De wolken verdwijnen en de hemel wordt weer blauw.

The clouds disappear and the sky turns blue again.

Breakdown of De wolken verdwijnen en de hemel wordt weer blauw.

• en: and
• weer: again
• verdwijnen: to disappear
• blauw: blue
• de wolk: the cloud
• de hemel: the sky
• worden: to turn

Questions & Answers about De wolken verdwijnen en de hemel wordt weer blauw.

What does verdwijnen mean and how is it conjugated in this sentence?

Verdwijnen means “to disappear” or “to vanish.” It’s a regular weak verb. In the present tense you conjugate it as follows:

• ik verdwijn
• jij verdwijnt
• hij/zij/het verdwijnt
• wij/jullie/zij verdwijnen

Here the subject is de wolken (third person plural), so we use verdwijnen: De wolken verdwijnen = “The clouds are disappearing.”

What is the difference between worden and zijn when describing a change?

• Worden = “to become.” You use it when something changes from one state to another.
• Zijn = “to be.” You use it to describe a static state or condition.

In our sentence, de hemel wordt weer blauw means “the sky is becoming blue again.” If you said de hemel is blauw, you’d simply state “the sky is blue” (no emphasis on a change).

Why is de used before wolken and hemel, and is de always the right article for plural nouns?

• In Dutch, de is the definite article for all plural nouns, regardless of gender.
• For singular nouns you choose de (common gender) or het (neuter gender).

Here:

• wolken (clouds) is plural → de wolken
• hemel (sky) is singular and common gender → de hemel

What does weer mean, and why is it placed before blauw?

Weer here means “again.” It’s an adverb indicating repetition. In Dutch sentences adverbs usually come directly before the adjective or verb they modify. So:
wordt (verb) + weer (adverb) + blauw (adjective) = “becomes blue again.”

How is the word order structured in the second clause?

Dutch main clauses follow the pattern:
Subject – Verb – (Adverb) – Object/Complement

In de hemel wordt weer blauw we have:

• Subject: de hemel
• Verb: wordt
• Adverb: weer
• Complement (adjective): blauw

How do you pronounce the ij in verdwijnen, and is it different from ei?

In standard Dutch, ij and ei represent the same vowel sound, similar to the English “ay” in “day” but with slightly more spread lips. Examples that rhyme: ij in blij, ei in rein. So verdwijnen = /vərˈdʋɛi̯nə/.