Dutch verb conjugation and tenses
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HideThe 8 Dutch verb tenses
There are 8 different tenses in Dutch.
- Most Dutch verbs are regular verbs, 'zwakke werkwoorden' (weak verbs), these are verbs that are all conjugated the same way.
- The Dutch language also has many irregular verbs, known as 'sterke werkwoorden' (strong verbs), which conjugate differently in some of the tenses. These can be grouped together to make it easier to remember how to conjugate them.
- There are 6 completely irregular verbs, that are not actually irregular in every tense.
Here you will find an overview of all the 8 tenses. For a more detailed explanation of the tenses you can take a look at the different chapters of this course, where you will also find exercises to practice the tenses.
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Usage and conjugation of the Dutch verb tenses
To be able to conjugate the Dutch verbs in the present simple and present past, you have to find the stem of the verb and add the specific ending that fits with the tense the sentence should be in.
For the present perfect and past perfect the verbs 'hebben' (to have) and 'zijn' (to be) are used together with the past participle. The verb 'zullen' (to shall) is used to form the all future tenses.
The table below gives you an overview of the different tenses in Dutch.
| Tense | Usage | Example | Translation |
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| Present simple (onvoltooid tegenwoordige tijd) | The present simple is mainly used to describe a situation that is happening now. |
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| Present perfect (voltooid tegenwoordige tijd) | The present perfect is used to describe an action or event that happened in the past and already ended. |
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| Past simple (onvoltooid verleden tijd) | The past simple is mainly used to describe something happened in the past. |
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| Past perfect (voltooid verleden tijd) | The past perfect is used to describe something that happened in the past and ended in the past. |
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| Future simple (onvoltooid tegenwoordige toekomende tijd) | The future simple tense is used to talk about an event that will happen in the future. |
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| Future perfect (voltooid tegenwoordige toekomende tijd) | The future perfect is used to describe an action that will have been completed before another point or action in the future. (This form is not used very often.) |
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| Conditional tense (onvoltooid verleden toekomende tijd) | The conditional tense is used to speculate about a situation, mainly used in an 'if' scenario. |
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| Conditional perfect (voltooid verleden toekomende tijd) | The conditional perfect is used to describe a future hypothetical situation in the past. |
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Exercises
- Exercise to practice Dutch verb conjugation and tenses 1
- Exercise to practice Dutch verb conjugation and tenses 2
Exercise to practice Dutch verb conjugation and tenses 1
Exercise to practice Dutch verb conjugation and tenses 2
Exercises
- Exercise to practice Dutch verb conjugation and tenses 1
- Exercise to practice Dutch verb conjugation and tenses 2