Ordering Multiple Adjectives
Much like English, Dutch follows a predictable sequence for adjectives placed directly before a noun.
The golden rule is: Subjective opinions come before objective facts.
When combining multiple objective facts, they generally follow this hierarchy: Size ➔ Age ➔ Color ➔ Origin ➔ Material.
Opinions Come First
Adjectives expressing an opinion or judgment—such as mooi (beautiful), lelijk (ugly), schattig (cute), or zeldzaam (rare)—almost always come first.
| My grandmother bought a rare old purple orchid. | Mijn oma heeft een zeldzame oude paarse orchidee gekocht. |
| Have you already seen that strange large blue lily? | Heb je die vreemde grote blauwe lelie al gezien? |
Notice in the second example: vreemde (opinion) comes before grote (size), which comes before blauwe (color).
Size, Age, and Color
When combining basic objective traits, size and age typically precede color.
| Why did the babysitter give us a cute little green cactus? | Waarom gaf de oppas ons een schattige kleine groene cactus? |
| Next to the ugly old cactus stands a gorgeous young palm. | Naast de lelijke oude cactus staat een schitterende jonge palm. |
| I see a beautiful large pond with lush green plants. | Ik zie een prachtige grote vijver met weelderige groene planten. |
Origin and Material
Adjectives describing where something is from (tropisch, exotisch) or what it is made of (glazen) stay closest to the noun.
| Look, a beautiful tall tropical palm is growing in the botanical garden! | Kijk, er groeit een mooie lange tropische palm in de botanische tuin! |
| As soon as we enter the impressive large glass greenhouse, we see lush tropical plants. | Zodra we de indrukwekkende grote glazen kas betreden, zien we weelderige tropische planten. |
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