long?” It is used for an amount of time, not for asking about distance. Example: Hoe lang duurt de film? — “How long does the film last?” is is the present-tense form of zijn (“to be”) for a singular subject. Here it links the waiting time with its description. The form changes with the subject: ik ben, jij bent, hij/zij is, wij zijn. redelijke means “reasonable” here: a duration that can fairly be accepted. Its base form is redelijk; before the noun phrase een redelijke wachttijd, it has the -e form. The adjective describes wachttijd, not was. Example: Dat is een redelijke prijs. — “That is a reasonable price.” wachttijd is a compound noun meaning “waiting time”: wachten means “to wait” and tijd means “time”. Dutch compounds are written as one word. Example: De wachttijd is kort. — “The waiting time is short.” voordat means “before” and introduces the event that must happen later in the time sequence. In the clause after it, Dutch places the finite verb at the end: voordat ik de was verplaats — “before I move the laundry.” de was means “the laundry” in this context. was is a noun here, used for clothes or other items being washed; the article de belongs to this noun phrase. The fixed translation’s “it” refers to this laundry, not to an unspecified separate object. verplaats is the first-person singular present form of verplaatsen, “to move” or “to relocate”. The subject ik is stated in the subordinate clause, so the form is ik verplaats. Compare ik verplaats de was — “I move the laundry” — with ik verplaats de tafel — “I move the table.” Together, een redelijke wachttijd means “a reasonable waiting time”; Hoe lang is ...? asks how long that time is; and voordat ik de was verplaats limits the question to the time before the speaker moves the laundry. The complete meaning is: “How long is a reasonable waiting time before I move the laundry?”

6. Een korte extra wachttijd is genoeg als er andere mensen wachten.

   A short grace period is enough if other people are waiting.

   korte

   short

   extra

   extra; additional

   wachttijd

   waiting time

   is genoeg

   is enough

   als

   if

   andere

   other

   mensen

   people

   wachten

   wait

   More detail

   korte means “short” here and describes wachttijd. Its base form is kort. The -e ending is used because this adjective comes before the singular common-gender noun wachttijd with the indefinite article een: een korte wachttijd. Singularity alone is not enough to determine the ending. Compare the neuter singular pattern een kort moment — “a short moment”; with a definite noun or a plural noun, korte is also used, as in de korte wachttijd — “the short waiting time” and korte momenten — “short moments.” extra means “additional” or “extra”. It describes wachttijd and remains extra in this phrase: een extra wachttijd. This adjective is commonly used without an added -e in such attributive phrases. wachttijd is a compound noun meaning “waiting time” and, in this context, a grace period before someone moves the laundry. Its plural is wachttijden. Learn the compound as a whole; tijd means “time”, while wacht here is part of the compound rather than the infinitive “to wait”. is genoeg means “is enough”. is is the present-tense form of zijn (“to be”) for a singular subject, and genoeg means “enough”. A reusable pattern is X is genoeg — “X is enough.” als introduces the condition “if” here. It begins the conditional clause als er andere mensen wachten, connecting that condition to the statement about what is enough. andere means “other” here. Before the plural noun mensen, the adjective has the form andere; its base form is ander. For example: andere boeken — “other books.” mensen means “people”. It is the plural of mens (“person” or “human being”). This is an irregular plural, not a form made by simply adding the regular plural ending. wachten means “wait”. In mensen wachten, it is the present-tense form used with the plural subject mensen; it has the same spelling as the infinitive. Example: Wij wachten buiten. — “We are waiting outside.” Together, Een korte extra wachttijd is the subject: “a short additional waiting time”, naturally “a short grace period” in the fixed translation. is genoeg says that this is sufficient. The clause als er andere mensen wachten gives the condition “if other people are waiting”. The complete meaning is: “A short grace period is enough if other people are waiting.”

7. Ik stel een herinnering in, zodat ik terugkom zodra mijn was klaar is.

   I'll set a reminder so I come back as soon as my load is done.

   Ik

   I

   stel … in

   set (up)

