Questions & Answers about De jonge honden spelen buiten.
Why is it jonge instead of just jong?
In Dutch, when an adjective comes directly before the noun it describes, we usually add an -e to the end of it. Because it is placed right in front of honden, jong becomes jonge.
Is the -e on jonge added because honden is plural?
Indirectly, yes! All plural nouns in Dutch use the article de. Whenever an adjective comes before a de word, it always gets the -e ending. (Note: hond is already a de word in the singular, so "the young dog" would also be de jonge hond).
How do you pronounce the added -e on jonge?
An -e at the very end of a Dutch word is pronounced as a short, soft "uh" sound (often called a schwa). So, jonge is pronounced roughly like "yong-uh".
Why do we use spelen and not speel or speelt?
Spelen is the plural form of the verb "to play". Because our subject is plural (de jonge honden), we must use the plural verb. In Dutch, the plural form of a verb is almost always exactly the same as its full dictionary form (the infinitive).
Learn De jonge honden spelen buiten and more in Dutch
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free