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Breakdown of Hij gaat eten koken voor zijn vriendin.
hij
he
gaan
to go
koken
to cook
de vriendin
the (female) friend
het eten
the food
voor
for
zijn
his
Questions & Answers about Hij gaat eten koken voor zijn vriendin.
Why does the sentence use gaat?
Gaat is the third-person singular present tense of gaan (to go). In Dutch, gaan + infinitive often expresses a near future action. So Hij gaat eten koken means he is going to cook food (soon).
What is the difference between eten koken and just koken?
Eten koken literally means to cook food, emphasizing the act of preparing a meal. Koken by itself just means to cook in general. Both are used, but eten koken can sound more specific about cooking a meal.
Why do we say voor zijn vriendin instead of aan zijn vriendin?
Using voor means for, indicating that he is cooking on someone’s behalf. Aan often means to (as in giving something to someone). In this context, he is performing the cooking for her benefit, hence voor zijn vriendin.
How do we pronounce gaat in Dutch?
Gaat is pronounced with a long aa sound, similar to the 'a' in father, and it ends with a soft, unvoiced t. You keep your mouth open a bit wider than in English when making the aa sound.
Why use zijn for girlfriend when referring to a male subject?
In Dutch, zijn is the possessive pronoun used with hij (he). So zijn vriendin is his girlfriend. If the subject were female, you would use haar (her) instead.
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