Vanavond spreekt mijn familie over belangrijke plannen en ik moet goed luisteren.

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Breakdown of Vanavond spreekt mijn familie over belangrijke plannen en ik moet goed luisteren.

• en: and
• spreken: to speak
• moeten: to have to
• belangrijk: important
• luisteren: to listen
• mijn: my
• de familie: the family
• over: about
• het plan: the plan
• goed: good

Questions & Answers about Vanavond spreekt mijn familie over belangrijke plannen en ik moet goed luisteren.

Why is it spreekt instead of spreken when talking about mijn familie?

In Dutch, mijn familie is treated as a singular group (a collective noun), so it takes a third-person singular verb. That’s why we say mijn familie spreekt (just like hij spreekt or zij spreekt) rather than the plural form spreken.

Why does the verb (spreekt) come before the subject (mijn familie) in this sentence?

In Dutch, if you start a sentence with a time word like Vanavond, the main verb often appears right after it. Then the subject follows. This is part of the standard word order pattern called inversion.

Is vanavond the only way to mean tonight, or could I say other things like deze avond?

Vanavond is the most common and natural way to say tonight in Dutch. While deze avond is understandable, it sounds a bit more formal or less common in daily speech.

Why is belangrijke used instead of belangrijk before plannen?

Belangrijke is the adjectival form that agrees with the plural noun plannen. In Dutch, an adjective usually ends with -e when directly modifying a plural noun or a definite singular noun (e.g., de belangrijke plannen, de belangrijke man).

What does moet mean in this context, and why is it not moeten?

Moet is the singular form of the modal verb meaning must or have to in English. Since the subject is ik, we use the first-person singular form ik moet rather than the plural or infinitive moeten.