Er zijn enkele belangrijke uitzonderingen bij het meervoud zelfstandig naamwoord.

(There are some important exceptions for plural nouns.)

What is special about these Dutch plurals?

  • Most Dutch plurals are easy: -en or -s (e.g. tafel → tafels).
  • This page explains the small group of common exceptions you saw in the table.
  • These exceptions are very frequent in daily life (work, family, city, time).
  • If you understand the patterns here, you can recognise and remember most “strange” plurals.

Overview of the types of exceptions

Type Singular Plural What changes?
Vowel change het lid, het schip, de stad de leden, de schepen, de steden Inside vowel changes: i → e, a → e
Short → long vowel het dak, het gat, het glas, de dag de daken, de gaten, de glazen, de dagen Spelling shows a longer vowel: a → a + consonant + en
Plural in -eren het kind, het ei de kinderen, de eieren Special ending -eren, plus vowel change
Plural in -s de broer, de oom de broers, de ooms Just add -s, no vowel change

1. Vowel change inside the word (lid → leden)

Some very frequent nouns change the vowel in the middle of the word when you make the plural.

Singular Plural Pattern
het lid (member) de leden i → e + -en
het schip (ship) de schepen i → e + -en
de stad (city) de steden a → e + -en
  • These plurals are irregular: you must memorise them.
  • They are very common in real life: memberships, cities, transport.

Self-check (say them out loud):

  • het lid → de …? → leden
  • het schip → de …? → schepen
  • de stad → de …? → steden

If you catch yourself saying lids, schips or stads, stop and switch to leden, schepen, steden.

2. From short vowel to long vowel (dak → daken)

Some nouns with a short vowel in the singular get a longer vowel sound in the plural.

Singular Plural Pronunciation idea
het dak (roof) de daken dak (short a) → daa-ken (long a)
het gat (hole) de gaten gat → gaa-ten
het glas (glass) de glazen glas → glaa-zen
de dag (day) de dagen dag → daa-gen
  • In spelling, you see a + consonant + en.
  • In speech, the vowel becomes long (more like English “aa”).

Typical learner mistake:

  • daks, gats, glass, dags (thinking in English)
  • Correct: daken, gaten, glazen, dagen

Quick test (mentally):

  • Singular: een dag → Plural: twee dagen
  • Singular: een glas water → Plural: twee glazen water

3. Special plurals with -eren (kind → kinderen)

A very small group of nouns use the ending -eren. You already know the most important ones.

Singular Plural Comment
het kind (child) de kinderen add -eren, no big vowel change
het ei (egg) de eieren ei → eie + -ren
  • Do not say kinden, eis, eien.
  • These two words are so frequent that it is worth learning them as a “block”.

Memory trick:

  • Think: “Children and eggs are special” → both get -eren.
  • Repeat a few natural chunks: mijn kinderen, twee eieren, gekookte eieren.

4. Plural with -s (broer → broers, oom → ooms)

Some nouns simply take -s in the plural, without any vowel change.

Singular Plural Pattern
de broer (brother) de broers add -s
de oom (uncle) de ooms add -s
  • No vowel change, no extra e.
  • Do not write broeren, omeren.

Chunk practice (say them as fixed expressions):

  • al mijn broers (all my brothers)
  • twee ooms (two uncles)

5. How to decide: quick decision steps

When you make a plural, use this quick mental checklist:

  1. First, try the regular rule.
    • Most nouns: add -en or -s.
    • If that looks or sounds wrong, continue to the next steps.
  2. Ask: is this a very common “problem word”?
    • member, ship, city, roof, hole, glass, day, child, egg, brother, uncle
    • If yes, check the special pattern from this page.
  3. Look at the vowel.
    • If singular has i or a and plural sounds with e: think lid → leden, stad → steden.
    • If singular has short a and plural sounds longer: think dak → daken.
  4. Is it “child” or “egg”?
    • Always: kinderen, eieren.
  5. Is it “brother” or “uncle”?
    • Always: broers, ooms.

6. Typical confusion: Dutch vs English plurals

Because your first language is English, some forms feel “natural” but are wrong in Dutch. Be careful here:

Meaning English plural Dutch plural Wrong Dutch form (avoid)
member members leden lids, ledens
ship ships schepen schips, schipen
city cities steden stads, stadens
day days dagen dags
child children kinderen kinden, kinds
egg eggs eieren eis, eies

Tip: when you feel “I know this in English”, pause and quickly visualise the Dutch table before you speak.

7. Mini self-test: can you predict and check?

Cover the Dutch plurals with your hand or with a piece of paper. Try to say or write the plural first, then check.

  1. Make the plural:

    • het lid → …
    • het schip → …
    • de stad → …
    • het dak → …
    • het gat → …
    • het glas → …
    • de dag → …
    • het kind → …
    • het ei → …
    • de broer → …
    • de oom → …

  2. Now check yourself:

    • leden, schepen, steden
    • daken, gaten, glazen, dagen
    • kinderen, eieren
    • broers, ooms

If 2–3 of them are still difficult, mark those words and reuse them in your own example sentences about your life (your city, your family, your work).

