Breakdown of Het acteerwerk in die scène was echt belachelijk.
zijn
to be
in
in
die
that / those (de-words and plurals)
echt
real; really (genuinely)
Questions & Answers about Het acteerwerk in die scène was echt belachelijk.
How is the word acteerwerk formed?
It is a compound noun made from acteer (the stem of the verb acteren, meaning 'to act') and the noun het werk (the work). Because werk is a het-word, the entire compound noun becomes het acteerwerk.
Why is it die scène and not dat scène?
Scène is a de-word (de scène). When pointing out a specific de-word, you must use die to mean 'that'. You would only use dat if it were a het-word.
Is belachelijk related to the verb lachen (to laugh)?
Yes! It combines the prefix be-, the root of lachen (lach), and the suffix -lijk (which works like '-able' or '-ous' in English). It literally translates to 'laughable', but it is the standard Dutch word for 'ridiculous'.
Does the accent mark on scène change how it is pronounced?
Yes, the grave accent tells you to pronounce that 'e' with a short, open 'eh' sound. Because it is a loanword from French, scène is pronounced roughly like 'seh-nuh' in Dutch.