---
title: "De or het: the two words for \"the\""
level: A1
chapter: "Nouns and de or het"
canonical: https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar/de-and-het
updated: 2026-10-08
author: Dutch Fluency
license: CC BY-SA 4.0 (https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/)
---

# De or het: the two words for "the"

Dutch has two definite articles, two words for "the": _de_ and _het_. Most nouns (words for people, things and places) take _de_, a smaller group takes _het_, and every plural (more than one of something) takes _de_. So you never learn just _huis_: you learn _het huis_ (the house), just as you learn _de fiets_ (the bike).

## The pattern

> A singular noun (just one) takes _de_ or _het_, and you learn which one together with the noun. A plural noun always takes _de_.

- _de_ is for common-gender nouns (once masculine or feminine), the big group: _de man_, _de vrouw_, _de trein_, _de fiets_.
- _het_ is for neuter nouns (neither masculine nor feminine), a smaller group: _het huis_, _het boek_, _het water_, _het station_.
- In the plural the difference disappears: _het huis_ becomes _de huizen_, _het kind_ becomes _de kinderen_.
- Every singular diminutive (a "small" form of a noun, ending in _-je_) takes _het_: _het meisje_, _het kopje_. In the plural they take _de_, like every plural: _de meisjes_, _de kopjes_.

## Examples

| **Het** huis is oud. | The house is old. |
| **De** huizen zijn oud. | The houses are old. |
| **Het** kind speelt buiten. | The child is playing outside. |
| **De** kinderen spelen buiten. | The children are playing outside. |
| **De** trein is te laat. | The train is late. |
| **Het** weer is mooi vandaag. | The weather is nice today. |
| **De** melk staat in **de** koelkast. | The milk is in the fridge. |
| Waar is **het** station? | Where is the station? |
| **Het** meisje heet Yara. | The girl is called Yara. |

## Why it works this way

Dutch once had three genders (grammar groups for nouns): masculine, feminine and neuter, a bit like German still has. Masculine and feminine nouns use the same article, _de_, and in the Netherlands the difference between them has mostly faded. That shared group is called common gender. Neuter nouns kept their own article, _het_.

So the article belongs to the word, not to its meaning. A girl is clearly female, yet it is _het meisje_, because _meisje_ is a diminutive, and singular diminutives take _het_. A table has no gender at all, yet it is _de tafel_.

A useful way to think of it: the article is the noun's surname. You would not learn a new colleague's first name and forget the family name, so don't learn _huis_ without _het_. The word for "a" will not help you remember, because it is _een_ for every noun: _een huis_, _een fiets_ (see [Een: the word for "a"](https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar/een)). There are some [clues that a noun is a het-word](https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar/het-word-patterns), but for most nouns you simply learn the article, and [How to actually learn de and het](https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar/learning-de-het) shows how to make that stick. If you have to guess, guess _de_: you will be right more often than not.

Remember: you don't learn _huis_, you learn _het huis_. And more than one is always _de_.

## Watch out

- Not: _de huis_ Say: _het huis_ (_huis_ is a _het_-word; English has only one "the")
- Not: _het huizen_ Say: _de huizen_ (every plural takes _de_)
- Not: _de meisje_ Say: _het meisje_ (singular diminutives always take _het_, whatever they mean)
- Not: _het auto_ Say: _de auto_ (German das Auto is neuter, but the Dutch word is not)

## Quick check

1. Fill in _de_ or _het_: _... huizen in Amsterdam zijn duur._
2. Choose the right word: _(De / Het) broodje is lekker._
3. Fix the sentence: _De water is koud._
4. Fill in _de_ or _het_: _Ahmed fietst naar ... station._

## Answers

1. _De_ (_huizen_ is plural, and every plural takes _de_)
2. _Het_ (_broodje_ is a singular diminutive, so it takes _het_)
3. _Het water is koud._ (_water_ is a _het_-word)
4. _het_ (_station_ is a _het_-word)

## Use it today

Open your fridge, pick five things and look up each word with its article in a dictionary, for example _de kaas_ or _het brood_. Write them on sticky notes with the article and say them out loud whenever you grab one.

## Questions learners ask

**How do I know if a Dutch word is de or het?**

Usually you cannot tell from the word itself, so learn every noun together with its article, like de fiets or het huis. Some clues help: every singular diminutive, such as het meisje or het kopje, takes het, and if you have to guess, de is right more often.

**Do plural nouns in Dutch take de or het?**

Every plural noun takes de, even when the singular takes het. So het huis becomes de huizen and het kind becomes de kinderen.

**Are there more de-words or het-words in Dutch?**

There are clearly more de-words, so de is the safer guess when you are unsure. Still, many very common nouns take het, such as het huis, het water and het boek, so learn the article with every noun.

From the Dutch Fluency Grammar: https://www.dutchfluency.com/grammar. Shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.