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Learn to form basic Dutch main clauses like "Ik kom uit Engeland" and yes/no questions such as "Woon je in Utrecht?" to master sentence structure and typical question formats.
  1. A main clause follows the order: subject - verb - rest
  2. A yes/no question begins with the verb, followed by the subject. The other parts of the sentence remain in their place.
ZinstypeVoorbeeld
HoofdzinIk kom uit Engeland.
Ik woon nu in Utrecht.
Jan leest een boek in zijn kamer.
Ja/nee-vraagWoon je in Utrecht?
Krijg je morgen bezoek?
Zijn je ouders daar op vakantie?
Schijnt de zon deze week?

Exercise 1: Hoofdzinnen en ja/nee-vragen

Instruction: Fill in the correct word.

Show translation Show answers

kom, Woon, Zijn, woon

1.
... je in Amsterdam?
(Do you live in Amsterdam?)
2.
Ik ... nu in Rotterdam.
(I now live in Rotterdam.)
3.
... je ouders op vakantie?
(Are your parents on holiday?)
4.
Ik ... uit Nederland.
(I come from the Netherlands.)

Exercise 2: Multiple Choice

Instruction: Choose the correct solution

1. ___ jij in Amsterdam?

(___ you live in Amsterdam?)

2. ___ jij je telefoonnummer aan mij?

(___ you give me your phone number?)

3. ___ jij vaak e-mails?

(___ you often receive emails?)

4. ___ jouw postcode 1234 AB?

(___ your postcode 1234 AB?)

5. ___ de man en de vrouw thuis?

(___ the man and the woman at home?)

6. ___ jij uit Utrecht?

(___ you come from Utrecht?)

Main Clauses and Yes/No Questions in Dutch

This lesson focuses on two fundamental sentence types in Dutch: main clauses (hoofdzinnen) and yes/no questions. Understanding these structures is essential for building clear and correct sentences at the A1 beginner level.

Main Clauses (Hoofdzinnen)

A main clause in Dutch typically follows a specific word order that is both straightforward and consistent. The pattern is: subject - verb - other elements. For example:

  • Ik kom uit Engeland.
  • Ik woon nu in Utrecht.
  • Jan leest een boek in zijn kamer.

In these sentences, the subject is followed immediately by the verb, and then any additional information or objects come afterwards.

Yes/No Questions (Ja/Nee-vragen)

A yes/no question is a question that expects an answer of either "yes" or "no." The word order of these questions in Dutch changes compared to main clauses:

  • The verb comes first,
  • followed by the subject,
  • while the rest of the sentence remains unchanged.

Examples include:

  • Woon je in Utrecht?
  • Krijg je morgen bezoek?
  • Zijn je ouders daar op vakantie?
  • Schijnt de zon deze week?

Key Grammar Points

To summarize:

  • Main clause: subject - verb - extra elements
  • Yes/no question: verb - subject - extra elements

Remember, the other parts of the sentence do not move when forming yes/no questions, only the verb and subject switch places.

Useful Dutch Words and Phrases

  • Ik — I
  • kom — come
  • woon — live
  • je — you (singular informal)
  • zijn — are / is (depending on subject)
  • ouders — parents
  • zonn — sun

Comparison between English and Dutch Sentence Structures

Unlike English yes/no questions that require an auxiliary verb (e.g., "Do you live in Utrecht?"), Dutch forms yes/no questions simply by inverting the verb and subject without adding extra helper verbs. The main clause word order is fairly similar to English, but Dutch typically places the verb immediately after the subject. These differences affect how questions and statements are naturally framed in Dutch.

Common English question phrase: "Are you coming?"
Equivalent Dutch yes/no question: "Kom je?"

This minimal difference allows Dutch to form questions more directly by switching verb and subject positions.

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This content has been designed and reviewed by the coLanguage pedagogical team: About coLanguage

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Kato De Paepe

Business and languages

KdG University of Applied Sciences and Arts Antwerp

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Last Updated:

Thursday, 17/07/2025 11:08