Breakdown of Dit boek is echt goed.
het boek
the book
dit
this (neuter)
goed
good
echt
real; really (genuinely)
Questions & Answers about Dit boek is echt goed.
Why do we use dit instead of deze for 'this'?
In Dutch, the word for 'this' depends on the noun's article. Because 'book' is a het word (het boek), we use dit. If it were a de word, like de tafel (the table), we would use deze (deze tafel).
Can echt also mean 'real'?
Yes! Echt can mean 'real' or 'genuine', but here it is used to mean 'really' or 'truly'. It makes the word goed (good) stronger, exactly like in English.
Why does the d at the end of goed sound like a t?
In Dutch, whenever a word ends with a d, it is pronounced as a t. This is a strict pronunciation rule, so goed ends with a crisp 't' sound.
If I wanted to say 'These books are really good', how would this sentence change?
You would say Deze boeken zijn echt goed. All plural nouns act as de words, so dit changes to deze. The noun boek becomes plural (boeken), and the verb is becomes the plural form zijn.