8. What you should now pay attention to

  • Notice when a plural does not follow the simple pattern singular + -en or singular + -s.
  • Listen for vowel changes in real conversations: lid → leden, stad → steden, dag → dagen.
  • Use the correct special forms in your own speech, especially the very frequent ones:
    • leden, schepen, steden
    • daken, gaten, glazen, dagen
    • kinderen, eieren
    • broers, ooms
  • If you are not sure, choose a simple sentence and focus on one difficult plural at a time.

With these patterns and a bit of repetition, you can handle these irregular plurals confidently and use class time mainly for speaking and practice.

  1. Sometimes the vowel changes in the plural. For example: lid → leden.
  2. Short vowels are sometimes pronounced as long vowels: gat → gaten.
  3. Some words take a plural ending in -eren: ei → eieren.
Enkelvoud (Singular)Meervoud (Plural)Uitzondering (Exception)

het lid

het schip

de stad

de leden

de schepen

de steden

Klinkerverandering (Vowel change)

het dak

het gat

het glas

de dag

de daken

de gaten

de glazen

de dagen

Van korte naar lange klinker (From short to long vowel)

het kind

het ei

de kinderen

de eieren

Meervoud op -eren (Plural ending in -eren)

de broer

de oom

de broers

de ooms

Meervoud op -s (Plural ending in -s)

Exercise 1: Multiple choice

Instruction: Choose the correct answer

1. We hebben vandaag drie soorten snacks: twee vegetarische burgers en drie porties frietjes voor alle _____.

Today we have three types of snacks: two vegetarian burgers and three portions of fries for all the _____.)

2. Mijn broer en ik bestellen vaak Chinees eten, maar vanavond komen al mijn _____ bij mij thuis eten.

My brother and I often order Chinese food, but tonight all my _____ are coming to my house to eat.)

3. Kunt u drie porties pasta bezorgen voor mijn collega’s op kantoor? We zitten op the derde en vierde verdieping van het nieuwe _____ gebouw.

Could you deliver three portions of pasta for my colleagues at the office? We're on the third and fourth floors of the new _____ building.)

4. In het weekend eten we soms ongezond: we nemen dan twee dozen met verschillende snacks en vier _____ met frietjes.

On weekends we sometimes eat unhealthily: we then get two boxes with different snacks and four _____ with fries.)

Exercise 2: Multiple Choice

Instruction: Choose the correct sentence in which the plural is used correctly according to the exceptions in Dutch.

1.
'Lids' is not a correct plural; the correct form is 'leden'.
'Ledens' is not a correct plural of 'lid'; the correct form is 'leden'.
2.
'Schepende' is not the correct plural of 'schip'; 'schepen' is correct.
'Schip' is singular; here the plural 'schepen' should be used.

Exercise 3: Rewrite the phrases

Instruction: Rewrite the sentences: put the noun in the plural and adjust the rest of the sentence if necessary (watch for vowel changes, plurals in -eren and plurals in -s).

Show/Hide translation Show/Hide hints
  1. Het lid van de vereniging betaalt de contributie op tijd.
    ⇒ _______________________________________________ Example
    De leden van de vereniging betalen de contributie op tijd.
    (The members of the association pay the contribution on time.)
  2. Op dit schip werkt een kok.
    ⇒ _______________________________________________ Example
    Op deze schepen werken koks.
    (On these ships cooks work.)
  3. In de stad is één groot ziekenhuis.
    ⇒ _______________________________________________ Example
    In de steden zijn grote ziekenhuizen.
    (In the cities there are large hospitals.)
  4. Het kind eet een ei aan tafel.
    ⇒ _______________________________________________ Example
    De kinderen eten eieren aan tafel.
    (The children eat eggs at the table.)

Exercise 4: Grammar in action

Instruction: Discuss which dishes and how many portions you would like to order.

Show/Hide translation
Situation
Je bestelt samen met een collega afhaalmaaltijden voor het hele team.
(You and a colleague are ordering takeaway for the whole team.)
Discuss
  • Welke gerechten bestellen jullie en hoeveel porties van elk? (Which dishes will you order, and how many portions of each?)
  • Heeft iemand in het team kinderen of familieleden die mee-eten? Hoeveel porties voor hen? (Does anyone on the team have children or family members joining? How many portions for them?)
Useful words and phrases
  • Twee porties frietjes (Two portions of fries)
  • De pasta en een snack erbij (Pasta and a side snack)
  • Mijn kinderen willen Chinees eten (My children want Chinese food)
Use in conversation
  • klinkerverandering: lid → leden, stad → steden (vowel change: lid → leden, stad → steden)
  • lange klinker in meervoud: gat → gaten, glas → glazen (long vowel in plural: gat → gaten, glas → glazen)
  • meervoud op -s / -eren: broers, ooms, kinderen, eieren (plural with -s / -eren: broers, ooms, kinderen, eieren)

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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, 05/03/2026 17:47