Using testing evidence to assess a risky timeline | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. De voorgestelde planning lijkt ambitieus, gezien de onopgeloste problemen met het testen.

   The proposed timeline feels ambitious, given the unresolved testing issues.

   voorgestelde

   proposed

   planning

   planning; timeline

   lijkt

   seems

   ambitieus

   ambitious

   gezien

   given; considering

   onopgeloste

   unresolved

   problemen

   problems; issues

   het testen

   testing

   More detail

   voorgestelde means “proposed” here: it describes planning. Its base verb is voorstellen (“to propose”); voorgesteld is the past participle, and the -e form appears before this definite noun phrase: de voorgestelde planning. Example: een voorgesteld plan — “a proposed plan.” planning is a noun meaning a plan or timeline. In this sentence it is a de-word: de planning. The plural is planningen, although the singular is natural here because the sentence evaluates one timeline. lijkt is the third-person singular present form of lijken, “to seem” or “to appear.” The pattern iets lijkt + adjective expresses an assessment without presenting the adjective as an absolute fact. Example: Het plan lijkt haalbaar. — “The plan seems feasible.” ambitieus means “ambitious.” It is an adjective describing planning through lijkt; it is not the form of the noun planning. The adjective has the same basic form after lijkt: De planning lijkt ambitieus. — “The timeline seems ambitious.” gezien introduces the reason or circumstances considered: “given” or “considering.” In this use, it functions as a preposition-like participial form and is followed by de onopgeloste problemen.... Example: Gezien de tijd is dat begrijpelijk. — “Given the time, that is understandable.” onopgeloste means “unresolved.” Its base verb is oplossen, “to solve” or “to resolve”; its participle is opgelost, and the negative form is onopgelost. Before the plural noun problemen, the adjective has the -e form: onopgeloste problemen. Example: We bespreken de onopgeloste vraag. — “We are discussing the unresolved question.” problemen is the plural of probleem, meaning “problems” or, in this context, “issues.” The singular is een probleem; the plural changes the ending to -en. The noun is the head of de onopgeloste problemen, while onopgeloste describes it. het testen means “the testing.” testen is an infinitive meaning “to test”; with het, the infinitive is used as a noun, referring to the activity or process: het testen van de software — “testing the software.” Here, het testen is part of problemen met het testen, literally “problems with the testing.” The preposition met links the problems to the activity concerned. Together, de voorgestelde planning is “the proposed timeline,” and lijkt ambitieus says that it seems ambitious. gezien de onopgeloste problemen met het testen gives the basis for that assessment: the timeline is considered ambitious in light of unresolved problems with testing. The complete meaning is: “The proposed timeline feels ambitious, given the unresolved testing issues.”

2. Ik deel die zorg, hoewel de leiding vóór de evaluatie vaart wil maken.

   I share that concern, though leadership wants momentum before the review.

