Questions & Answers about In de lente bloeien de bloemen.
In English we say "in spring", but the Dutch sentence says in de lente. Do I always need to use de with seasons?
Yes! While English often drops "the" before seasons, Dutch always includes the article when you are talking about something happening in that season. You will always say in de lente, in de zomer, in de herfst, and in de winter. All four seasons are de words.
Why does the verb bloeien come before the subject de bloemen?
This is because of the Dutch word order rule called inversion. Normally, the subject comes first (de bloemen bloeien). But if you start the sentence with anything else, like the time phrase in de lente, the verb and subject swap places. The conjugated verb must always stay in the second position of the sentence.
How do I pronounce the oei sound in bloeien?
The oei sound is a combination of two sounds. Start by saying the Dutch oe (which sounds like the "oo" in the English word "boo"), and then smoothly transition into a "y" sound. So bloeien sounds a bit like "bloo-yun".
Are there other words for spring in Dutch?
Yes, you will often hear het voorjaar (literally "the fore-year"). Both de lente and het voorjaar are very common and mean the exact same thing. Just remember that if you use it, the phrase becomes in het voorjaar because it is a het word.
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