De stoel is rood.

to be

Breakdown of De stoel is rood.

• de stoel: the chair
• rood: red

Questions & Answers about De stoel is rood.

What is the literal translation of De stoel is rood. into English?

The literal translation is The chair is red.

What does each word in De stoel is rood. mean?

• De is the definite article equivalent to the.
• stoel means chair.
• is is the third-person singular form of the verb zijn (to be).
• rood means red.

Why is de used instead of het for the noun stoel?

In Dutch, nouns take either de or het as their definite article. The noun stoel is classified as a de-word, which is why it uses de. There isn’t a strict rule to predict this, so the article must be learned with the noun.

Why does the sentence structure follow the subject-verb-adjective order, similar to English?

Both Dutch and English commonly use a subject-verb-complement construction in simple sentences. Here, De stoel (subject) is followed by is (verb) and rood (adjective complement), mirroring the English order.

Why doesn’t the adjective rood have an inflected ending in this sentence?

In Dutch, adjectives placed directly before their noun (e.g., de rode stoel) are inflected. However, when used as a predicate adjective after the verb—as in is rood—the adjective remains uninflected.

What role does is play in the sentence De stoel is rood.?

Is is the present tense form of zijn (to be). It functions as a linking verb that connects the subject (stoel) to its description (rood).