   deel

   share

   die

   that

   zorg

   concern

   hoewel

   although

   leiding

   leadership

   vóór

   before

   evaluatie

   review

   wil

   wants to

   vaart … maken

   gain momentum

   More detail

   deel is the present-tense form of delen, “to share” or “to divide.” Here it means sharing an opinion or feeling: “I share that concern.” For example: Ik deel je mening. — “I share your opinion.” die means “that” here and points to a specific concern understood from the situation. Dutch demonstratives distinguish distance and grammatical gender/number: die is used with a singular common-gender noun or a plural noun, while dat is used with a singular neuter noun. The form die itself does not identify who has the concern. zorg means “concern” here. Its plural is zorgen, which can mean “concerns” and, in other contexts, “worries” or “care.” In this sentence, die zorg is one specific concern. hoewel introduces a subordinate clause meaning “although” or “though.” The clause after it provides a contrast with the main statement. Dutch commonly places the finite verb later in such a subordinate clause: hoewel de leiding ... wil maken. leiding means “leadership” here: the people or governing group responsible for directing the work. It is a singular common-gender noun, so the article would be de: de leiding. vóór means “before” when it introduces a time or event. The accent marks the preposition and distinguishes it in writing from voor in contexts where pronunciation or meaning may differ. Here it places the evaluation after the desired momentum in the timeline: the momentum is wanted before the evaluation. evaluatie means “evaluation” or “review.” It is a singular count noun: de evaluatie; its plural is evaluaties. In this sentence it refers to the review mentioned in the translation, without specifying its exact form. wil is the third-person singular present form of willen, “to want.” The subject is de leiding, so the singular form is used: de leiding wil. The infinitive is willen, as in Zij willen wachten — “They want to wait.” vaart maken is a fixed verbal construction meaning “to gain momentum,” “to make progress,” or literally “to make speed.” The noun vaart means speed or momentum in this construction, while maken is the infinitive “to make.” Because wil is followed by an infinitive, maken remains in that form: wil vaart maken. The same pattern appears in We willen snel vaart maken. — “We want to gain momentum quickly.” Together, Ik deel die zorg says “I share that concern.” hoewel then introduces the contrast: de leiding vóór de evaluatie vaart wil maken means “though leadership wants to gain momentum before the review.” The complete utterance is therefore: “I share that concern, though leadership wants momentum before the review.”

3. De voortgang zal eronder lijden als we iets instabiels uitbrengen.

   Momentum will suffer if we release something unstable.

   voortgang

   progress; momentum

   zal

   will

   eronder

   under it; from it

   lijden

   suffer

   iets

   something

   instabiels

   unstable thing

   uitbrengen

   release; bring out

   More detail

   voortgang means progress or forward momentum. It is a common de-word noun: de voortgang. Here it is the subject—the thing that will be negatively affected. Example: De voortgang is goed. — “Progress is good.” zal is a present-tense form of zullen, used here with an infinitive to express a future result: zal ... lijden means “will suffer.” The subject de voortgang is third-person singular, so zal is used; with a plural subject, use zullen. eronder is a pronominal adverb formed from er + onder. With lijden, the construction eronder lijden means “to suffer because of it” or “to be adversely affected by it.” Here, the sentence presents the release of something unstable as the condition associated with the adverse effect; it does not name a separate concrete referent for er. The reusable pattern is iets zal eronder lijden — “something will suffer as a result of it.” lijden is the infinitive “to suffer.” After the auxiliary zal, the infinitive stays at the end of the verb group. Do not confuse it with leiden (“to lead”): lijden describes experiencing harm or difficulty, while leiden describes leading or directing. Example: De kwaliteit lijdt eronder. — “The quality suffers because of it.” iets is an indefinite pronoun meaning “something.” It does not by itself assert a particular numerical count; it presents an unspecified thing. It can be followed by an adjective in the neuter singular form: iets nieuws means “something new.” instabiels is the adjective instabiel (“unstable”) used substantivally after iets, meaning “unstable” or “an unstable thing.” The ending -s belongs to the adjective, not to iets. Compare iets instabiels (“something unstable”) with een instabiel product (“an unstable product”), where the adjective directly modifies the noun product. uitbrengen is a separable verb meaning “to release” or “to bring out” a product or result. In a finite main clause, its parts separate: We brengen iets uit. — “We release something.” In this subordinate clause introduced by als, the finite verb is placed at the end, and the separable verb appears together as uitbrengen: als we iets instabiels uitbrengen — “if we release something unstable.” The condition marker als introduces the condition: als we iets instabiels uitbrengen means “if we release something unstable.” we is the subject of that clause, and iets instabiels is the object of uitbrengen. Together, de voortgang zal eronder lijden says that progress or momentum will be adversely affected, while als we iets instabiels uitbrengen gives the condition under which that happens. The complete meaning is: “Momentum will suffer if we release something unstable.”

