Describing & Placing
Who, what, where, and what does it look like?
The world in the story
Stories come to life through descriptions. English adjectives are wonderfully simple - they never change form! But their order is strict.
Prepositions and phrasal verbs form the backbone of English expression. These small words make the difference between basic and fluent English.
Chapter
10
Adjectives & Descriptions
Color, character, and characteristics
English adjectives are wonderfully simple - they NEVER change! No gender, no plural forms. But their order is strict.
Adjective placement
Always BEFORE the noun (unlike Dutch sometimes):
a big house
→
een groot huis
(Size before noun)
the red car
→
de rode auto
(Color before noun)
an interesting book
→
een interessant boek
(Opinion before noun)
three small children
→
drie kleine kinderen
(Number first, then size)
Multiple adjectives - The order
When using multiple adjectives: Opinion-Size-Age-Shape-Color-Origin-Material-Purpose
a beautiful small old round blue Chinese ceramic tea cup
→
een mooi klein oud rond blauw Chinees keramisch theekopje
a nice big house
→
een mooi groot huis
Opinion → Size
an old wooden table
→
een oude houten tafel
Age → Material
a small blue car
→
een kleine blauwe auto
Size → Color
Common adjectives
good
→
goed
Comparative: better | Superlative: best
bad
→
slecht
Comparative: worse | Superlative: worst
big
→
groot
Comparative: bigger | Superlative: biggest
small
→
klein
Comparative: smaller | Superlative: smallest
new
→
nieuw
Comparative: newer | Superlative: newest
old
→
oud
Comparative: older | Superlative: oldest
young
→
jong
Comparative: younger | Superlative: youngest
happy
→
blij/gelukkig
Comparative: happier | Superlative: happiest
sad
→
verdrietig
Comparative: sadder | Superlative: saddest
easy
→
makkelijk
Comparative: easier | Superlative: easiest
difficult
→
moeilijk
Comparative: more difficult | Superlative: most difficult
important
→
belangrijk
Comparative: more important | Superlative: most important
Colors
Colors never change form:
red
Nederlands
rood
Example
a red car, red cars
blue
Nederlands
blauw
Example
the blue sky, blue eyes
green
Nederlands
groen
Example
green grass, green apples
yellow
Nederlands
geel
Example
a yellow flower, yellow flowers
black
Nederlands
zwart
Example
black coffee, black shoes
white
Nederlands
wit
Example
white paper, white clouds
grey/gray
Nederlands
grijs
Example
grey hair (UK), gray hair (US)
brown
Nederlands
bruin
Example
brown bread, brown eyes
orange
Nederlands
oranje
Example
an orange shirt, orange juice
pink
Nederlands
roze
Example
a pink dress, pink flowers
purple
Nederlands
paars
Example
purple grapes, a purple hat
Character traits
friendly
→
vriendelijk
unfriendly
→
onvriendelijk
kind
→
aardig
unkind/mean
→
onaardig/gemeen
smart
→
slim
stupid
→
dom
funny
→
grappig
boring
→
saai
brave
→
moedig
cowardly
→
laf
honest
→
eerlijk
dishonest
→
oneerlijk
patient
→
geduldig
impatient
→
ongeduldig
polite
→
beleefd
rude
→
onbeleefd
lazy
→
lui
hardworking
→
hardwerkend
Physical descriptions
He has brown hair
→
Hij heeft bruin haar
She has blue eyes
→
Zij heeft blauwe ogen
He is tall and thin
→
Hij is lang en dun
She is short and strong
→
Zij is klein en sterk
He has a beard
→
Hij heeft een baard
She wears glasses
→
Zij draagt een bril
He has a nice smile
→
Hij heeft een mooie glimlach
She looks young
→
Zij ziet er jong uit
He's about thirty
→
Hij is ongeveer dertig
Chapter
11
Prepositions & Phrasal Verbs
The key to natural English
Prepositions and phrasal verbs are crucial in English. One verb + different prepositions = completely different meanings!
Basic prepositions
in = in
in the house
→
in het huis
in January
→
in januari
in the morning
→
's ochtends
on = op
on the table
→
op de tafel
on Monday
→
op maandag
on time
→
op tijd
at = bij/om
at home
→
thuis
at 5 o'clock
→
om 5 uur
at the station
→
bij het station
to = naar
go to school
→
naar school gaan
talk to me
→
praat met mij
from 9 to 5
→
van 9 tot 5
from = van/uit
from London
→
uit Londen
from me
→
van mij
from Monday
→
vanaf maandag
for = voor
for you
→
voor jou
for two hours
→
twee uur lang
for sale
→
te koop
with = met
with friends
→
met vrienden
with sugar
→
met suiker
with pleasure
→
met plezier
by = door/bij
by car
→
met de auto
by Shakespeare
→
door Shakespeare
by the window
→
bij het raam
Common phrasal verbs
Verb + preposition = new meaning!
get up
→
opstaan
I get up at 7
= Ik sta om 7 op
sit down
→
gaan zitten
Please sit down
= Ga alsjeblieft zitten
stand up
→
opstaan
Stand up please
= Sta alsjeblieft op
come in
→
binnenkomen
Come in!
