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Ik ben een student.

Ik ben een student.
I am a student.
From Lesson 1:Singular pronouns and 'to be' (ik ben, hij is)·Dutch

Breakdown of Ik ben een student.

ik
I
zijn
to be
een
a/an
de student
the student

Questions & Answers about Ik ben een student.

How is the word een pronounced here?
The word een (meaning a or an) is pronounced with a soft, relaxed sound like "uhn" (similar to the "a" in "about"). It is only pronounced with a long "ay" sound when it means the number one, which is usually written with accents as één.
Does the verb ben come from a regular verb?
No, ben is the "I" form of the verb zijn (to be). Just like in English, the verb "to be" is completely irregular in Dutch. You will always use ben when talking about yourself with ik.
Is it required to use een before the word student?
Not always! In Dutch, when stating your profession or role, it is very common to leave out the article entirely and just say Ik ben student. Using een like in this sentence is still correct, but it sounds a bit like you are emphasizing "I am a student" rather than "I am a teacher."
Do I always capitalize ik like the English word "I"?
No. Unlike English, the Dutch word ik is only capitalized when it is the very first word of a sentence. If it falls in the middle of a sentence, it is written in lowercase.

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