Requesting privacy at a clinic reception | Learn Dutch in English

Sentence explanations

1. Ik voel me er niet prettig bij om gevoelige details aan de receptie te bespreken.

   I am not comfortable discussing sensitive details at the reception desk.

   voel

   feel

   er niet prettig bij

   not comfortable with it

   gevoelige

   sensitive

   details

   details

   receptie

   reception desk

   te bespreken

   to discuss

   More detail

   voel is the present-tense first-person singular form of voelen, “to feel”: ik voel = “I feel.” The pronoun me belongs with this verb in the construction zich ergens prettig bij voelen, meaning to feel comfortable about or with something. In this sentence, voel agrees with the subject ik; voelen is the base form. er niet prettig bij is the pattern “not comfortable with it/about it.” Here er points to the situation or activity expressed by the following om ... te bespreken phrase, while niet prettig makes the feeling negative. prettig means pleasant or comfortable; its opposite in this use is onprettig, “unpleasant.” gevoelige is the adjective “sensitive” before the plural noun details. The ending -e is the attributive adjective form used here; it is the adjective gevoelig that has this form, not the noun. Compare gevoelige informatie, “sensitive information.” details is the plural of detail, “detail.” The plural form is identical in spelling to the English plural, but it is still a Dutch noun. Example: Ik geef geen details., “I am not giving any details.” receptie means “reception desk” in this context. It is a singular noun; the definite form is de receptie. The phrase aan de receptie places the discussion at or with the reception desk. A different useful location pattern is bij de ingang, “at the entrance.” te bespreken means “to discuss.” bespreken is the base verb, and te marks its infinitive here. The pattern om ... te + infinitive expresses the activity connected with the feeling: om details te bespreken = “to discuss details.” Bespreken is not separable: in a finite form, the prefix remains attached, as in We bespreken dit morgen., “We will discuss this tomorrow.” Together, Ik voel me er niet prettig bij says “I am not comfortable with it,” and om gevoelige details aan de receptie te bespreken specifies the activity that causes this discomfort: discussing sensitive details at the reception desk. The complete utterance therefore means: “I am not comfortable discussing sensitive details at the reception desk.”

2. We kunnen naar een privéruimte gaan voor alles wat persoonlijk is.

   We can move to a private area for anything personal.

   We kunnen

   we can

   privéruimte

   private area

   gaan

   go; move

   alles wat

   everything that

   persoonlijk

   personal

   More detail

   We kunnen combines the first-person plural pronoun we with the present-tense modal verb kunnen. In this sentence it expresses possibility or ability: “we can.” The forms of kunnen include ik kan (“I can”) and wij/we kunnen (“we can”). A modal is followed by an infinitive, which appears later in this sentence. privéruimte is a noun meaning “private space” or “private area.” It is built as a single Dutch compound word, so it is not a phrase with a separate space between privé and ruimte. With een, as in een privéruimte, the sentence refers to a private area without asserting a particular numeric count. gaan is the infinitive “to go.” With naar plus a destination, naar een privéruimte gaan means “to go to a private area.” In combination with kunnen, the infinitive stays at the end of the clause: We kunnen ... gaan. In this context, the fixed translation naturally renders the movement as “move.” alles wat is a reusable pattern meaning “everything that” or, in this context, “anything that.” alles means “everything,” and wat introduces the clause describing it. Dutch commonly uses wat after an indefinite word such as alles: alles wat ik weet means “everything that I know.” persoonlijk means “personal” here. It is the adjective in the clause persoonlijk is, where it describes what is personal. A predicative adjective after zijn has this form: De informatie is persoonlijk means “The information is personal.” Before a noun, the form can change, for example persoonlijke informatie (“personal information”); that ending belongs to the adjective, not to the noun. Together, naar een privéruimte gaan gives the destination and movement, while voor alles wat persoonlijk is gives the purpose or scope: it is for anything that is personal. The complete utterance means: “We can move to a private area for anything personal.”

3. Dat zou helpen, omdat de wachtkamer heel dichtbij is.

   That would help, because the waiting room is very close.

