Adding and Listing Information | Dutch Grammar

Adding information is the most basic discourse move there is — and the one beginners do worst, because they reach for en ("and") every single time. Mature Dutch distributes the load across a range of markers that each add a slightly different flavour: bovendien ("moreover", with a touch of "and this clinches it"), daarnaast ("besides", "alongside that"), verder ("furthermore"), tevens ("also", formal), plus the ordinals ten eerste / ten tweede for structured lists. The vocabulary is the easy part. The thing that separates a B2 writer from a fluent one is knowing that bovendien, daarnaast, verder and tevens are conjunctional adverbs — front any of them and the verb jumps ahead of the subject. Get that inversion wrong and an otherwise good sentence reads as foreign.

en and ook: the everyday additions

en ("and") is a coordinator: it joins two equal main clauses and leaves the word order completely alone. The verb stays in second position on both sides.

Ik heb de boodschappen gedaan en Tom heeft gekookt.

I did the shopping and Tom cooked. (en → 'heeft' stays second; no inversion)

ook ("also", "too") is an adverb that adds a point or includes an extra item. Its placement is flexible, and that flexibility carries meaning: ook attaches to whatever it stands next to.

Ik ga ook mee.

I'm coming along too. (ook in the middle field — 'I too am coming')

Ook Tom gaat mee.

Tom is coming too. (ook fronted onto the subject — 'Tom, as well, is coming'; verb 'gaat' stays second after the fronted 'Ook Tom')

Notice in that second example the verb gaat still sits second — but that's because Ook Tom together fills slot 1, with ook glued to the noun it modifies. ook on its own rarely opens a clause; when it does ("Also, ..."), it's an adverb and inverts. Where you place ook changes what you're adding, so it rewards precision.

Hij spreekt Frans en hij begrijpt ook Italiaans.

He speaks French and he also understands Italian. (ook in the middle field, adding to the verb phrase)

bovendien, daarnaast, verder: the conjunctional adverbs

These three are your main "moreover/besides/furthermore" markers, and all three are conjunctional adverbs — meaning that when they open a sentence, the finite verb must come second, ahead of the subject.

bovendien ("moreover", "on top of that") adds a clinching extra point, often a stronger one.

Het is een prima auto. Bovendien is hij heel zuinig.

It's a great car. On top of that, it's very economical. (bovendien → 'is' before 'hij')

daarnaast ("besides", "in addition", "alongside this") adds a parallel point sitting next to the first, without ranking it.

Ze werkt fulltime. Daarnaast volgt ze een avondopleiding.

She works full-time. Alongside that, she's doing an evening course. (daarnaast → 'volgt' before 'ze')

verder ("furthermore", "what's more", and also "otherwise") adds the next item in a loose accumulation.

De kamer is schoon. Verder hebben we nieuwe handdoeken neergelegd.

The room is clean. Furthermore, we've put out fresh towels. (verder → 'hebben' before 'we')

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The single most reliable way to remember this: bovendien, daarnaast and verder behave exactly like daarom from the overview page. They are adverbs, not conjunctions, so opening a sentence with one fills slot 1 — and the verb takes slot 2, in front of the subject. Bovendien is het..., never Bovendien het is.... If you can front daarom correctly, you can front all three of these.

All three are mobile, too: like any conjunctional adverb they can drop into the middle field instead of fronting, in which case no inversion is involved because the verb is already second.

Het is bovendien heel zuinig.

It's very economical, too. (bovendien mid-clause — verb 'is' already second)

tevens and eveneens: the formal register

tevens ("also", "at the same time") is a markedly formal addition marker (formal/written) — common in official letters, reports, and announcements, stilted in casual speech. It's a conjunctional adverb, so it inverts when fronted.

De vergadering is verzet naar dinsdag. Tevens vragen wij u de stukken vooraf door te lezen.

The meeting has been moved to Tuesday. We also ask you to read the documents in advance. (formal; tevens → 'vragen' before 'wij')

eveneens ("likewise", "also") means "in the same way" — it adds an item that shares a property just stated (formal-leaning).

De winkel is op zondag gesloten. De afhaalbalie is eveneens dicht.

The shop is closed on Sundays. The collection desk is likewise shut. (eveneens in the middle field here)

For an informal "and one more thing", speech uses en ook nog ("and also", "and on top of that") tacked on at the end or start of a clause.

We hebben pizza, salade, en ook nog ijs voor toe.

We've got pizza, salad, and ice cream for afters as well.

Ordering a list: ten eerste, ten tweede

When you want to number your points, use the ordinal frame ten eerste / ten tweede / ten derde ("firstly / secondly / thirdly"), often rounded off with ten slotte ("finally", "lastly"). Each is an adverbial that fills slot 1, so the verb inverts after every one.

Ten eerste is het te duur. Ten tweede hebben we er geen ruimte voor.

Firstly, it's too expensive. Secondly, we have no room for it. ('is' / 'hebben' inverted after each ordinal)

A softer, more conversational opener for the first item is om te beginnen ("to begin with", "for starters"); it too inverts when fronted.

Om te beginnen moeten we het budget vaststellen.

To begin with, we need to set the budget.

To leave a list open-ended, end it with enzovoort ("and so on", "etcetera"), abbreviated enz. It is written as a single word.

Je moet aan van alles denken: visum, verzekering, vaccinaties, enzovoort.

You have to think about all sorts of things: visa, insurance, vaccinations, and so on.

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Spelling traps worth nailing: it's enzovoort as one word (abbreviation enz.), not "en zo voort"; bovendien has the -dien ending, not "bovendijn"; and tevens / eveneens each have a single v. None of these take a capital except at the start of a sentence.

Common Mistakes

❌ Bovendien het is heel zuinig.

Incorrect — 'bovendien' is a conjunctional adverb; fronting it forces inversion: 'Bovendien is het heel zuinig'.

✅ Bovendien is het heel zuinig.

Moreover, it's very economical.

❌ Daarnaast ze volgt een avondopleiding.

Incorrect — fronted 'daarnaast' inverts the verb: 'Daarnaast volgt ze een avondopleiding'.

✅ Daarnaast volgt ze een avondopleiding.

In addition, she's doing an evening course.

❌ Ik ook ga mee.

Wrong placement — for 'I'm coming too', 'ook' follows the verb: 'Ik ga ook mee', or front it onto the subject: 'Ook ik ga mee'.

✅ Ik ga ook mee.

I'm coming along too.

❌ visum, verzekering, vaccinaties, en zo voort.

Spelling — it's written as one word: 'enzovoort' (abbreviation 'enz.').

✅ visum, verzekering, vaccinaties, enzovoort.

visa, insurance, vaccinations, and so on.

❌ Ten eerste het is te duur, ten tweede we hebben geen ruimte.

Incorrect — each ordinal fills slot 1 and inverts the verb: 'Ten eerste is het...', 'ten tweede hebben we...'.

✅ Ten eerste is het te duur, ten tweede hebben we geen ruimte.

Firstly, it's too expensive; secondly, we have no room.

Key Takeaways

en is a coordinator (verb stays second); ook is an adverb whose position changes what you're adding.
bovendien, daarnaast, verder and the formal tevens are conjunctional adverbs: front any one and the verb inverts — Bovendien is het... — or drop it into the middle field with no inversion.
tevens and eveneens belong to the formal/written register; reach for en ook nog in casual speech.
Number a list with ten eerste / ten tweede / ten slotte (all invert when fronted); open softly with om te beginnen; leave it open with enzovoort (enz.).
Watch the spelling: enzovoort (one word), bovendien, single-v tevens and eveneens.

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