Dutch Adverbs
Learning the Dutch Adverbs is very important because its structure is used in every day conversation. The more you master it the more you get closer to mastering the Dutch language. But first we need to know what the role of Adverbs is in the structure of the grammar in Dutch.
Dutch adverbs are part of speech. Generally they're words that modify any part of language other than a noun. Adverbs can modify verbs, adjectives (including numbers), clauses, sentences and other adverbs.
Grammar Tips:
While in English adverbs are usually formed
by adding (-ly) to adjectives. In Dutch adverbs are equal to the
adjective. Examples:
Een traag schip (a slow ship) remains
unchanged in : Hij werkt traag (He’s working slowly).
Een mooi huis (a beautiful house)
remains unchanged in : Ze zingt mooi (She sings beautifully)
Een lelijk eendje (an ungly little
duck) remains unchanged in : Hij doet lelijk (He’s not being nice).
Here are some examples:
| English Adverbs | Dutch Adverbs |
| adverbs | bijwoorden |
| I read a book sometimes | Ik lees soms een boek. |
| I will never smoke | Ik zal nooit roken. |
| are you alone? | Ben je alleen? |
As you can see from the example above, the structure of the Adverbs in Dutch has a logical pattern. Locate the Adverbs above and see how it works with the rest of the sentence in Nederlands.
List of Adverbs in Dutch
Below is a list of the Adverbs of time place manner and frequency in Dutch placed in a table. Memorizing this table will help you add very useful and important words to your Dutch vocabulary.
| English Adverbs | Dutch Adverbs |
| adverbs of time | bijwoorden van tijd |
| yesterday | gisteren |
| today | vandaag |
| tomorrow | morgen |
| now | nu |
| then | dan |
| later | later |
| tonight | vanavond |
| right now | nu |
| last night | gisteravond |
| this morning | deze ochtend/vanmorgen |
| next week | volgende week |
| already | reeds/al |
| recently | onlangs |
| lately | de laatste tijd |
| soon | spoedig/snel |
| immediately | onmiddellijk/meteen |
| still | nog/nog steeds |
| yet | nog/(depends on context) |
| ago | geleden |
| |
| adverbs of place | bijwoorden over plaats |
| here | hier |
| there | er/daar |
| over there | daarginds |
| everywhere | overal |
| anywhere | overal |
| nowhere | nergens |
| home | thuis |
| away | weg |
| out | uit |
| |
| adverbs of manner | bijwoorden over wijze |
| very | zeer/heel/erg |
| quite | nogal |
| pretty | vrij |
| really | echt |
| fast | snel |
| well | goed |
| hard | hard |
| quickly | snel/vlug |
| slowly | langzaam/traag |
| carefully | voorzichtig |
| hardly | nauwelijks |
| barely | nauwelijks |
| mostly | merendeels |
| almost | bijna |
| absolutely | absoluut |
| together | samen |
| alone | alleen |
| |
| adverbs of frequency | bijwoorden over aantal |
| always | altijd |
| frequently | vaak |
| usually | gewoonlijk |
| sometimes | soms |
| occasionally | af en toe |
| seldom | zelden |
| rarely | zelden |
| never | nooit |
Adverbs of time place manner and frequency have a very important role in Dutch, therefore they need very special attention. Once you're done with the Nederlands Adverbs, you might want to check the rest of our Dutch lessons here: Learn Dutch. Don't forget to bookmark this page.