Breakdown of Ze vertelt de waarheid niet.
zij
she
niet
not
vertellen
to tell
de waarheid
the truth
ze
they; she (unstressed form of zij) / them (object)
Questions & Answers about Ze vertelt de waarheid niet.
Why does niet come at the very end of the sentence?
In Dutch, when you negate the whole sentence, niet usually goes at the end. Because de waarheid (the truth) is a specific, definite object, niet must be placed after it. It doesn't go right after the verb like 'not' often does in English.
Why do we use niet here instead of geen?
We only use geen to negate nouns that are indefinite (like 'a lie' or 'lies', where you might use 'a' or no article). Because de waarheid uses the definite article de (the), it is a specific thing, so we must use niet.
The word Ze can mean 'she' or 'they'. How do we know it means 'she' here?
You can tell by looking at the verb! The verb vertelt ends in a -t, which is the singular form used for 'he', 'she', or 'it'. If Ze meant 'they', the verb would take the full plural form: Ze vertellen.
Could this sentence also translate to 'She is not telling the truth'?
Yes! Dutch does not have a separate 'is doing' tense like English does. Ze vertelt de waarheid niet naturally translates to both 'She does not tell the truth' and 'She is not telling the truth', depending on the situation.
Learn Ze vertelt de waarheid niet 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