   herinnering

   reminder

   zodat

   so that

   terugkom

   come back

   zodra

   as soon as

   mijn

   my

   was

   load of laundry

   klaar

   done

   is

   is

   More detail

   Ik is the Dutch subject pronoun meaning “I.” It is the form used when the speaker is the subject. For example: Ik wacht. — “I am waiting.” stel ... in is the separable verb instellen, used here for setting a reminder. In a main clause, its parts separate: Ik stel een herinnering in. — “I set a reminder.” The form stel is the present-tense first-person singular form of instellen; in remains at the end of this main clause. Do not treat stel here as the unrelated verb stellen (“to put/place”) without the particle in. herinnering means “reminder” here. Its base form is herinnering; the plural is herinneringen. The phrase een herinnering identifies the thing being set, while een is an indefinite article and does not by itself state a numerical count. zodat introduces the intended result or purpose: “so that.” It begins a subordinate clause, so the finite verb moves toward the end of that clause. A reusable pattern is ..., zodat [subject] [verb]. Example: Ik schrijf het op, zodat ik het niet vergeet. — “I write it down so that I do not forget it.” terugkom means “come back” in this clause. It is the first-person singular present form of terugkomen. Because it follows zodat, the subordinate-clause word order places terugkom after ik: zodat ik terugkom. In a main clause, the same verb is commonly seen as Ik kom terug. — “I come back.” zodra means “as soon as” and introduces a time condition. It says that the return happens immediately when the condition in the following clause is met; it does not itself express a separate future marker. mijn means “my” and shows possession of the following noun. Dutch mijn does not change for the gender or number of that noun in the way some possessive forms in other languages do. Example: mijn tas — “my bag”; mijn tassen — “my bags.” was means “laundry” or “a load of laundry” in this context. It is the noun was, not the past-tense form of zijn; the intended meaning is fixed by the translation and the surrounding words. Example: De was is klaar. — “The laundry is done.” klaar means “done” or “ready.” Here it describes the state of mijn was: the laundry has finished. It is an adjective used after the linking verb is; it is not the verb that expresses completion. is is the third-person singular present form of zijn (“to be”). In mijn was klaar is, it appears at the end because this is a subordinate clause introduced by zodra: mijn was klaar is — “my laundry is done.” Together, Ik stel een herinnering in says “I’ll set a reminder” in the fixed context. zodat ik terugkom gives the intended purpose, “so that I come back,” and zodra mijn was klaar is sets the time, “as soon as my laundry is done.” The complete meaning is: “I’ll set a reminder so I come back as soon as my load is done.”

8. Dat maakt het makkelijker om hetzelfde van alle anderen te vragen.

   That makes it easier to ask the same of everyone else.

   Dat

   that

   maakt

   makes

   makkelijker

   easier

   hetzelfde

   the same

   alle anderen

   everyone else

   vragen

   ask

   More detail

   Dat is a demonstrative pronoun meaning “that” and functions as the subject here. It points to a situation or action understood from context; the sentence itself does not identify a more specific referent. A useful contrast is dit (“this”) versus dat (“that”). maakt is the present-tense third-person singular form of maken, “to make.” The subject Dat triggers this singular form: ik maak, jij maakt, dat maakt. Here maken introduces the result described by het makkelijker ...: it causes something to become easier. makkelijker is the comparative form of makkelijk, “easy.” The basic comparison is makkelijk → makkelijker (“easier”) → het makkelijkst (“the easiest”). In this sentence, the comparative says that asking is easier than it would otherwise be, without stating exactly what it is being compared with. hetzelfde means “the same thing” or, as in the fixed translation, “the same.” It is a neuter form built with het and can stand independently instead of repeating the thing being referred to. For example: Ik wil hetzelfde. — “I want the same thing.” alle anderen means “everyone else” here. alle means “all,” while anderen is the plural form meaning “others,” used independently rather than directly before a noun. The phrase does not identify the people individually; it contrasts them with an already understood group or person. For example: Alle anderen zijn al klaar. — “Everyone else is already ready.” vragen is the infinitive of vragen, “to ask.” In the pattern om ... te vragen, the infinitive clause expresses the action that is made easier: om hetzelfde ... te vragen means “to ask the same ...”. Dutch uses te with this infinitive construction; om introduces the purpose or content of what is easier. The preposition van connects the asked-for thing with the people asked: iets van iemand vragen means “to ask someone for something” or “to ask something of someone.” Together, Dat maakt het makkelijker means “That makes it easier.” The following om hetzelfde van alle anderen te vragen specifies what is easier: “to ask the same of everyone else.” Thus the complete utterance is: “That makes it easier to ask the same of everyone else.”

9. Ik kan niet klagen over achtergelaten was als ik die van mij ook laat liggen.

   I can't complain about abandoned laundry if I leave mine there too.