4. Ik begrijp het, maar uitstel zonder bewijs kan onze zaak verzwakken.

   I understand, yet delaying without evidence may weaken our case.

   begrijp

   understand

   uitstel

   delay

   bewijs

   evidence

   onze

   our

   zaak

   case

   kan

   may

   verzwakken

   weaken

   More detail

   begrijp is the present-tense first-person singular form of begrijpen (“to understand”): ik begrijp = “I understand.” The object het is a neuter singular pronoun meaning “it”; the supplied sentence does not identify a more specific referent for it. Example: Ik begrijp het. — “I understand it.” uitstel means “delay” or “postponement.” It is a noun, and here it names the act or situation of waiting rather than proceeding. Example: Uitstel is soms verstandig. — “Delay is sometimes sensible.” bewijs means “evidence” or “proof.” In zonder bewijs, it is the thing that is absent: “without evidence.” The preposition zonder takes a noun phrase to express absence. Example: Zonder bewijs blijft de bewering onzeker. — “Without evidence, the claim remains uncertain.” onze is the possessive form meaning “our.” It is used here before zaak, a common-gender noun with de: onze zaak = “our case.” With a singular neuter noun, the corresponding form is ons, as in the example ons plan — “our plan.” zaak means “case” in this sentence, in the sense of the matter or case being considered. It can have other meanings in other contexts, but here the fixed translation establishes the intended meaning. Example: Deze zaak is belangrijk. — “This case is important.” kan is the third-person singular present form of the modal verb kunnen, “to be able to” or “may/can.” In this sentence it expresses possibility: the delay may weaken the case. A modal verb is followed by an infinitive, so kan verzwakken means “may weaken.” verzwakken is the infinitive “to weaken.” Its base form is already visible here; after kan, it remains an infinitive rather than taking a personal ending. Example: Dit kan de positie verzwakken. — “This may weaken the position.” Together, Ik begrijp het says “I understand it.” maar introduces a contrast. uitstel zonder bewijs means “delay without evidence,” and kan onze zaak verzwakken says that this delay may weaken the speaker’s case. The complete utterance is therefore: “I understand, yet delaying without evidence may weaken our case.”

5. We kunnen bewijs verzamelen door de tests met het grootste risico prioriteit te geven.

   We can gather evidence by prioritizing the riskiest tests.

   We kunnen

   we can

   bewijs

   evidence

   verzamelen

   gather, collect

   door

   by, through

   tests

   tests

   grootste

   greatest, largest

   risico

   risk

   prioriteit

   priority

   geven

   give

   More detail

   We kunnen expresses “we can”: kunnen is the present-tense form used with we and other plural subjects, and it is followed by an infinitive. Here the infinitive is verzamelen, so the ability or possibility applies to gathering. Example: We kunnen morgen beginnen. — “We can start tomorrow.” bewijs means evidence here. It is a mass noun, so it normally has no plural ending when referring to evidence generally. The related noun bewijsstuk refers to an individual piece of evidence. Example: Dit bewijs is belangrijk. — “This evidence is important.” verzamelen is the infinitive “to gather” or “to collect.” The same form is used after kunnen; the modal carries the finite verb information. Example: Zij verzamelen informatie. — “They collect information.” door introduces the method: “by” or “through.” With an action, Dutch commonly uses the pattern door ... te + infinitive, meaning “by doing ...”. In this sentence, door begins the method clause and te geven completes it. tests is the plural of test. With de, the phrase refers to identifiable tests: de tests. Example: We vergelijken de tests. — “We compare the tests.” het grootste risico means “the greatest risk.” grootste is the superlative form of groot (“great” or “large”): groot → groter (“greater/larger”) → grootst (“greatest/largest”). Before the definite noun phrase het risico, the form is grootste. The adjective describes risico, not tests; the full phrase therefore identifies the tests associated with the greatest risk. Example: Dit is het grootste probleem. — “This is the biggest problem.” prioriteit means “priority.” The reusable expression prioriteit geven aan means “to give priority to” or “to prioritize” something. prioriteit is the noun; it is not an inflected form of geven. geven is the infinitive “to give.” In prioriteit geven, it forms the expression “give priority.” Here it appears as te geven because it follows door; te marks the infinitive in the method construction. Example: We geven veiligheid prioriteit. — “We give safety priority.” Together, bewijs verzamelen means “gather evidence.” The method clause door de tests met het grootste risico prioriteit te geven says that this is done by giving priority to the tests associated with the greatest risk. Thus the complete utterance means: “We can gather evidence by prioritizing the riskiest tests.”

