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Questions & Answers about Het toernooi begint morgen.
Why is het used before toernooi and not de?
In Dutch every noun is either a de-word (common gender) or a het-word (neuter). Toernooi is a neuter noun, so it takes het. You often have to learn these with each noun (or check a dictionary/word list).
What is the word order in Het toernooi begint morgen?
Dutch main clauses follow the V2 rule: the finite verb must be in second position. Here the structure is:
- Subject: Het toernooi
- Finite verb: begint
- Adverb (time): morgen
Why does the verb have two ns in begint?
The infinitive is beginnen (to begin), whose stem ends in –inn–. In the third person singular you add –t, yielding beginn-t → begint.
Why is the present tense used here for a future event?
Just like in English (“The match starts tomorrow”), Dutch often uses the present tense for scheduled or fixed events in the near future. A future form exists (with zal), but it’s not required:
• Het toernooi begint morgen. (standard)
• Het toernooi zal morgen beginnen. (more formal)
Can I start the sentence with morgen instead? What changes?
Yes. When you put a time adverb first, you still follow V2 by inverting subject and verb: • Morgen begint het toernooi.
Is morgen here a noun or an adverb?
It’s an adverb meaning “tomorrow.” As a noun de morgen means “the morning,” but that’s a different usage.
How do you pronounce toernooi?
In standard Dutch roughly /ˈtoːr.nɛi/. You can think of it as “TOOR-nay” with a rolled or uvular r and a long oo.
Where would you insert more information, like the starting time?
You typically place the time adverb or phrase after the verb (or at the very end):
• Het toernooi begint morgen om 10 uur.
• Morgen om 10 uur begint het toernooi. (with inversion)