De vs Het Rules: A Simple Guide To Dutch Articles
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If you are learning Dutch, there is one question that probably haunts you every time you try to speak.
Is it de or het?
In English, it’s easy. We just have “the”. The man, the house, the girl, the book.
But in Dutch, “the” translates to either de or het.
Choosing the wrong one is the most common mistake beginners make. And honestly? Even native Dutch speakers sometimes argue about which one is correct for obscure words!
So, why do we have two?
It comes down to grammatical gender.
- De words are either masculine or feminine (common gender).
- Het words are neuter (neutral gender).
The bad news is that there is no single rule that covers 100% of Dutch nouns. You often just have to memorize the article with the vocabulary word.
However, the good news is that there are rules that cover about 75% of situations.
If you learn the rules below, you will stop guessing and start speaking with confidence.
Table Of Contents:
The golden rule: Plurals are always de
This is the most important rule you will ever learn in Dutch. It is 100% consistent.
If a noun is plural, the article is always de.
It doesn’t matter if the singular version is het. Once you make it plural, it switches to de.
Let’s look at some examples:
| English | Singular (Dutch) | Plural (Dutch) |
|---|---|---|
| The book(s) | Het boek | De boeken |
| The child(ren) | Het kind | De kinderen |
| The house(s) | Het huis | De huizen |
See? Even though “house” is a het-word (het huis), the moment you talk about multiple houses, it becomes de huizen.
De kinderen spelen buiten.
Diminutives are always het
Dutch people love to make things smaller and “cuter” by adding a suffix to the end of a word. These are called diminutives.
You can usually recognize them because they end in -je, -tje, -pje, -kje, or -etje.
All diminutives are het.
This applies even if the original word uses de.
| English | Original Word | Diminutive (Little version) |
|---|---|---|
| The dog / The little dog | De hond | Het hondje |
| The cup / The little cup | De kop | Het kopje |
| The beer / The small beer | Het bier | Het biertje |
This is actually a great “hack” for beginners. If you forget the gender of a word, just make it small!
Wil je een kopje koffie?
Compound words: Look at the end
Dutch is famous for sticking words together to make long compound words.
But how do you know which article to use for a new, long word?
You simply take the article of the very last word.
Think of the last word as the “boss” of the compound.
- Deur (door) + Het nummer (number) = Het deurnummer (the door number).
- Het huis (house) + De sleutel (key) = De huissleutel (the house key).
Because sleutel is a de-word, the whole compound word becomes de.
Words referring to people
In general, words that refer to actual people (biological gender) are de.
This includes professions, family members, and nationalities.
- De man (the man)
- De vrouw (the woman)
- De bakker (the baker)
- De leraar (the teacher)
- De moeder (the mother)
There is one major exception: Het kind (the child).
Also, remember the diminutive rule! If you call a girl “the little girl” (meisje), it becomes het meisje because of the -je ending.
De leraar legt de les uit.
Prefix words (Be-, Ge-, Ver-, Ont-)
This is a grammar rule that isn’t taught often enough, but it is very helpful.
If a noun has two syllables and starts with the prefixes Be-, Ge-, Ver-, or Ont-, it is almost always het.
These are often nouns that have been made out of verbs.
- Het begin (the beginning)
- Het geluid (the sound)
- Het verhaal (the story)
- Het ontbijt (the breakfast)
- Het gebruik (the use)
There are very few exceptions to this, so it’s a safe bet to use het here.
Specific categories for De and Het
If you can categorize the word, you can often predict the article.
Categories that are usually Het
- Languages: Het Engels, het Nederlands, het Frans.
- Metals: Het goud (gold), het zilver (silver), het ijzer (iron).
- Compass points: Het noorden (north), het zuiden (south).
- Sports: Het voetbal, het tennis, het hockey.
- Cities and Countries: Usually these don’t take an article, but if they do, it’s het. (e.g., Het mooie Amsterdam).
Categories that are usually De
- Fruits and Vegetables: De appel, de banaan, de citroen. (Exception: Het fruit is collective).
- Trees and Plants: De eik (oak), de roos (rose).
- Mountains and Rivers: De Mount Everest, de Rijn.
- Letters and Numbers: De A, de drie.
When in doubt…
Sometimes you will encounter a word that doesn’t fit any of these rules.
Maybe it’s just a random object like “table” (tafel) or “chair” (stoel).
If you absolutely have to guess: Guess de.
Why?
Because roughly 2/3 of all Dutch words are de words.
Statistically, you have a much better chance of being right if you go with de.
A tip for studying
When you write down new vocabulary in your notebook or flashcards, never write the word alone.
Don’t write:
- Auto - Car
Do write:
- De auto - The car
If you learn the article as part of the word from day one, you won’t have to think about grammar rules when you are speaking. It will just “sound right” to you.
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