De kabel zit los.

The cable is loose.

Breakdown of De kabel zit los.

• de kabel: the cable
• los: loose
• loszitten: to be loose

Questions & Answers about De kabel zit los.

Why is it zit and not is in De kabel zit los?

Dutch often uses “position verbs” to describe how/where something is situated. Zitten can mean “to be fixed/inserted/held in place.” With things that are supposed to be attached (screws, cables, buttons), Dutch commonly says they zitten loose or tight.

• De kabel zit los suggests the cable is in its socket/holder but not securely; it wobbles or can be pulled out easily.
• De kabel is los is a more general state: it’s loose/free, possibly (fully) detached. It’s fine, just less specific.

Is this actually the separable verb loszitten?

Yes. Dictionary form: loszitten (“to be loose/not firmly attached”). In main clauses the prefix separates:

• Present: De kabel zit los.
• Past: De kabel zat los.
• Perfect: De kabel heeft losgezeten.
• Subordinate clause: …dat de kabel loszit. It uses the auxiliary hebben in perfect tenses.

What does zitten mean here? It doesn’t look like “to sit.”

Here zitten means “to be positioned/held in place.” It’s part of a Dutch pattern:

• zitten: inserted/held in something (screws, plugs, teeth, buttons)
• staan: upright/standing (bottles, towers, printed text “staat op de pagina”)
• liggen: lying/flat/on a surface (books on a table, cables on the floor)
• hangen: hanging/suspended (lamps, hanging cables) So a cable that isn’t firmly connected typically “zít los.”

Is los an adjective, and why doesn’t it have an -e here?

Yes, los is an adjective used predicatively (after a verb like zijn/worden/zitten/liggen). Predicative adjectives do not take the -e ending:

• Predicative: De kabel zit los.
• Attributive (before a noun): een losse kabel, de losse kabel. For neuter diminutives, note the usual rule: een los kabeltje but het losse kabeltje.

What gender is kabel, and what are the plural and diminutive?

• Gender: common gender (de-word) → de kabel
• Plural: kabels → De kabels zitten los.
• Diminutive: het kabeltje → Het kabeltje zit los.

How do I negate or soften/strengthen this sentence?

• Negation: De kabel zit niet los. (“The cable isn’t loose.”)
• To say it’s not properly secure: De kabel zit niet (goed) vast.
• Degree:
  • De kabel zit een beetje los.
  • De kabel zit best wel/erg/heel/volledig/helemaal los.

How do I make a yes/no question or a wh-question with this?

• Yes/no: Zit de kabel los?
• Wh-:
  • Waarom zit de kabel los? (Why…)
  • Waar zit de kabel los? (At which point is it loose?) Remember: in yes/no questions, the finite verb comes first.

What’s the difference between zit/hangt/ligt/is los for a cable?

• zit los: in place but wobbly/poorly secured (very idiomatic for connectors, screws).
• hangt los: dangling (often one end is unattached).
• ligt los: lying around unattached on a surface.
• is los: general state “is loose/free,” often implying not attached at all. Opposite is zit vast (“is firmly attached”).

How do I say “The cable has come loose” or “was disconnected/unplugged”?

• Change of state (came loose): De kabel is losgeraakt / losgekomen.
• Disconnected (deliberately): De kabel is losgekoppeld.
• Unplugged (power plug): De stekker zit niet in het stopcontact or De stekker is eruit.
• If you did it: Ik heb de kabel losgemaakt.

What’s the conjugation of zitten I should remember?

• Present: ik zit, jij/u zit, hij/zij/het zit, wij/jullie/zij zitten
• Past: ik/hij zat, wij/jullie/zij zaten
• Past participle: gezeten (for loszitten: losgezeten)

Is zit los used beyond cables? What other nouns commonly “zitten los”?

Yes, very common with things meant to be fixed:

• De schroef zit los. (screw)
• Mijn kies zit los. (tooth)
• Het handvat zit los. (handle)
• Het wiel zit los. (wheel) It implies they’re in place but not secured.

Any quick pronunciation tips?

• de: duh
• kabel: KAA-bəl (long “aa” like in “father”)
• zit: zit (short i as in “bit”)
• los: loss (short o)