Dutch past simple (onvoltooid verleden tijd)
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Lesson outline
Hide- 1.Definition and usage of the past simple
- 2.Regular conjugation of Dutch weak verbs in the past simple
- 3.Orthographic and pronunciation rules
- 3.1.'-te'/'-ten' or '-de'/'-den'
- 3.2.Verbs ending in '-t'
- 3.3.Verbs ending in '-d'
- 3.4.Verbs ending in '-v' or -'z'
- 4.Regular conjugation of Dutch strong verbs in the past simple
- 4.1. Dutch irregular verbs
- 5.Exercises
- 5.1.Excercise to practice Dutch past simple (regular verbs)
- 5.2.Exercise to practice Dutch past simple (irregular verbs)
- 5.3.Practice the Dutch past simple
- 5.4.Exercise Dutch past simple
Definition and usage of the past simple
The Dutch past tense is mainly used to describe something that took place in the past. The table below shows you the situations in which the past simple is used.
| Situation | Example | Translation |
|---|---|---|
| You want to describe an event or action that took place in the past. |
|
|
| You want to describe a past event / action that has nothing to do with the present time. |
|
|
| Using the word 'toen' (when) to announce a past event/action. |
|
|
Remember: you can recognize the use of the past simple when the sentence contains words as:
- gisteren (yesterday)
- vorig jaar (last year)
- vorige maand (last month)
or other words that indicate a time in the past.
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1) Regular conjugation of Dutch weak verbs in the past simple
To form a past sentence, the stem of the verb has to be found to be able to conjugate it. Dutch verbs always end in '-en'. The stem is found when you leave out the '-en' part.
In the table below, you can find an example of the conjugation with the verb 'werken' (to work).
| Subject | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Ik (I) | stem + te / de | werkte |
| Jij, u (you) | stem + te / de | werkte |
| Hij, zij, het (he, she, it) | stem + te / de | werkte |
| Wij (we) | stem + ten / den | werkten |
| Jullie (you) | stem + ten / den | werkten |
| Zij (they) | stem + ten / den | werkten |
Orthographic and pronunciation rules
1. '-te'/'-ten' or '-de'/'-den'
When is the ending '-te' or '-ten' and when '-de' or '-den'?
- when the stem ends in one of the following consonants: 't exKofschip, the ending is '-te' or '-ten'
- for the other consonants '-de' or '-den' is the ending in past tense.
2. Verbs ending in '-t'
If the stem of a verb ends in a '-t', the ending '-te' or '-ten' still has to be added. The table shows you the conjugation of the verb 'haten' (to hate).
| Subject | Example |
|---|---|
| Ik | haatte |
| Jij, u | haatte |
| Hij, zij, het | haatte |
| Wij | haatten |
| Jullie | haatten |
| Zij | haatten |
3. Verbs ending in '-d'
If the stem of a verb ends in a '-d', the ending '-de' or '-den' still has to be added. The table shows you the construction with the verb 'raden' (to guess).
| Subject | Example |
|---|---|
| Ik | raadde |
| Jij, u | raadde |
| Hij, zij, het | raadde |
| Wij | raadden |
| Jullie | raadden |
| Zij | raadden |
4. Verbs ending in '-v' or -'z'
When the '-en' of the verb is removed and '-v' or '-z' is the ending of the stem, the letters change in '-f' and '-s'. The conjugation of the verb is different from other verbs ending in '-f' or '-s', because you have to look at the consonant of the stem before the change. Therefore, the ending is always '-de(n)'.
The table below shows an example of a verb ending in -z: 'lozen' (to dump).
| Subject | Form |
|---|---|
| Ik | loosde |
| Jij, u | loosde |
| Hij, zij, het | loosde |
| Wij | loosden |
| Jullie | loosden |
| Zij | loosden |
Note the double 'o' in 'loosde' and 'loosden. Long vowel verbs have long vowel stems. Therefore the extra 'o' appears.
2) Regular conjugation of Dutch strong verbs in the past simple
Dutch has many different strong verbs, but there are ways the verbs can be put together in groups to make it easier to remember how to conjugate them. Take a look at the table below.
| Rule | Verb | Example | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | Strong verbs that have an 'e' in the infinitive, get 'ie' in the past form. | 'helpen' (to help), . | ik hielp (I helped) |
| 2. | Strong verbs that have an 'ij' in the infinitive, get 'ee' in the past form. | 'krijgen' (to receive) | ik kreeg (I received) |
| 3. | Strong verbs that have an 'e' in the infinitive, get 'o' in the past form. | 'zwemmen' (to swim) | ik zwom (I swam) |
| 4. | Strong verbs that have an 'e' in the infinitive, get 'a' in the past form. | 'nemen' (to take) | ik nam (I took) |
| 5. | Strong verbs that have an 'i' in the infinitive, get 'a' in the past form. | 'zitten' (to sit) | ik zat (I sit) |
| 6. | Strong verbs that have an 'a' in the infinitive, get 'ie' in the past form. | 'slapen' (to sleep) | ik sliep (I slept) |
| 7. | Strong verbs that end in '-cht' in the past form. | 'denken' (to think) | ik dacht (I thought) |
| 8. | Strong verbs that have an 'ui' in the infinitive, get 'oo' in the past form. | 'fluiten' (to whistle) | ik floot (I whistled) |
| 9. | Strong verbs that have an 'a' in the infinitive, get 'oe' in the past form. | 'graven' (to dig) | ik groef (I digged) |
| 10. | Strong verbs that have an 'e' in the infinitive, get an 'a' in the past form. | 'vergeten' (to forget) | ik vergat (I forgot) |
| 11. | Strong verbs that have an 'a' in the infinitive, get an 'i' in the past form. | 'vangen' (to catch) | ik ving (I catched) |
| 12. | Strong verbs that have an 'o' in the infinitive, get 'ie' in the past form. | 'lopen' (to walk) | ik liep (I walked) |
| 13. | Strong verbs that have 'iez' in the infinitive, get 'oor' in the past form. | 'verliezen' (to lose) | ik verloor (I lost) |
| 14. | Strong verbs that have an 'i' in the infinitive, get an 'o' in the past form. | 'stinken' (to stink) | ik stonk (I stank) |
3. Dutch irregular verbs
The table shows you the conjugation of the 6 Dutch irregular verbs in the past tense.
