Learn Hardcore Dutch: Hij hoest zachtjes tijdens de film; zijn keel doet pijn. - He coughs softly during the movie; his throat hurts.

Both can mean “softly,” but zachtjes (from zacht + -jes) is the most natural way to say “quietly/gently” for actions like coughing, speaking, knocking. Hij hoest zachtjes sounds idiomatic. Hij hoest zacht is possible but a bit more neutral or descriptive and less common here.

Can zachtjes go elsewhere in the sentence?

Yes. All of these are correct, with slight shifts in emphasis:

Hij hoest tijdens de film zachtjes. (time > manner; neutral)
Hij hoest zachtjes tijdens de film. (manner emphasized)
Tijdens de film hoest hij zachtjes. (fronted time phrase with inversion)

Why is it tijdens de film and not in de film or onder de film?

tijdens = during (a time span), which is what you want.
in de film means “in the movie” (as part of the film’s content).
onder de film is regional/nonstandard in many contexts; standard Dutch prefers tijdens.

How do I say this with “because”?

Two natural options:

Coordinating: Hij hoest zachtjes tijdens de film, want zijn keel doet pijn.
Subordinating: Hij hoest zachtjes tijdens de film omdat zijn keel pijn doet.
Use want for an easy, conversational link; omdat makes it explicitly causal and changes the word order in its clause.

Why is it omdat zijn keel pijn doet and not omdat zijn keel doet pijn?

After a subordinator like omdat, Dutch sends the finite verb to the end of the clause. So: subject + rest + verb → … omdat zijn keel pijn doet.

Could I use a comma instead of the semicolon?

Better not. In Dutch, joining two main clauses with just a comma (a comma splice) is usually avoided. Prefer a semicolon, a period, or add a conjunction like want/omdat.

Is zijn keel doet pijn idiomatic, or is there a better way?

It’s fine and clear. Another very common option is Hij heeft keelpijn (“He has a sore throat”). You can also hear Zijn keel is pijnlijk, but that’s more formal/clinical.

Can I say Hij heeft pijn in/aan zijn keel?

Yes. Both occur:

pijn in zijn keel is very common.
pijn aan zijn keel is also used, especially with other body parts (pijn aan mijn knie). With the throat, in is often preferred, but aan won’t raise eyebrows.

What about doet zeer instead of doet pijn?

doet zeer is a synonym of doet pijn. In the Netherlands it can sound a bit old-fashioned; in Flanders it’s perfectly common. So Zijn keel doet zeer is fine.

What are the genders and articles for film and keel?

Both are common gender (de-words): de film, de keel. Plurals: films, kelen.

Any quick pronunciation tips for tricky parts?

ij (in Hij) is like the vowel in “my.”
oe (in hoest) is like “oo” in “food.”
ch (in zachtjes) is the guttural sound from Scottish “loch.”
tj (the t
- j in -tjes) sounds like a light “ty” cluster.
Final -en (in tijdens) often reduces to a schwa sound.

How do you conjugate hoesten?

Present: ik/jij/hij hoest; wij/jullie/zij hoesten
Simple past: ik/hij hoestte; wij/jullie/zij hoestten
Past participle: gehoest (Perfect: Ik heb gehoest.)

Could I use kuchen instead of hoesten?

Yes, but it’s slightly different. kuchen (present kucht) is more like “to cough lightly/clear one’s throat.” So Hij kucht zachtjes suggests small, restrained coughs.

Do I have to include the possessive zijn with body parts?

Usually yes. Dutch typically uses a possessive with body parts: Zijn keel doet pijn. Saying De keel doet pijn is odd unless context already makes the owner obvious and generic.

What happens if I put tijdens de film first?

You must invert subject and verb in the main clause: Tijdens de film hoest hij zachtjes; zijn keel doet pijn. (Verb stays in second position.)

Does the semicolon itself mean “because”?

No. A semicolon only shows a close link; it does not encode causality. If you want to express cause, use want or omdat as shown above.