Understanding the Dutch Present Continuous Tense
The Present Continuous Tense in Dutch is used to talk about actions that are happening right now. It's like saying 'I am doing something' in English. In Dutch, this is often expressed using the structure 'zijn + aan het + infinitive verb'.
Important Points
- The Present Continuous is used to describe actions happening now.
- It is formed with 'zijn' (to be) + 'aan het' + the infinitive form of the verb.
- It is similar to the English 'am/is/are + verb-ing'.
To form the Present Continuous, you need to know the correct form of 'zijn' for the subject. Then you add 'aan het' and the basic form of the action word, also called the infinitive.
Examples
- Ik ben aan het lezen.
- Zij zijn aan het spelen.
- Hij is aan het koken.
Let's see how this works with different people. For 'I', use 'ben'. For 'you' (singular), use 'bent'. For 'he', 'she', or 'it', use 'is'. For 'we', 'you' (plural), or 'they', use 'zijn'.
Examples
- Jij bent aan het schrijven.
- Wij zijn aan het zingen.
- Zij is aan het dansen.
This tense is very useful when you want to tell someone about what you are doing right now or what someone else is busy with at this moment.