Verbs: Present Perfect 1 is the forty-fourth (assuming left to right) skill in the Dutch skill tree. The skill contains a total of four lessons that teach the use of the past tense in Dutch. The present perfect is most commonly used in normal conversation, while the preterite is chiefly used in written work.
Grammar Notes[]
Past Participle[]
The past participle is the integral part of the perfect and passive tenses. In English, past participles include "been", "wondered", and "grown". In Dutch, they are much a little trickier; there are two kinds of verbs that will need to be differentiated between. This skill deals with "weak" ones; these are the most regular ones, but they still have a couple of rules to keep in mind:
- They will always begin with ge- unless the verb in the present tense begins with be-, ver-, her-, ont-, ge-, or er-. If the verb has these, the ge- will not be added, as these prefixes replace it.
- They will then end with either -t or -d. It will be -d (unless the last letter is s, f, t, k, ch, or p. This can be identified using the mnemonic 'soft ketchup'); in that case, the -t ending is used. If there is already a -d or -t at the end, that is the ending; no other -t or -d will be added.
Present Perfect[]
The present perfect is created with the conjugated form of hebben or zijn and the past participle. The usage of either hebben or zijn in a perfect tense is unrelated to whether it is a weak or a strong verb, so both appear in this skill. Ones with zijn as an auxiliary verb are ones that deal with motion or states of being (dying, living, simply being, etc.). The conjugated verb is near the subject and the participle goes to the end of the sentence.
Examples:
- Ik heb de rijst gekookt. = I (have) cooked the rice.
- We zijn naar de bioscoop gefietst. = We (have) biked to the cinema. Notice that since we moved zijn is used.
Lessons[]
Lesson 1[]
- gisteren = yesterday
- gespeeld = played
- geregend = rained
- gewerkt = worked
- geluisterd = listened
Lesson 2[]
- gevraagd = asked
- gekookt = cooked
- gewacht = waited
- gezet = placed
- gemaakt = made
Lesson 3[]
- gefietst = biked
- gerend = run
- gestopt = stopped (always with zijn)
- gehoord = heard
- gezegd = said
Lesson 4[]
- nog nooit = not yet
- gewoond = lived
- geprobeerd = tried
- gelegd = laid
- gebruikt = used
- geleerd = learned
References[]
Duolingo Lesson: www.duolingo.com/skill/dn/Present-Perfect%3A-Weak-Verbs