   Dat

   that

   zou

   would

   helpen

   help

   omdat

   because

   de wachtkamer

   the waiting room

   heel dichtbij

   very close

   More detail

   Dat means “that” here: a demonstrative pronoun referring to an already understood situation or proposal, without the sentence identifying a more specific referent. It is not the article de; it stands on its own as the subject. zou expresses a hypothetical or conditional “would.” It is a form of zullen; with an infinitive, the pattern is zou + infinitive: zou helpen = “would help.” The form zou is used with singular subjects, including dat; the plural counterpart is zouden. helpen is the infinitive “to help.” After the conditional auxiliary zou, the lexical verb remains in the infinitive. For example, Dat zou werken means “That would work”; werken is the infinitive after zou. omdat introduces the reason for the preceding statement and means “because.” In a clause introduced by omdat, the finite verb commonly appears at the end. Here, is comes after the subject and the other clause elements, at the end of the subordinate clause. de wachtkamer means “the waiting room.” Wachtkamer is a compound noun: wacht relates to waiting, and kamer means “room,” but the complete compound is the normal word for a waiting room. The article de belongs to this noun; it does not itself state a number. heel dichtbij means “very close.” Heel intensifies the adverb dichtbij; dichtbij describes distance or location. The form dichtbij is not a comparative here. A useful comparison is dichterbij = “closer” and het dichtstbij = “the closest,” when the language context requires a comparison. Together, Dat zou helpen means “That would help.” The clause omdat de wachtkamer heel dichtbij is gives the reason: “because the waiting room is very close.” Thus the complete utterance is: “That would help, because the waiting room is very close.”

4. Uw privacy is belangrijk, en zulke details moeten niet in het openbaar worden besproken.

   Your privacy matters, and those details should not be discussed in public.

   Uw

   your

   privacy

   privacy

   belangrijk

   important

   zulke

   such

   details

   details

   moeten

   should / must

   niet

   not

   in het openbaar

   in public

   worden besproken

   be discussed

   More detail

   Uw means “your” here. It is the formal or plural second-person possessive determiner. Dutch possessives agree with the possessor, not with the possessed noun: uw does not change for the gender or number of the thing owned. Example: Uw formulier is klaar. — “Your form is ready.” privacy is a noun meaning privacy. It is an abstract noun and is commonly used without a plural in this sense. The phrase Uw privacy means “your privacy”; the possessive identifies whose privacy is meant. belangrijk is the basic adjective “important.” Here it is used predicatively after is, so it does not receive a noun-ending: Deze regel is belangrijk. — “This rule is important.” Its comparison is belangrijker (“more important”) and het belangrijkst (“the most important”). zulke means “such” and points to a type or kind of thing rather than to one specifically identified item. It is used here with the plural noun details: zulke vragen means “such questions.” With a singular count noun, Dutch commonly uses zo'n, as in zo'n detail — “such a detail.” details is the plural of the noun detail, “detail.” The plural ending is -s: een detail — “a detail,” twee details — “two details.” In this sentence, zulke details refers to details of the indicated kind, without specifying an exact number. moeten is the modal verb moeten, “must” or, in this fixed meaning, “should.” The plural subject details requires moeten; compare Het detail moet ... (“The detail must ...”) with De details moeten ... (“The details must ...”). In combination with negation, moeten niet expresses that something is not to be done; the supplied translation presents this as “should not.” niet is the ordinary Dutch negator “not.” It negates the following proposition in the sentence rather than meaning “no” by itself. Example: De details worden niet besproken. — “The details are not discussed.” in het openbaar is a fixed expression meaning “in public,” that is, openly or in a public setting. openbaar is an adjective meaning “public”; in this expression it is used substantively with het, so the whole phrase functions as a prepositional expression. Example: Ze spreken niet in het openbaar over dat onderwerp. — “They do not speak about that subject in public.” worden besproken forms a passive construction. besproken is the past participle of bespreken, “to discuss,” and worden is the passive auxiliary here. Thus worden besproken means “be discussed,” with the details understood as what is discussed rather than as the discussers. In a modal sentence, Dutch places the modal before this infinitive group: moeten worden besproken — “must/should be discussed.” The niet and location phrase are inserted before the passive group in the supplied sentence. Together, Uw privacy is belangrijk says “Your privacy matters/is important.” zulke details supplies the plural subject of the next clause, and moeten niet ... worden besproken says that they should not be discussed. Adding in het openbaar specifies where this prohibition applies: “in public.” The complete utterance therefore means: “Your privacy matters, and those details should not be discussed in public.”

5. Zou ik de meeste achtergrondinformatie in plaats daarvan op de schriftelijke formulieren kunnen zetten?

   Could I put most of the background on the written forms instead?

