Breakdown of Deze broek is erg duur.
zijn
to be
duur
expensive
erg
very / really
deze
this / these
de broek
the pants / the trousers
Questions & Answers about Deze broek is erg duur.
Why does the Dutch sentence use is when the English translation uses "are"?
In English, words like "pants" or "trousers" are plural. But in Dutch, a pair of pants is a singular word: de broek (literally "the pant"). Because it is a singular noun, we use the singular verb is.
Why do we use deze instead of dit?
Deze means "this" or "these" and is used for de-words and all plurals. Dit means "this" and is used only for singular het-words. Since broek is a de-word (de broek), we must use deze. Even though the English translation says "these", you are literally pointing to "this pant".
Can I use heel instead of erg to say "very"?
Yes, absolutely! Both heel and erg are common ways to say "very" in Dutch. You could also say Deze broek is heel duur and it would mean exactly the same thing.
How would I say this if I meant multiple pairs of pants?
To talk about multiple pairs of pants, you use the plural noun broeken. The sentence becomes Deze broeken zijn erg duur. Notice that deze stays exactly the same! This is because we always use deze for plural nouns, no matter if they are de-words or het-words.
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