HAMMER THE GRAMMAR: Dare to be Different

In last month's newsletter, I told you about the regular verbs (present tense) and I promised to teach you more about the irregular ones.

There are only six (and a half) irregular verbs in the present tense! Not so bad, is it? Of course, like in every language, the irregular verbs are verbs that are used a lot:

zijn (to be)
hebben (to have)
willen (to want to)
zullen ("will")
kunnen (to be able to)
mogen (to be allowed)
komen (to come)

To start with the last one: komen has a "long" o in the infinitive (= whole verb), but when it is used for 1 person, the o will become short:

ik kom
jij komt
hij/zij komt
wij komen
jullie komen
zij komen

For the other six verbs, I made this overview for you to print, to hang in the toilet or to use for the effective learning game explained below.

For this game you'll need these two DIY dice. Roll the dice and say the right form of the verb, checking each time with the overview.

If you don't have the time to cut & glue the DIY dice, you can use an ordinary dice in combination with this sheet.

If you have any questions about this game, please do not hesitate to send me a mail!

Next month, I'll discuss how to make the regular past tense.

I am also planning some grammar days & free webinars about Dutch grammar. Let me know what your grammar related questions are!

Stay tuned!

SELF-STUDY TIPS FOR THIS MONTH

I recently found two nice links for you.

This one is to test what you know about the Dutch pronunciation. The test is in Dutch and is about the different sounds and emphasis in Dutch words.

And here is one to practise your listening skills and/or to improve your spelling. This particular one is a children's story, but I enjoyed it a lot. Listen to the story (and write it out of you like), the complete text is also on this page. You can copy it to Google Translate to see what it means. There are many other stories in different levels and for different ages/interests.

Have fun!