| Subject | hebben (to have) | kunnen (to be able to) | mogen (to be allowed to) | willen (to want) | zijn (to be) | zullen (to will) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ik | had | kon | mocht | wilde | was | zou |
| Jij, u | had | kon | mocht | wilde | was | zou |
| Hij, zij, het | had | kon | mocht | wilde | was | zou |
| Wij | hadden | konden | mochten | wilden | waren | zouden |
| Jullie | hadden | konden | mochten | wilden | waren | zouden |
| Zij | hadden | konden | mochten | wilden | waren | zouden |
Train your skills by doing the exercises below!
Exercises
- Excercise to practice Dutch past simple (regular verbs)
- Exercise to practice Dutch past simple (irregular verbs)
- Practice the Dutch past simple
- Exercise Dutch past simple
Excercise to practice Dutch past simple (regular verbs)
Exercise to practice Dutch past simple (irregular verbs)
Practice the Dutch past simple
Exercise Dutch past simple
Exercises
- Excercise to practice Dutch past simple (regular verbs)
- Exercise to practice Dutch past simple (irregular verbs)
- Practice the Dutch past simple
- Exercise Dutch past simple
Excercise to practice Dutch past simple (regular verbs)
Exercise to practice Dutch past simple (irregular verbs)
Practice the Dutch past simple
Exercise Dutch past simple
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Do you want to improve your Dutch for work and daily life in the Netherlands? I help young expats enhance their Dutch skills, so you can speak and write with more confidence. Not because you have to, but because you want to! My lessons are practical and focused on what you truly need, whether you’re a beginner or already at a higher level.
What you can expect:
Lessons for beginners to advanced learners (B2 to C1), with a methodical and structured approach
Exercises that fit your work and life in the Netherlands
Focus on building confidence and keeping your self-respect, as you find your place as a new resident
Long-term collaboration, aimed at lasting progress and making the most of your new country
In my lessons, you’ll not only learn the language but also how to communicate your unique value and fully use the opportunities in your new home. This way, you’ll get to know the Netherlands better and make your own special contribution!
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Hello, my name is Michel and I'm a Dutch primary school language teacher. I lived in France for 7 years and I worked for an international school that is well known all over France. I moved to Madeira, Portugal and started to work as online Dutch language teacher 4 years ago. Teaching children and adults is my passion aswel as having fun with learning a new language.
My lessons are adapted to your level and due to my job and experience I have acces to teaching methodes to learn you the basics of the Dutch language or to improve your level. I can help you to improve your level of writing and speaking or help you learn your first words and phrases.
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Do you want to improve your Dutch for work and daily life in the Netherlands? I help young expats enhance their Dutch skills, so you can speak and write with more confidence. Not because you have to, but because you want to! My lessons are practical and focused on what you truly need, whether you’re a beginner or already at a higher level.
What you can expect:
Lessons for beginners to advanced learners (B2 to C1), with a methodical and structured approach
Exercises that fit your work and life in the Netherlands
Focus on building confidence and keeping your self-respect, as you find your place as a new resident
Long-term collaboration, aimed at lasting progress and making the most of your new country
In my lessons, you’ll not only learn the language but also how to communicate your unique value and fully use the opportunities in your new home. This way, you’ll get to know the Netherlands better and make your own special contribution!
Ready to improve your Dutch? Contact me and let’s explore the possibilities!
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Learn to communicate in Dutch from the first lesson! Enjoyable classes with teaching materials tailored to your needs. First 15 min. class for free. My name is Karin and I'm from Holland, but I live on the Canary Islands. I love teaching DUTCH and have done so for more than 20 years. I have a Diploma in English Philology. I also have two methodology degrees: the CELTA (Certificate of English Language Teaching to Adults of the University of Cambridge) and the FCTBE (Foundation Certificate for Teachers of Business English of the London Chamber of Commerce and Industry).
I have taught at a Business School and ten companies. In the last two years I've mainly been giving private lessons and I've developed a variety of online self-study DUTCH courses. My schedule is flexible and I adapt myself to the needs and interests of my students so that they reach their objectives in the shortest possible time.
Enjoyable classes, with teaching materials tailored to your needs.
How do the classes work? A class lasts 45 minutes. I'll send you the materials we are going to use in class beforehand so you can print them. After the class I'll send you audios of the notes we made, vocabulary etc. My speciality is communication, from beginner level to advanced. So, you will speak some Dutch in the first class already! Why wait any longer? Let's get started! :-)
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Thank you Tomás :-) You have a very good level already. We just have to focus on lots of speaking practice. Hope to see you again soon!