   Zou ik

   Could I

   de meeste

   most

   achtergrondinformatie

   background information

   in plaats daarvan

   instead

   schriftelijke

   written

   formulieren

   forms

   kunnen

   be able to

   zetten

   put

   More detail

   Zou ik begins a polite question about whether the speaker may or can do something. In this sentence, zou is the singular past-tense form of zullen, used here in a polite conditional-style construction; with ik and the question order, it gives “Could I…?” A reusable pattern is Zou ik ... kunnen? (“Could I ...?”). de meeste means “most” in the sense of the largest part or amount. meeste is the superlative form related to veel (“much/many”): veel → meer (“more”) → meest/meeste (“most”). Here the definite article de forms the phrase de meeste before the noun; it does not by itself state an exact number. achtergrondinformatie means “background information” here. It is a Dutch compound noun, and informatie is commonly treated as an uncountable mass noun, so the sentence refers to information generally rather than to a counted set of individual pieces. Example: Ik lees achtergrondinformatie. — “I read background information.” in plaats daarvan is a fixed, reusable expression meaning “instead” or “instead of that.” daarvan refers to an already understood matter, while the supplied sentence does not identify a more specific grammatical referent for it. The expression contrasts the proposed action with another understood option. schriftelijke means “written” here. It is the inflected form of the adjective schriftelijk. Before the plural noun formulieren, the adjective takes the -e ending: schriftelijke formulieren. This adjective describes the forms as written or in written form; it is not the noun's base form. formulieren means “forms.” It is the plural of formulier (“form”): een formulier → formulieren. The plural ending is part of the noun form, while the adjective schriftelijke carries its own -e inflection. kunnen means “be able to” or, in this question, “can/may.” It is the infinitive of the modal verb whose first-person singular present form is kan: ik kan (“I can”), kunnen (“can/be able to” as an infinitive or plural form). After zou ik, the infinitive kunnen appears at the end of this question. The modal expresses the possibility or permission of carrying out the action; it does not itself mean “put.” zetten means “put” or “place.” It is the infinitive used after the modal kunnen. Useful forms include ik zet (“I put”), zette (“put” in the past), and gezet (“put,” past participle). In this sentence, zetten describes placing the background information on the written forms. Example: Kan ik mijn naam hier zetten? — “Can I put my name here?” Together, Zou ik ... kunnen zetten? forms the reusable question pattern “Could I put ...?” The object is de meeste achtergrondinformatie, and op de schriftelijke formulieren specifies where it would be placed: on the written forms. In plaats daarvan marks this as the alternative action. The whole utterance therefore means: “Could I put most of the background on the written forms instead?”

6. Dat kan, al kan de behandelaar u misschien nog steeds onder vier ogen vragen stellen.

   You can, although the clinician may still ask questions in private.

   Dat kan

   You can

   al

   although

   kan

   may be able to

   de behandelaar

   the clinician

   u

   you

   misschien

   perhaps

   nog steeds

   still

   onder vier ogen

   in private

   vragen stellen

   ask questions

   More detail

   Dat kan means “That is possible” or, in this context, “You can do that.” Dat means “that”; here it refers to the proposed action of putting the background information on the written forms. Kan is a present-tense form of kunnen; with dat as a singular subject here, it means that the action is possible. The same form can express ability or possibility: Ik kan komen = “I can come,” while Dat kan = “That is possible.” Al introduces a concession: it means “although” here. In al kan de behandelaar ..., the finite verb kan comes before the subject, which is a common word order in this type of concessive clause. This use differs from al meaning “already.” The second kan is also a present-tense form of kunnen, and its subject here is de behandelaar. With misschien, the clause expresses possibility: the clinician may still ask questions. De behandelaar means “the clinician.” Behandelaar is a noun for a person who provides treatment or care; de is its definite article. Example: De behandelaar komt morgen. — “The clinician is coming tomorrow.” U is the formal or polite second-person pronoun. In this sentence, it is the person to whom the questions may be put, so it is the recipient/indirect object of vragen stellen. Dutch uses u for both singular and plural formal “you”; the form itself does not identify the number here. Misschien means “perhaps” or “maybe.” It marks the asking as possible rather than certain. Nog steeds means “still,” indicating that this possibility remains despite the permission in the first clause. Together, misschien nog steeds expresses that the clinician may nevertheless still ask questions. Onder vier ogen is a fixed idiom meaning “in private.” It is used as a unit rather than translated word by word. Example: We moeten onder vier ogen praten. — “We need to talk in private.” Vragen stellen is the usual Dutch construction for “ask questions.” In this construction, vragen is the plural noun “questions,” and stellen is the infinitive “to put” or “to pose”; together they have the conventional meaning “to ask questions.” Example: De docent stelt een vraag. — “The teacher asks a question.” The whole utterance first confirms that the proposed action is possible: “You can.” Al then adds a qualification: even so, the clinician may still ask the formal “you” questions in private. The complete meaning is: “You can, although the clinician may still ask questions in private.”

