Breakdown of Ik ben benieuwd naar de psychologie.
de psychologie
the psychology
benieuwd zijn naar
to be curious about
Questions & Answers about Ik ben benieuwd naar de psychologie.
Why do we use naar here instead of a Dutch word for "about" like over?
The adjective benieuwd (curious) is part of a fixed combination and always pairs with the preposition naar. You cannot translate the English "about" directly. Just like English has set phrases like "interested in", you have to learn this Dutch pair together as benieuwd naar.
Why does the sentence use de psychologie instead of just psychologie?
In Dutch, abstract concepts and academic subjects like psychologie, liefde (love), or kunst (art) often take a definite article (de or het). English drops "the" when talking about psychology in general, but Dutch prefers to keep it in the sentence.
Could I use the word nieuwsgierig instead of benieuwd?
Yes, you could say Ik ben nieuwsgierig naar de psychologie. Both mean "curious" and both take the fixed preposition naar. However, nieuwsgierig can sometimes mean "nosy" (in a negative way), whereas benieuwd is always a polite, positive kind of interest.
If I wanted to say "I am curious about it", how would I use the fixed preposition naar?
Since naar is the fixed preposition for this adjective, you would combine it with the word er (there) to create the combination word ernaar. You would say Ik ben ernaar benieuwd or split it up as Ik ben er benieuwd naar.
Learn Ik ben benieuwd naar de psychologie 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