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Questions & Answers about Dit spul is nieuw.
Since the current lesson is about diminutives, how do you make spul into a diminutive?
The diminutive of spul is spulletje. Because spul has a single short vowel followed by a single consonant ('l'), we use the -etje suffix and double the 'l' to keep the 'u' sound short. While spul means uncountable "stuff", the plural diminutive spulletjes is incredibly common in Dutch and translates to individual "things" or "belongings."
Why do we use dit instead of deze for "this"?
Spul is a neuter noun (het spul). When pointing out a het-word in the singular, you must use dit (this) or dat (that). You only use deze (this) and die (that) for de-words or plural nouns.
Why doesn't the adjective nieuw get an -e ending here?
Adjectives generally only get an extra -e when they are placed right in front of the noun they describe (like in het nieuwe spul). Because nieuw comes after the verb is in this sentence, it is a predicative adjective and stays in its basic dictionary form.
Why does the sentence use the singular verb is when "stuff" implies multiple items?