De schademelding noemt de waterschade.

Dutch very often forms compound nouns by joining words together.

• schademelding = schade
  • melding
• waterschade = water
  • schade

This is normal Dutch spelling. English often writes similar ideas as separate words, but Dutch usually prefers one compound word.

A useful rule: the last part of the compound is the main noun.

• In schademelding, the main noun is melding
• In waterschade, the main noun is schade

That last part also helps determine things like the article and plural form.

Both nouns take de because their main noun is a de-word.

• de melding
• de schade

Since compounds follow the gender of their final part:

• de schademelding
• de waterschade

This is a very useful pattern in Dutch compounds. If you know the last word, you can often predict the article of the whole compound.

Noemt is the present tense form of noemen.

The basic meaning of noemen is often:

• to call
• to name

But in some contexts it can also mean:

• to mention
• to state

So in this sentence, noemt means something like mentions or states.

A small usage note: in formal or administrative Dutch, a verb like vermeldt may sound more natural than noemt if you mean mentions in a report.

For example:

• De schademelding vermeldt de waterschade.

That often sounds a bit more idiomatic.

Dutch main clauses normally put the finite verb in the second position. This is often called the V2 rule.

In this sentence:

• De schademelding = first element
• noemt = second element
• de waterschade = rest of the sentence

So the structure is:

• subject + finite verb + object

That is very normal Dutch word order.

In a simple sentence like this, the noun phrase before the finite verb is usually the subject.

So here:

• De schademelding = subject
• noemt = verb
• de waterschade = direct object

English speakers sometimes look for case endings, but modern Dutch usually does not mark this clearly on nouns. Word order is doing most of the work.

Because it is the present tense, third person singular form of noemen.

The present tense forms are:

• ik noem
• jij noemt
• u noemt
• hij/zij/het noemt

Since de schademelding is singular and treated like it, you use noemt.

It can refer to either, depending on context.

Often it means:

• the damage report
• the claim notification
• the act of reporting damage

In administrative or insurance contexts, it commonly refers to the report or filing itself. Context tells you which meaning is intended.

That kind of flexibility is common with Dutch nouns ending in -ing.

Dutch can use a definite article with nouns that feel more general or uncountable in English, especially when a specific case is meant.

So:

• de waterschade = the specific water damage being discussed

But if you are speaking in general, Dutch can also omit the article:

• Waterschade is vervelend.
• Water damage is annoying.

So the article here suggests a specific, known instance of water damage.

Usually it is treated as a singular or mass noun, especially in everyday language.

However, in insurance, legal, or technical contexts, you may sometimes see a plural such as waterschades when talking about multiple separate cases of water damage.

So:

• everyday use: usually singular
• technical or administrative use: plural is possible

A rough pronunciation guide is:

• De → duh
• schademelding → SKHAA-duh-mel-ding
• noemt → noomt
• de waterschade → duh VAA-tuhr-skhAA-duh

A few notes:

• sch in standard Dutch sounds like a harsh s plus ch
• oe sounds like the vowel in boot
• aa is a long ah sound
• In compounds, the stress often falls strongly on the first part:
  • SCHAdemelding
  • WAterschade

The exact pronunciation can vary a bit by region.