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Voorlopig blijven wij in het oude huis.

Voorlopig blijven wij in het oude huis.
For the time being, we are staying in the old house.

Breakdown of Voorlopig blijven wij in het oude huis.

wij
we
in
in
het huis
the house
oud
old
blijven
to stay
voorlopig
for the time being
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Questions & Answers about Voorlopig blijven wij in het oude huis.

What does voorlopig mean in this sentence?
Voorlopig translates as “for the time being,” “temporarily,” or “provisionally.” It indicates that the situation (staying in the old house) is not necessarily permanent and may change later.
Why is the verb blijven placed before the subject wij?

Dutch main clauses follow the V2 (verb-second) rule. The first element here is the adverbial voorlopig, so the finite verb blijven must come next, followed by the subject wij. A literal word-order breakdown is:

  1. Voorlopig (adverbial)
  2. blijven (finite verb)
  3. wij (subject)
  4. in het oude huis (rest of the clause)
Why use blijven instead of wonen?
  • Blijven means “to remain” or “stay,” emphasizing that you will continue to be in that location for now (with possible future change).
  • Wonen means “to live” or “reside,” a neutral statement of fact about where you live.
    So if your focus is on the ongoing status (“we’ll still be here for now”), blijven is more appropriate.
Why is it het oude huis and not de oude huis or in het oud huis?
  • Huis is a neuter noun in Dutch, so its definite article is het, not de.
  • With a definite article and an attributive adjective, neuter nouns take the –​e ending on the adjective: het oude huis.
    • (By contrast, an indefinite neuter phrase would be een oud huis, without the –​e.)
Can we drop wij and say Voorlopig blijven we in het oude huis?

Yes. In spoken or informal Dutch, you often use the clitic “we” instead of the full subject pronoun “wij.” The word order (V2) stays the same:
Voorlopig blijven we in het oude huis.

Could you also say Voorlopig wonen we in het oude huis?

Yes, but the nuance changes:

  • Voorlopig wonen we… simply states “for now we live in the old house.”
  • Voorlopig blijven we… stresses that you remain there temporarily and may move later.
Is it possible to add nog (“still”) for extra emphasis?

Absolutely. Nog highlights the continuing aspect:
Voorlopig blijven we nog in het oude huis.
This means “For the time being, we are still staying in the old house,” with a bit more focus on “still.”