6. Dat zou de discussie objectiever en minder defensief maken.

   That would make the discussion more objective and less defensive.

   Dat

   that

   zou

   would

   discussie

   discussion

   objectiever

   more objective

   minder

   less

   defensief

   defensive

   maken

   make

   More detail

   Dat means “that” here and refers to something already mentioned or understood in the discourse; the sentence itself does not identify a more specific referent. In Dutch, dat is also the form used for a singular neuter demonstrative, but its exact referent must come from context. zou is the past-tense form of zullen used here to express a hypothetical result: “would.” The combination dat zou ... maken means “that would make ...”. Dutch commonly places the infinitive at the end of this kind of clause, so zou appears before maken while maken carries the lexical meaning. discussie is the noun “discussion.” Its definite form is de discussie; the article de is part of the noun phrase and marks the definite noun, not a numerical quantity. A reusable example is: De discussie begint. — “The discussion begins.” objectiever means “more objective.” It is the comparative form of the adjective objectief: objectief = “objective,” objectiever = “more objective.” The comparison describes the discussion as having a greater degree of objectivity; it does not assert who or what the comparison is with. minder means “less” and introduces a lower degree. Here it modifies defensief, giving the pattern minder + adjective: “less defensive.” Unlike objectiever, which marks the comparative form on the adjective, minder is a separate word that expresses reduced degree. defensief means “defensive” here. It describes the discussion’s character or tone in the intended translation. With minder, the phrase means “less defensive,” not “not defensive.” maken is the infinitive “make.” In this sentence it completes the modal-like construction with zou: zou ... maken = “would make.” Dutch infinitives commonly occur at the end of such clauses. For example: Dat zou het plan duidelijker maken. — “That would make the plan clearer.” Together, Dat zou establishes a hypothetical result, de discussie is the thing affected, and objectiever en minder defensief gives the two resulting qualities. Thus Dat zou de discussie objectiever en minder defensief maken. means “That would make the discussion more objective and less defensive.”

7. Een risicosamenvatting op basis van de huidige resultaten zou daarbij helpen.

   A risk summary based on current results would support that.

   Een

   a/an

   risicosamenvatting

   risk summary

   op basis van

   based on

   huidige

   current

   resultaten

   results

   zou

   would

   daarbij

   with that

   helpen

   help

   More detail

   Een is an indefinite article: it introduces a non-specified instance of the noun, without by itself asserting a numerical count. Dutch articles also include de and het; the correct choice depends on the noun's article class and number. risicosamenvatting is a compound noun meaning a summary concerning risks. Dutch commonly combines nouns into one written word. The first part, risico, narrows the type of samenvatting; the whole compound, rather than either part alone, is the noun phrase used here. op basis van is a reusable prepositional construction meaning “based on.” It introduces the information or evidence used as a basis. Example: op basis van de gegevens — “based on the data.” huidige means “current” here. It is the form of the adjective huidig used before resultaten, a plural noun. The adjective takes the -e form in this environment; the noun itself does not cause the adjective to become a different lexical item. Example: de huidige situatie — “the current situation.” resultaten is the plural of resultaat, “result.” The ending -en marks the plural here. Example: De resultaten zijn duidelijk. — “The results are clear.” zou is a form of zullen, used here to express a conditional or tentative “would.” Although zou is historically related to a past form of zullen, this sentence is not asserting past time. It presents the proposed summary as something that would help. A common pattern is zou + infinitive: Dat zou helpen. — “That would help.” daarbij means “with that” or “in that connection.” It is an adverb referring to the relevant matter already established by the context; its exact referent is not independently identified by this word. In this sentence it combines with helpen to say that the summary would help with that matter. helpen is the infinitive “to help.” After the modal-like form zou, Dutch uses the infinitive: zou helpen, not a finite present-tense form. The same verb can be used with a direct object or with a prepositional complement, depending on what kind of help is meant. Together, Een risicosamenvatting means “a risk summary,” and op basis van de huidige resultaten specifies that it is based on the current results. zou daarbij helpen says that this summary would help with the matter in question. The complete meaning is: “A risk summary based on current results would support that.”

