Address and contact details

Lesson Overview: Address and Contact Details

This lesson focuses on exchanging basic address and contact information in Dutch, particularly after a lesson or in everyday social and professional contexts. It introduces the present tense conjugation of regular verbs and practices forming main clauses and yes/no questions.

Key Language Skills

• Asking for and giving address details such as de postcode (postal code), het huisnummer (house number), and de geboorteplaats (place of birth).
• Exchanging contact information including het telefoonnummer (phone number) and het e-mailadres (email address).
• Using regular Dutch verbs in the present tense, for example geven (to give), ontvangen (to receive), and sturen (to send).
• Constructing simple statements and yes/no questions for polite and clear communication.

Useful Vocabulary Groups

The lesson clearly divides vocabulary into two main groups:

• Address Data: de postcode, het huisnummer, de geboorteplaats, wonen (to live)
• Contact Data: het telefoonnummer, het e-mailadres, het voorvoegsel (area code/prefix), de telefoon

Examples of Useful Phrases

• "Wat is jouw telefoonnummer?" – What is your phone number?
• "Ik woon op Kerkstraat 12." – I live at Kerkstraat 12.
• "Kunt u mij uw e-mailadres geven?" – Can you give me your email address?
• "Blijft u vandaag thuis of reist u weg?" – Will you stay at home today or travel away?

Present Tense Verb Practice

The lesson presents important verbs in the present tense with their conjugations:

• Geven (to give): Ik geef, Jij geeft, Hij/Zij geeft, Wij geven, Jullie geven, Zij geven
• Ontvangen (to receive): Ik ontvang, Jij ontvangt, Hij/Zij ontvangt, Wij ontvangen, Jullie ontvangen, Zij ontvangen
• Sturen (to send): Ik stuur, Jij stuurt, Hij/Zij stuurt, Wij sturen, Jullie sturen, Zij sturen

Practical Dialogues

Several dialogues provide realistic contexts for practicing how to ask for and share contact details, such as meeting a new colleague, arranging appointments, or confirming client information. For example, asking politely for an address or phone number and responding:

"Hallo, ik ben Mark. Wat is jouw telefoonnummer?"

"Mijn telefoonnummer is 06-12345678. En wat is jouw e-mailadres?"

Traditional Differences Between English and Dutch in This Context

In Dutch, the placement of verbs and sentence structure in main clauses and yes/no questions can be different from English. For example:

• Verb typically comes in the second position in main statements (Ik geef mijn telefoonnummer. — I give my phone number.)
• For yes/no questions, Dutch often starts with the verb (Kunt u mij uw e-mailadres geven? — Can you give me your email address?) while English uses auxiliary verbs.

Many Dutch nouns for contact information, such as het telefoonnummer and het e-mailadres, are compound words but generally translate directly into their English equivalents. The social formal form u (you formal) is common in polite requests, unlike English where tone and context determine formality.

Helpful Phrases and Their English Equivalents

• Wat is uw postcode en huisnummer? — What is your postal code and house number?
• Ik geef mijn telefoonnummer en e-mailadres door. — I give my phone number and email address.
• Blijft u hier totdat ik de kaart ontvang? — Will you stay here until I receive the card?
• Antwoordt u op mijn vragen als ik u bel? — Do you answer my questions when I call you?