Dutch A1.14 Listening Practice: Count More Than One
Listen to a A1 Dutch dialogue about count more than one, with audio, transcript, and grammar notes for language learning.
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Level
A1.14
Audio
Segmented audio
Transcript
21 segments
A short Dutch listening chapter with transcript.
Report that you have two books and identify three tables without carrying singular het into the plural.
Read while you listen.
1. Marieke · Teacher
Welcome! Today we are learning how to count and talk about plural nouns in Dutch, like books, bicycles, and tables. Let's listen to a short conversation between Bram and Lotte.
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2. Bram · Native Speaker 1
Ik heb twee boeken.
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3. Lotte · Native Speaker 2
Ik heb drie tafels.
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4. Bram · Native Speaker 1
Kijk, daar zijn de fietsen.
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5. Lotte · Native Speaker 2
De boeken liggen hier.
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6. Bram · Native Speaker 1
En de tafels staan daar.
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7. Marieke · Teacher
Let me break that down for you. First, Bram said: 'Ik heb twee boeken.' This means 'I have two books.' Notice how 'het boek' becomes 'de boeken' in the plural.
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8. Daan · Student
So even though it's 'het boek' in the singular, the plural always uses 'de'?
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9. Marieke · Teacher
Exactly, Daan! Every single plural noun in Dutch uses the article 'de'.
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10. Marieke · Teacher
Next, Lotte said: 'Ik heb drie tafels.' This means 'I have three tables.'
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11. Daan · Student
Why does 'tafels' end in '-s', but 'boeken' ends in '-en'?
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12. Marieke · Teacher
Dutch plurals usually take either '-en' or '-s'. For now, memorize them as fixed pairs: 'boeken' and 'tafels'.
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13. Marieke · Teacher
Then Bram said: 'Kijk, daar zijn de fietsen.' This translates to 'Look, there are the bicycles.'
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14. Daan · Student
And 'de fiets' becomes 'de fietsen' with '-en', right?
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15. Marieke · Teacher
Spot on! 'De fiets' adds '-en' to become 'de fietsen'.
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16. Marieke · Teacher
After that, Lotte said: 'De boeken liggen hier.' That means 'The books lie here' or 'The books are here.'
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17. Daan · Student
Why did she use 'liggen' instead of 'zijn'?
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18. Marieke · Teacher
In Dutch, we often use 'liggen' for flat objects resting on a surface, like books.
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19. Marieke · Teacher
Finally, Bram said: 'En de tafels staan daar.' That means 'And the tables are standing there.'
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20. Daan · Student
And we use 'staan' because tables stand upright on legs?
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21. Marieke · Teacher
Precisely! Objects like tables 'staan'. Excellent practice today!
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