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Breakdown of Nieuwsgierigheid kan gevaarlijk zijn in een oud huis.
zijn
to be
in
in
het huis
the house
oud
old
kunnen
can
een
a, an
gevaarlijk
dangerous
de nieuwsgierigheid
the curiosity
Questions & Answers about Nieuwsgierigheid kan gevaarlijk zijn in een oud huis.
Why is Nieuwsgierigheid capitalized?
In Dutch only the first word of a sentence and proper names are capitalized. Here Nieuwsgierigheid is capitalized simply because it’s the first word—unlike German, Dutch does not capitalize all nouns.
Why is there no article before nieuwsgierigheid?
When you talk about something in a general or abstract sense, Dutch often drops the article. You’re saying “Curiosity can be dangerous…” rather than “The curiosity can…”—so you omit de or het.
Why do we use kan instead of kunnen?
kan is the present-tense, third-person singular form of kunnen (“to be able to”). Because nieuwsgierigheid is singular, you conjugate kunnen as kan.
In kan gevaarlijk zijn, why does zijn go to the end?
Dutch main clauses follow the V2 rule: the finite verb (kan) is in second position, and any non-finite verbs (infinitives like zijn) go to the end. Adjectives (here gevaarlijk) stay between the finite verb and the infinitive.
Why isn’t it een oude huis?
Huis is a neuter noun (a het-word). After the indefinite article een, adjectives remain uninflected for neuter nouns—so you get een oud huis, not een oude huis.
Can I start with in een oud huis instead?
Yes. You can front the prepositional phrase:
“In een oud huis kan nieuwsgierigheid gevaarlijk zijn.”
Just remember that the finite verb (kan) still stays in second position, causing the subject (nieuwsgierigheid) to follow it.
Could I use op instead of in?
No. In means “inside,” while op means “on top of.” Since you’re referring to being inside the old house, you need in een oud huis.
Is gevaarlijk functioning as an adverb here?
No—it’s an adjective used predicatively after zijn. Predicative adjectives in Dutch don’t take an ending (unlike attributive adjectives before a noun).
Are there synonyms for nieuwsgierigheid?
Yes. You could use curiositeit (a borrowed term) or describe it with a phrase like de drang om te weten (“the urge to know”). However, nieuwsgierigheid is by far the most common everyday word.
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