7. Dat zou het gesprek voor mij een stuk makkelijker maken.

   That would make the conversation much easier for me.

   Dat

   that

   zou

   would

   het gesprek

   the conversation

   voor mij

   for me

   een stuk

   much; considerably

   makkelijker

   easier

   maken

   make

   More detail

   Dat means “that” here and functions as the subject: it points to an understood situation or option, while its specific referent is not named in this sentence. Dutch also uses dit for “this” when the speaker presents something as nearer or more immediate. zou is the conditional form of zullen and gives the clause the meaning “would.” In this sentence, zou combines with the infinitive maken; the combination zou ... maken is a reusable way to express a possible or hypothetical result. Example: Dat zou helpen. — “That would help.” het gesprek means “the conversation.” het is the definite article used with this noun; the noun’s plural is gesprekken. Example: Het gesprek begint. — “The conversation begins.” voor mij means “for me” in the sense of showing who would experience the result. mij is the stressed form of the first-person singular pronoun after voor; in less emphatic speech, voor me is also common. This phrase does not mean that the speaker causes the conversation; it marks the person for whom it becomes easier. een stuk is a fixed degree expression here, meaning “considerably” or “much,” rather than asserting a literal piece or a numerical quantity. It strengthens the comparison in makkelijker. Example: Deze uitleg maakt het een stuk duidelijker. — “This explanation makes it much clearer.” makkelijker is the comparative form of the adjective makkelijk, “easy.” The useful comparison chain is makkelijk (easy), makkelijker (easier), het makkelijkst (the easiest). The comparative says that the conversation would be easier than it otherwise would be; the comparison standard is understood from the situation rather than stated. maken means “make” here and is an infinitive. After the modal/conditional form zou, Dutch places the infinitive at the end of this clause: zou ... makkelijker maken. The pattern iets makkelijker maken means “make something easier.” Example: Een korte pauze zou het werk makkelijker maken. — “A short break would make the work easier.” As a whole, Dat zou het gesprek voor mij een stuk makkelijker maken combines the subject “that,” the conditional “would,” the object “the conversation,” the degree phrase “much,” the comparative “easier,” and the infinitive “make.” Its meaning is: “That would make the conversation much easier for me.”

8. Ik noteer uw voorkeur voordat u wordt opgeroepen.

   I will note your preference before you are called.

   Ik

   I

   noteer

   note down

   uw

   your

   voorkeur

   preference

   voordat

   before

   u wordt opgeroepen

   you are called

   More detail

   Ik means “I” here: the speaker is the subject of the main clause. Dutch uses ik for a first-person singular subject. Example: Ik noteer het. — “I note it down.” noteer is the present-tense first-person singular form of noteren, “to note down” or “record.” The ending is part of the verb form chosen with ik; the base form is noteren. Although it is present in form, Dutch can use the present tense for a planned future action, so the fixed translation naturally has “I will note.” Example: Ik noteer uw naam. — “I will note your name.” uw means “your” in the formal or polite possessive construction. It refers to the person addressed, as established by the fixed translation. Unlike an adjective, uw does not change to agree with the gender or number of the possessed noun. Example: uw naam — “your name.” voorkeur is the noun “preference.” The fixed phrase uw voorkeur therefore means “your preference.” It is a common noun and normally appears with the definite article de: de voorkeur. Example: Ik ken uw voorkeur. — “I know your preference.” voordat is a conjunction meaning “before” and introduces a subordinate clause. It places the event in that clause later than the event in the main clause. In a subordinate clause, the finite verb appears after the subject: voordat u wordt opgeroepen. u wordt opgeroepen means “you are called.” u is the formal second-person pronoun and is the person affected by the action here. wordt is the present-tense form of worden used in this passive construction; opgeroepen is the past participle of oproepen, “to call” or “summon.” Together, worden + a past participle forms a passive: the sentence focuses on the person being called, rather than on who calls them. Example: U wordt later opgeroepen. — “You will be called later.” The whole sentence combines Ik noteer uw voorkeur (“I note your preference”) with voordat u wordt opgeroepen (“before you are called”). Thus it means: “I will note your preference before you are called.” The main verb is in the present tense but has a future-oriented meaning in this planned sequence, while voordat marks the calling as the later event.