Word
Tien vrienden zijn nu hier.
Meaning
Ten friends are here now.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Questions & Answers about Tien vrienden zijn nu hier.
Does the number tien change depending on whether the noun is singular, plural, masculine, or feminine?
No, cardinal numbers like tien (ten) do not change their spelling to match the noun. It will always be tien, whether you are counting tien vrienden (ten friends) or tien huizen (ten houses).
Why is the word order nu hier instead of hier nu?
In Dutch, there is a general rule for word order: Time comes before Place. Since nu (now) describes the time and hier (here) describes the place, nu must come first.
Why do we use zijn in this sentence?
Zijn can mean "his" in Dutch, but here it is the plural form of the verb "to be" (meaning "are"). Because our subject, Tien vrienden, is plural (a "they" group), we must use zijn instead of the singular is.
How do we know to add -en to make vrienden plural?
Most Dutch nouns are made plural by adding either -en or -s. For nouns ending in a hard consonant like vriend (friend), adding -en is the most common pattern.