Breakdown of Deze straat leidt naar het park.
naar
to
het park
the park
deze
this
de straat
the street
leiden
to lead
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Questions & Answers about Deze straat leidt naar het park.
What does deze mean and when should I use deze vs dit?
deze means this and is used with common-gender nouns (the ones that take de). dit is used with neuter-gender nouns (the ones that take het). Since straat is a common-gender noun, you say deze straat.
Why is it het park and not de park?
Dutch nouns are either common gender (with de) or neuter gender (with het). park is neuter, so it takes het. You would only use de with common-gender nouns.
Why is the verb leiden written as leidt here? What’s with the -dt ending?
For the present tense third person singular, drop -en from leiden to get the stem leid, then add -t. Because the stem ends in d, you end up with leidt (stem d + t = dt).
Could I say deze straat gaat naar het park instead? Are leidt and gaat interchangeable?
Yes. gaat (goes) is very common: deze straat gaat naar het park. leidt (leads) is slightly more formal or literary and suggests that the street actively directs you to the park.
Why is there an article before park? In English we sometimes say “to park” without the.
In Dutch, place nouns (like parks) usually need a definite article when you refer to a specific one. naar het park means you’re going to that particular park. If you meant any park in general, you would say naar een park.
Can I omit the article and say deze straat leidt naar park?
No, that sounds odd. Dutch generally requires het before park here. You need either het park (a specific one) or een park (one of many).
Why does the verb appear in the middle of the sentence instead of at the end?
Dutch main clauses follow V2 word order: the finite verb must occupy the second position. Here deze straat is the first element, leidt the second, and naar het park comes after.
How do I pronounce straat? Why are there two a’s?
In Dutch, double vowels indicate a long vowel sound. aa is pronounced /aː/, so straat is [straːt], with a long “a” like in father, held a bit longer.
Why use deze straat instead of just de straat? What’s the nuance?
deze means this, pointing to that specific street (the one we’re talking about or standing in). de straat simply means the street, without emphasizing it’s this one in particular.