Kleuren en beschrijvingen
Dutch color words work as adjectives. Before a noun they may get an -e ending, but at this level you just need to know the basic color words.
| Dutch | English |
|---|---|
| rood | red |
| blauw | blue |
| groen | green |
| geel | yellow |
| oranje | orange |
| wit | white |
| zwart | black |
| grijs | grey |
| bruin | brown |
| roze | pink |
| paars | purple |
Adjectives before a noun usually get an -e ending: "een grote hond" (a big dog). After the verb "zijn" (to be), they stay unchanged: "De hond is groot."
| Dutch | English | Opposite |
|---|---|---|
| groot | big / large | klein (small) |
| lang | long / tall | kort (short) |
| dik | thick / fat | dun (thin) |
| oud | old | nieuw (new) / jong (young) |
| mooi | beautiful / nice | lelijk (ugly) |
| goed | good | slecht (bad) |
| warm | warm / hot | koud (cold) |
| duur | expensive | goedkoop (cheap) |
| licht | light / bright | donker (dark) |
| snel | fast | langzaam (slow) |
De lucht is blauw.
The sky is blue.
Ik heb een rode auto.
I have a red car.
Het huis is groot.
The house is big.
Dat is een mooie bloem.
That is a beautiful flower.
De koffie is warm.
The coffee is warm.
Scenario: Describing things at work and in daily life
Waar is het groene boek?
Where is the green book?
De kleine vergaderzaal is vrij.
The small meeting room is free.
Dit is te duur.
This is too expensive.
Het weer is slecht vandaag.
The weather is bad today.
After "is" (or other forms of "zijn"), the adjective does NOT get an -e ending. "De auto is rood." But: "de rode auto."
Before a de-word noun, the adjective gets -e even after "een": "een rode auto." (Auto is a de-word.)