= Kom binnen!
go out
→
uitgaan
Let's go out
= Laten we uitgaan
turn on
→
aanzetten
Turn on the light
= Zet het licht aan
turn off
→
uitzetten
Turn off the TV
= Zet de TV uit
pick up
→
oppakken/ophalen
Pick up the phone
= Pak de telefoon op
put down
→
neerleggen
Put it down
= Leg het neer
look for
→
zoeken naar
I'm looking for my keys
= Ik zoek mijn sleutels
look at
→
kijken naar
Look at me
= Kijk naar mij
listen to
→
luisteren naar
Listen to music
= Luister naar muziek
wait for
→
wachten op
Wait for me
= Wacht op mij
give up
→
opgeven
Never give up
= Geef nooit op
Location expressions
in front of
→
voor
in front of the house
= voor het huis
behind
→
achter
behind the door
= achter de deur
next to
→
naast
next to me
= naast mij
between
→
tussen
between us
= tussen ons
under
→
onder
under the table
= onder de tafel
over/above
→
boven
over the bridge
= over de brug
across
→
over/aan de overkant
across the street
= aan de overkant
through
→
door
through the park
= door het park
around
→
rond/om
around the corner
= om de hoek
near
→
bij/dichtbij
near the station
= bij het station
far from
→
ver van
far from home
= ver van huis
Time prepositions - Very important!
AT for specific times
→
at 3 o'clock, at midnight, at lunchtime
ON for days and dates
→
on Monday, on Christmas Day, on July 4th
IN for longer periods
→
in January, in 2024, in the morning, in summer
FOR for duration
→
for two hours, for a week, for ages
SINCE for starting point
→
since Monday, since 2020, since I was young
DURING for within a period
→
during the movie, during lunch, during the war
BY for deadline
→
by tomorrow, by 5 o'clock, by next week
Chapter
12
Family & People
The characters in the story
Family terms are simpler than Dutch - no diminutives needed! But watch out for in-laws.
Immediate family
Core family members:
father/dad
→
vader/papa
my father
= mijn vader
mother/mom
→
moeder/mama
my mother
= mijn moeder
son
→
zoon
my son
= mijn zoon
daughter
→
dochter
my daughter
= mijn dochter
brother
→
broer
my brother
= mijn broer
sister
→
zus
my sister
= mijn zus
husband
→
echtgenoot/man
my husband
= mijn man
wife
→
echtgenote/vrouw
my wife
= mijn vrouw
parents
→
ouders
my parents
= mijn ouders
children/kids
→
kinderen
my children
= mijn kinderen
siblings
→
broers en zussen
Extended family
grandfather/grandpa
grootvader/opa
Plural
grandfathers
grandmother/grandma
grootmoeder/oma
Plural
grandmothers
grandparents
grootouders
Both together
grandson
kleinzoon
Plural
grandsons
granddaughter
kleindochter
Plural
granddaughters
grandchildren
kleinkinderen
All grandchildren
uncle
oom
Plural
uncles
aunt
tante
Plural
aunts
nephew
neef (zoon van broer/zus)
Plural
nephews
niece
nicht (dochter van broer/zus)
Plural
nieces
cousin
neef/nicht
Same for male/female!
In-laws (family by marriage)
father-in-law
→
schoonvader
(plural: fathers-in-law)
mother-in-law
→
schoonmoeder
(plural: mothers-in-law)
son-in-law
→
schoonzoon
(plural: sons-in-law)
daughter-in-law
→
schoondochter
(plural: daughters-in-law)
brother-in-law
→
zwager
(plural: brothers-in-law)
sister-in-law
→
schoonzus
(plural: sisters-in-law)
in-laws
→
schoonfamilie
All in-laws together
Relationships & social connections
friend
→
vriend/vriendin
(Same word for both genders)
best friend
→
beste vriend
(BFF)
boyfriend
→
vriend/vriendje
(Romantic)
girlfriend
→
vriendin/vriendinnetje
(Romantic)
partner
→
partner
(Neutral term)
colleague
→
collega
(Work relationship)
neighbor
→
buurman/buurvrouw
(Neighbour (UK spelling))
boss
→
baas
(Supervisor)
employee
→
werknemer
(Worker)
stranger
→
vreemde/onbekende
(Unknown person)
Talking about age
I am 25 years old
→
Ik ben 25 jaar oud
(Use BE for age!)
How old are you?
→
Hoe oud ben je?
(Standard question)
a 5-year-old child
→
een 5-jarig kind
(Hyphenated as adjective)
He's older than me
→
Hij is ouder dan ik
(Comparison)
She's younger than you
→
Zij is jonger dan jij
(Comparison)
We're the same age
→
We zijn even oud
(Equal age)
an elderly man
→
een oudere man
(Polite for old)
a middle-aged woman
→
een vrouw van middelbare leeftijd
(40-60 years)
a teenager
→
een tiener
(13-19 years)
a toddler
→
een peuter
(1-3 years)
a baby
→
een baby
(Same word!)