8. Ik kan die samenvatting meenemen naar de vergadering.

   I can bring that summary to the meeting.

   Ik kan

   I can

   die

   that

   samenvatting

   summary

   meenemen

   bring along

   naar

   to

   vergadering

   meeting

   More detail

   Ik kan combines the first-person singular pronoun ik (“I”) with kan, the present-tense form of the modal verb kunnen (“can, be able to”). A modal expresses ability or possibility here, and the next verb remains in the infinitive without te. Useful forms are ik kan and wij kunnen. Example: Ik kan morgen komen. — “I can come tomorrow.” die means “that” here and points to a specific noun understood from the context. In Dutch, die is used with a singular common-gender noun and with plural nouns; the singular neuter counterpart is dat. It is not itself marked for the number of a singular common-gender noun beyond the form shown here. samenvatting means “summary.” Its base form is the noun samenvatting; the plural is samenvattingen. It is a common-gender de-word, which is why the phrase uses die rather than singular neuter dat. Example: Ik lees de samenvatting. — “I read the summary.” meenemen means “to bring or take along.” It is a separable verb built into the infinitive meenemen; the verb’s base form is meenemen, not a form of nemen alone. After the modal kan, the infinitive stays at the end of the clause. In a main clause without a modal, its parts can separate: Ik neem de samenvatting mee. — “I bring the summary along.” naar is a preposition meaning “to” when it introduces a destination. It is followed here by de vergadering, “the meeting.” Example: We gaan naar de vergadering. — “We are going to the meeting.” vergadering means “meeting.” Its base form is the noun vergadering, and its plural is vergaderingen. It is a common-gender de-word: de vergadering, “the meeting.” Together, Ik kan states the speaker’s ability, die samenvatting identifies the specific summary, and meenemen naar de vergadering expresses bringing that summary along to the meeting. The complete meaning is: “I can bring that summary to the meeting.”

9. Zo kunnen we een praktische beslissing nemen.

   So we can make a practical decision.

   Zo

   So

   kunnen we

   we can

   praktische

   practical

   beslissing

   decision

   nemen

   take

   More detail

   Zo means “so” here: it links this sentence to the preceding idea and presents the decision as a result or consequence. It can also have other uses in Dutch, such as “in this way,” so its meaning depends on the surrounding clause. kunnen we contains kunnen, the modal verb “can/be able to,” followed by the subject we, “we.” In a main clause, Dutch places the finite verb before the subject when the clause begins with another element such as Zo: Zo kunnen we ... (“So we can ...”). The modal is followed by an infinitive later in the clause. Example: Morgen kunnen we vertrekken. — “Tomorrow we can leave.” praktische is the inflected form of the adjective praktisch, “practical.” It has an -e here because it comes before the noun in the indefinite noun phrase een praktische beslissing; this is the relevant attributive-adjective pattern. The base form is praktisch; the observed form is not a comparative. Example: een praktische oplossing — “a practical solution.” beslissing is a noun meaning “decision.” Its common plural is beslissingen. In this sentence it is the object in the expression een beslissing nemen, a standard Dutch expression meaning “to make a decision.” nemen is the infinitive of nemen, “to take.” After the modal kunnen, the infinitive appears at the end of this clause. With beslissing, nemen forms the conventional expression een beslissing nemen—literally “take a decision,” but naturally translated as “make a decision.” Example: We moeten vandaag een beslissing nemen. — “We have to make a decision today.” Putting the parts together: Zo (“so”) + kunnen we (“we can”) + een praktische beslissing (“a practical decision”) + nemen (“make/take”) gives: “So we can make a practical decision.”