Breakdown of Ken je mijn zus? Die woont hier.
hier
here
de zus
the sister
wonen
to live
kennen
to know
mijn
my
die
that / those (de-words and plurals)
je
you (unstressed form of jij)
Questions & Answers about Ken je mijn zus? Die woont hier.
Why does it say Die woont hier instead of Zij woont hier?
You could definitely say Zij (or Ze) woont hier. However, in spoken Dutch, it's very common to use the pointing word die to refer back to someone you just introduced. It translates perfectly to "she" or "he" here, but feels a bit like saying "That one, she lives here."
Doesn't die usually mean "that" or "those"?
Exactly! Normally, die points to a specific noun (like die auto for "that car"). Because zus is a de-word (de zus), you can use die on its own as a pronoun to point right back to her. It makes conversational Dutch flow very naturally.
Why use Ken for "know" instead of Weet?
Dutch has two verbs for "to know". You use kennen (Ken) when you are familiar with a person, a place, or a thing—like knowing someone's sister. You use weten (Weet) when you know a fact, such as knowing where the sister lives.
Why is there no 't' at the end of Ken?
In Dutch, when you ask a question and the subject je or jij (you) comes immediately after the verb, the -t ending of the verb is dropped. As a statement it is je kent (you know), but as a question it flips and drops the 't' to become ken je? (do you know?).
Learn Ken je mijn zus? Die woont hier 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