Het is bijna middag, maar de lucht is nog steeds bewolkt.

to be

Breakdown of Het is bijna middag, maar de lucht is nog steeds bewolkt.

• maar: but
• het: it
• nog steeds: still

Questions & Answers about Het is bijna middag, maar de lucht is nog steeds bewolkt.

What does bijna mean and how is it used in a sentence?

bijna means “almost” or “nearly.” It’s an adverb that you place before a verb, adjective, or time expression to indicate something is just short of happening or being true.
Examples:

• Het is bijna vijf uur. – It’s almost five o’clock.
• Ik ben bijna klaar. – I’m nearly ready.
• Dat is bijna onmogelijk. – That’s almost impossible.

What does nog steeds mean and can I use just nog instead?

nog steeds means “still” in the sense of “continuing up to now.” It’s a combination of nog (“still”/“yet”) and steeds (“always”/“continuously”), so it adds extra emphasis. You can sometimes use just nog (“De lucht is nog bewolkt”), but nog steeds underlines that nothing has changed so far (“It’s still cloudy”).

Why does the sentence start with Het, and what does it refer to?

Here Het is a dummy subject (similar to English “It” in “It’s raining”). It doesn’t point to a specific noun; it just fills the subject slot in a weather- or time-related statement. In Dutch you often need that placeholder het:

• Het regent. – It’s raining.
• Het is half zeven. – It’s half past six.

What exactly does refer to in Dutch—“afternoon” or “noon”?