   Ik kan

   I can

   niet

   not

   klagen

   complain

   over

   about

   achtergelaten

   abandoned

   was

   laundry

   als

   if

   ook

   also; too

   die van mij

   mine

   laat liggen

   leave there

   More detail

   Ik kan expresses “I can.” kan is the present-tense form of kunnen for ik; with a following infinitive, kunnen expresses ability or possibility. The useful pattern is ik kan + infinitive, as in Ik kan komen — “I can come.” niet negates the clause. Here it makes the meaning “cannot,” rather than “can.” klagen means “to complain” and is the infinitive after the modal kan. The construction kan ... klagen therefore means “can complain”; inserting niet gives “cannot complain.” over introduces what the complaint concerns: “about.” In this sentence, klagen over + noun is the reusable pattern “complain about + noun.” achtergelaten means “left behind” or “abandoned” here. It is the past participle of achterlaten, “to leave behind,” and it describes was: laundry that has been left behind. The related verb laten means “to let” or “to leave,” but achterlaten specifically adds the idea of leaving something behind. was is the noun “laundry” in this sentence. Dutch also has a related-looking verb wassen, “to wash,” but the form here is a noun, as shown by its role after over and by the fixed translation. The phrase achtergelaten was means “abandoned laundry.” als introduces the condition: “if.” It connects the complaint with the condition under which the speaker says it would be inconsistent. In Dutch, the verb in an als clause commonly comes at the end: als ik ... laat liggen. ook means “also” or “too.” It adds that the speaker does the same relevant kind of thing as the people associated with the abandoned laundry. Its position before die van mij makes that comparison part of the conditional clause. die van mij means “mine.” die stands for the previously understood laundry, while van mij identifies it as belonging to the speaker. This is a useful possessive pattern: die van + person, such as Die van haar — “hers.” The exact referent of die is supported here by the fixed translation as the speaker’s laundry, not by an invented separate noun. laat liggen is the split construction from laten liggen, “to leave lying” or “to leave there.” In this clause, laat is the present-tense form of laten for ik, and liggen remains an infinitive. Together they describe leaving the laundry where it is rather than putting it away. A reusable example is Ik laat het boek liggen — “I leave the book there.” Putting the parts together, Ik kan niet klagen over achtergelaten was means “I can’t complain about abandoned laundry.” The condition als ik die van mij ook laat liggen means “if I leave mine there too.” The complete utterance is therefore: “I can’t complain about abandoned laundry if I leave mine there too.”

10. In de gedeelde wasruimte gaat het wassen soepeler als mensen op de programmaduur letten.

    Shared laundry goes more smoothly when people watch the cycle times.

    gedeelde

    shared

    wasruimte

    laundry room

    gaat

    goes; proceeds

    het wassen

    doing the laundry

    soepeler

    more smoothly

    als

    when

    mensen

    people

    op … letten

    pay attention to

    programmaduur

    cycle time

    More detail

    gedeelde means “shared” here and modifies wasruimte. It is the adjectival form of gedeeld, the past participle of delen (“to share”). With the definite article de, a singular attributive adjective normally has the -e ending: de gedeelde ruimte = “the shared space.” wasruimte is a compound noun meaning “laundry room”: was relates to washing or laundry, and ruimte means “room” or “space.” Dutch compounds are written as one word. It is used here with the definite article de: de wasruimte. gaat is the present-tense third-person singular form of gaan (“to go”). Here gaan describes how an activity proceeds rather than physical movement. The subject is het wassen, so the singular form is used. Useful forms are gaan (base form), gaat (third-person singular present), and gaan (plural present). het wassen is a nominalized infinitive: wassen means “to wash,” while het wassen treats “washing” as an activity or noun-like subject. For example, Het wassen duurt lang. means “Doing the laundry takes a long time.” soepeler is the comparative of soepel, meaning “smooth” or, here, “smoothly.” The comparison belongs to soepel, not to wasruimte: soepel → soepeler → het soepelst (“smooth” → “smoother/more smoothly” → “the smoothest/most smoothly”). With gaat, it describes how the washing proceeds. als introduces the clause stating when or under what condition the main statement applies. “When” is the intended meaning here; Dutch als can also introduce a condition translated as “if,” so context determines the best translation. mensen is the plural of mens (“person”) and means “people” here. Its plural subject requires the plural verb form in the clause: mensen letten, whereas een mens let has a singular subject and verb. op ... letten is the Dutch construction meaning “to pay attention to” or “to watch.” The dictionary form is opletten, but in this clause the construction appears with op before its object and letten at the end: mensen letten is not the order used here; the source has mensen op de programmaduur letten within the als clause. In Dutch subordinate clauses, the finite verb or verb group commonly occurs at the end. For example, Let op de deur. means “Pay attention to the door.” programmaduur is a compound noun meaning “program duration” and, in this laundry context, “cycle time.” programma means “program,” and duur means “duration”; together they refer to how long the selected washing program lasts. de programmaduur uses the definite article de. Together, In de gedeelde wasruimte gives the location: “In the shared laundry room.” gaat het wassen soepeler says that doing the laundry proceeds more smoothly. als mensen op de programmaduur letten gives the condition: this happens when people pay attention to the cycle duration. The complete meaning is: “Shared laundry goes more smoothly when people watch the cycle times.”