In Dutch, understanding how to conjugate verbs in the present tense is essential for expressing actions. Here, we’ll cover the present tense conjugation of three commonly used verbs: "to have" (hebben), "to go" (gaan), and "to eat" (eten).
In the present tense, Dutch verbs change depending on the subject (the person doing the action). For regular verbs, the endings generally follow these patterns:
Ik (I): Stem (base form) of the verb
Jij/Je (You - informal, singular): Stem + -t
Hij/Zij/Het (He/She/It): Stem + -t
Wij/We (We), Jullie (You - plural), Zij/Ze (They): Infinitive form (the verb doesn’t change)
However, each verb has its own unique form, especially irregular verbs like hebben (to have) and gaan (to go).
"Hebben" (to have) is an irregular verb in Dutch, and it’s very commonly used.
English | Dutch |
I have | Ik heb |
You have | Jij hebt |
You have (formal) | U heeft |
He/She/It has | Hij/Zij/Het heeft |
We have | Wij/We hebben |
You (plural) have | Jullie hebben |
They have | Zij/Ze hebben |
Examples:
"Ik heb een boek." = "I have a book."
"Zij heeft een hond." = "She has a dog."
"Wij hebben veel werk." = "We have a lot of work."