Breakdown of Het kruispunt is afgesloten.
zijn
to be
het kruispunt
the intersection
afsluiten
to close off
Questions & Answers about Het kruispunt is afgesloten.
Why does is afgesloten translate to "has been closed off"? Shouldn't there be a word for "been"?
In Dutch, the present perfect passive uses the auxiliary verb zijn (here, is) plus the past participle (afgesloten). While English uses "has been" for this tense, Dutch leaves out the word for "been" (geworden). So, even though it literally looks like "is closed off", it means "has been closed off".
Does this sentence mean the intersection is being closed right now?
No, it describes an action that is already complete. Because it uses is instead of wordt, it is in the present perfect passive tense. If the intersection were being closed right now, Dutch would use the present passive: Het kruispunt wordt afgesloten.
Why is the ge in the middle of afgesloten?
It is the past participle of the separable verb afsluiten (to close off). When forming the past participle of a separable verb, the ge- is placed between the prefix (af) and the rest of the verb.
How do I know whether to use de or het for a compound word like kruispunt?
Kruispunt is made from kruis (cross) and punt (point). In Dutch, the article for a compound noun is always determined by its final part. Because it is het punt, the whole word becomes het kruispunt.
Learn Het kruispunt is afgesloten 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