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Questions & Answers about Mijn vinger doet pijn.
Why is the verb doet used here instead of a single word for 'hurts'?
Dutch doesn't have a single, common verb that just means 'to hurt' in this way. Instead, you use the expression pijn doen (literally 'to do pain'). So, Mijn vinger doet pijn literally translates to 'My finger does pain'.
Does doet pijn change if I am talking about multiple fingers?
Yes! The verb must agree with the subject. Since vingers (fingers) is plural, you would use the plural form of the verb doen: Mijn vingers doen pijn (My fingers hurt).
How would this work with the indefinite pronoun je (meaning 'one' or 'people in general')?
If you swap mijn for je, you get Je vinger doet pijn. This usually means 'Your finger hurts' (as a possessive). However, Dutch speakers also use je in this exact way to mean 'one's finger' in a general sense, which connects closely to the indefinite je you are learning in this lesson.