Word
Dat schilderij in het museum is reusachtig.
Meaning
That painting in the museum is gigantic.
Part of speech
sentence
Pronunciation
Course
Breakdown of Dat schilderij in het museum is reusachtig.
zijn
to be
in
in
dat
that (het-words)
het schilderij
the painting
Questions & Answers about Dat schilderij in het museum is reusachtig.
How does the suffix -achtig work in the word reusachtig?
The suffix -achtig is attached to the noun reus (giant). Literally meaning "giant-like," it is the standard Dutch word for "gigantic" or "huge." You will see -achtig added to many nouns and adjectives to mean "similar to" or "resembling," much like the English suffixes "-ish" or "-esque."
Why is the demonstrative pronoun dat used here instead of die?
Schilderij is a neuter word (het schilderij). When pointing out a specific neuter noun, you must use the demonstrative pronoun dat ("that") or dit ("this"). If it had been a de word, you would use die or deze.
Could I just say heel groot instead of reusachtig?
Yes, heel groot (very big) or enorm (enormous) would also work perfectly here. Reusachtig just adds a bit more descriptive flavor, emphasizing that the size is comparable to a giant (reus).
How does the word schilderij relate to other painting terms?
It is derived from the verb schilderen (to paint). The person doing the painting is a schilder (painter), and the finished piece of art on the wall is a schilderij.