Breakdown of We hebben de krant gelezen en koffie gedronken.
en
and
hebben
to have
lezen
to read
de krant
the newspaper
drinken
to drink
de koffie
the coffee
we
we (unstressed form of wij)
Questions & Answers about We hebben de krant gelezen en koffie gedronken.
Why do gelezen and gedronken end in -en instead of -t or -d?
These are irregular verbs. While regular past participles end in -t or -d, irregular ones usually keep an -en ending. You have to memorize them, but they often follow patterns similar to English.
Where does the 'o' in gedronken come from?
The dictionary form of this verb is drinken (to drink). Because it is an irregular verb, the vowel changes in the past participle. This is very similar to how 'drink' becomes 'drunk' in English.
What is the dictionary form of gelezen?
It comes from lezen (to read). For this specific irregular verb, the vowel does not change. You simply add the ge- prefix to the full verb to make the past participle: ge- + lezen.
Why don't we repeat the word hebben before koffie?
Because the helping verb hebben (have) applies to both actions, you can drop it after en (and). The sentence relies on the first hebben for both gelezen and gedronken.
Why do gelezen and gedronken go at the end of their sections?
In the Dutch present perfect tense, the past participle is always pushed to the very end of the clause. You are literally saying 'We have the newspaper read and coffee drunk.'
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