Dutch FluencyLesson 10 of 50 · A0 to A1 · Free
Everyday action verbs
Nouns show you the world. Verbs let you enter it.
A learner's whole day plays in ten rapid actions. That is the jump from recognising Dutch to doing Dutch.
13 minutes. No account needed for lesson 1. No rush.
10Today you will
- 1Use twelve verbs you need every single day
- 2Hear the difference between zien and kijken
- 3Say that you speak a little Dutch, in Dutch
- 4Tell your whole day in eight short lines
The 12 words you actually use
Dutch first, said out loud. Say each word before you flip the card, then check yourself. Every card speaks.
kopen
KOH-pun
kopen
to buy
Ik koop brood. I buy bread.
trap word
krijgen
KRAY-khun
krijgen
to get, to receive
Ik krijg een bon. I get a receipt.
eten
AY-tun
eten
to eat
We eten om zes uur. We eat at six o'clock.
drinken
DRING-kun
drinken
to drink
Ik drink koffie. I drink coffee.
zien
zeen
zien
to see
Ik zie de bus. I see the bus.
kijken
KAY-kun
kijken
to look, to watch
Ik kijk een film. I watch a film.
horen
HOH-run
horen
to hear
Ik hoor de regen. I hear the rain.
luisteren
LOWS-tuh-run
luisteren
to listen
Ik luister naar muziek. I listen to music.
slapen
SLAH-pun
slapen
to sleep
Ik slaap om elf uur. I sleep at eleven o'clock.
lezen
LAY-zun
lezen
to read
Ik lees een boek. I read a book.
schrijven
SKHRAY-vun
schrijven
to write
Ik schrijf een woord. I write a word.
spreken
SPRAY-kun
spreken
to speak
Ik spreek een beetje Nederlands. I speak a little Dutch.
One pair, two jobs
Dutch splits what happens to you from what you choose to do. Your eyes and ears get one verb each for both. Read the pairs out loud; the difference is intention.
- happens to you
- zien - to see · horen - to hear
- you choose it
- kijken - to look, to watch · luisteren - to listen
The ij sound, everywhere
krijgen, kijken, schrijven, rijden: that ij is one sound, close to the ay in say but tighter. It is the most Dutch sound there is, and this lesson hands it to you four times. Bonus rule for free: drop the -en and you have the ik-form. Ik koop, ik krijg, ik kijk. One trim, whole language open.
One whole day
One ordinary day, told in the verbs you just met. Read it once for the shape. Then out loud, like you lived it.
- 01
tap the Dutch to check yourself
- 02
tap the Dutch to check yourself
- 03
tap the Dutch to check yourself
- 04
tap the Dutch to check yourself
- 05
tap the Dutch to check yourself
- 06
tap the Dutch to check yourself
- 07
tap the Dutch to check yourself
- 08
tap the Dutch to check yourself
Helper words in this story
- het brood the bread
- het nieuws the news
- de regen the rain
- het werk work
- een beetje a little
- wat zeg je what are you saying
- de bon the receipt
- de film the film
- dan then
- mijn my
Thirty seconds. Prove it.
Three words from this lesson. Answer before you doubt yourself.
Prove it · 1 of 3
krijgen
All 20 words in this lesson
antwoorden
to answer
kopen
to buy
krijgen
to get
eten
to eat
drinken
to drink
rijden
to drive
vergeten
to forget
horen
to hear
luisteren
to listen
zien
to see
kijken
to look
weten
to know
leren
to learn
slapen
to sleep
lezen
to read
schrijven
to write
spreken
to speak
zeggen
to say
denken
to think
werken
to work
Hear all 20, then say them back
The interactive lesson plays every word, walks the story line by line, records your voice next to a native one, and remembers the ones you find hard. Lesson 1 needs no account.
- I can say what I eat, drink and buy
- I can split zien from kijken and horen from luisteren
- I can say that I speak a little Dutch
- I can tell my day in eight short lines
- I can build the ik-form by dropping -en
Fifty fifty. We build it. You show up.
