Relative clauses allow you to provide extra information about a noun in a sentence. In Dutch, relative clauses are introduced with relative pronouns like die, dat, waar, and wie. These correspond to English words like who, which, and that.
Used when referring to de-words (common gender nouns) or plural nouns.
Examples:
"De man die daar staat, is mijn vader."= "The man who is standing there is my father."
"De boeken die ik lees, zijn spannend."= "The books that I read are exciting."
Used when referring to het-words (neuter nouns in the singular).
Examples:
"Het huis dat wij kochten, is groot."= "The house that we bought is big."
"Het kind dat speelt, is blij."= "The child that is playing is happy."
Used when a preposition is needed in the relative clause. The word waar is combined with the preposition (e.g., waarvoor, waaraan, waarover).
Examples:
"Het boek waarover ik spreek, is interessant."= "The book about which I am talking is interesting."
"De film waaraan hij werkt, is bijna klaar."= "The movie on which he is working is almost finished."
Refers to people, often used after a preposition.
Examples:
"De vrouw met wie ik sprak, is mijn tante."= "The woman with whom I spoke is my aunt."
"Degene wie ik zag, was blij."= "The one who I saw was happy."
In Dutch relative clauses:
The conjugated verb moves to the end of the clause.
Any additional verbs follow the main verb.
Examples:
"De jongen die ik gisteren zag, woont hier."= "The boy who I saw yesterday lives here."
(zag goes to the end of the relative clause.)
"Het huis dat zij hebben gekocht, is oud."= "The house that they have bought is old."
(hebben gekocht moves to the end.)
English | Dutch |
|---|---|
The dog that barks is mine. | De hond die blaft, is van mij. |
The car which I drive is red. | De auto die ik rijd, is rood. |
The child who is playing is tired. | Het kind dat speelt, is moe. |
The house that we are selling is big. | Het huis dat wij verkopen, is groot. |
The book about which I talked is here. | Het boek waarover ik sprak, ligt hier. |
Relative Pronoun | Used For | Example |
|---|---|---|
Die | De-words, plural nouns | "De man die spreekt, is leraar." |
Dat | Het-words (singular neuter) | "Het huis dat groot is, is nieuw." |
Waar + Prep. | Objects with prepositions | "De stoel waarop ik zit is oud." |
Wie | People (after prepositions) | "De vrouw met wie ik sprak." |
By practicing these relative clauses, learners can create more detailed and complex sentences in Dutch!