Breakdown of Wij gaan de deur zachtjes openen.
wij
we
gaan
to go / to go off (of an alarm)
de deur
the door
openen
to open
zachtjes
quietly / gently
Questions & Answers about Wij gaan de deur zachtjes openen.
Why use zachtjes instead of just zacht?
In Dutch, adding -jes to an adjective like zacht (soft) creates an adverb of manner. While zacht can already be used as an adverb, adding -jes makes it sound more cautious, delicate, or cozy. Here, zachtjes emphasizes the special care taken not to make noise or use too much force when opening the door.
Why does zachtjes come before the verb openen?
In a Dutch sentence with an auxiliary verb like gaan, the main verb (openen) is pushed to the very end of the clause. Adverbs of manner like zachtjes typically come right before that final verb, unlike in English where 'gently' often comes after the object.
Can zachtjes also mean 'quietly' in terms of sound?
Yes, absolutely! Zachtjes translates to both 'gently' (referring to physical force) and 'quietly' or 'softly' (referring to volume). When opening a door zachtjes, you are usually doing both: moving it gently so that it opens quietly.
Could I use the verb openmaken instead of openen here?
Yes, they mean the same thing, but openen is slightly more formal. Openmaken is very common in everyday speech. Both work perfectly here, though keep in mind that openmaken is a separable verb, which changes how it behaves in present or past tense sentences where it isn't pushed to the end.
Learn Wij gaan de deur zachtjes openen and more in Dutch
All course content and exercises are completely free — no paywalls, no trial periods, no signup needed.
- ✓ Practice with interactive exercises
- ✓ Track your progress with spaced repetition
- ✓Learn at your own pace — completely free