Breakdown of Dit is geen rode stift, maar een blauwe pen.
zijn
to be
een
a/an
maar
but
geen
no / not any
de pen
the pen
dit
this (neuter)
blauw
blue
rood
red
de stift
the marker
Questions & Answers about Dit is geen rode stift, maar een blauwe pen.
Why do we use geen instead of niet here?
We use geen because it means 'not a' or 'no'. In Dutch, when you negate a noun that would normally take the indefinite article een or no article at all, you always use geen instead of niet.
Why do the adjectives rood and blauw get an -e at the end here?
Both stift and pen are de-words (de stift, de pen). When an adjective comes directly before a de-word, it gets an extra -e, even when words like een or geen are placed in front of it.
Why is rode spelled with only one 'o' when the base color is rood?
This happens because of the Dutch spelling rules for long vowels. By adding the -e, the word splits into syllables as ro-de. Because the first syllable ends in a vowel, it is an 'open' syllable. A single vowel in an open syllable already makes a long sound, so the second 'o' is dropped to keep the spelling simple.
Learn Dit is geen rode stift, maar een blauwe pen 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