Word
Het is koud, dus ik draag mijn jas.
Meaning
It is cold, so I am wearing my coat.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Questions & Answers about Het is koud, dus ik draag mijn jas.
Why does the sentence use ik draag instead of translating "I am wearing" word-for-word?
Dutch doesn't use an "am wearing" structure here. The simple present tense ik draag covers both the English "I wear" and "I am wearing".
Does the word dus (so) change the word order?
In this sentence, no. When dus links two main sentences together, you can just use the normal subject-verb order right after it: ik draag (I wear). You might occasionally see native speakers swap the subject and verb after dus, but the normal order used here is completely correct and highly recommended for beginners.
Is het always used to talk about the weather?
Yes! Just like in English, Dutch uses het (it) as a "dummy subject" for weather conditions. You will use it in phrases like het is koud (it is cold), het regent (it is raining), and het is warm (it is warm).
Does the word jas mean jacket or coat?
It means both! Dutch uses jas as a general term for any kind of outer layer you wear outside. If you need to be more specific, you can add descriptive words to it, like winterjas (winter coat) or regenjas (raincoat).