Breakdown of Tom praat kinderachtig met zijn zus.
Questions & Answers about Tom praat kinderachtig met zijn zus.
Dutch has several verbs related to speaking, but they’re not interchangeable in all contexts:
praten – “to talk, to chat, to speak (in general).”
- Tom praat met zijn zus. = Tom talks with his sister.
This is the most neutral, everyday verb for “to talk”.
- Tom praat met zijn zus. = Tom talks with his sister.
spreken – often a bit more formal or specific; also “to speak (a language)”.
- Tom spreekt met zijn zus. is possible, but feels a bit more formal or distant.
- Hij spreekt goed Nederlands. = He speaks Dutch well.
zeggen – “to say (something)”. It normally needs what is said.
- Tom zegt iets tegen zijn zus. = Tom says something to his sister.
In Tom praat kinderachtig met zijn zus, the focus is on how Tom is talking in general, not on specific words he says. That makes praten the natural verb here.
Praat is the present tense, 3rd person singular form of praten.
Present tense of praten:
- ik praat – I talk
- jij / je praat – you talk (singular, informal)
- hij / zij / het praat – he / she / it talks
- wij / we praten – we talk
- jullie praten – you (plural) talk
- zij / ze praten – they talk
So in this sentence, Tom is 3rd person singular, so you use praat.
Kinderachtig is an adjective meaning childish. In this sentence it’s used in an adverbial way: it describes how Tom talks.
Dutch often uses adjectives adverbially without changing their form:
- Hij praat luid. = He talks loudly.
- Ze werkt hard. = She works hard.
- Tom praat kinderachtig. = Tom talks childishly.
So although it’s an adjective, when it modifies a verb (describing the manner), Dutch usually just leaves it in the basic form. It doesn’t change with gender or number in this position.
Both Tom praat kinderachtig met zijn zus and Tom praat met zijn zus kinderachtig are grammatically possible, but:
Tom praat kinderachtig met zijn zus.
Feels more natural and neutral. The manner (kinderachtig) comes early, then the prepositional phrase (met zijn zus).Tom praat met zijn zus kinderachtig.
Sounds marked or somewhat unusual. It can sound like extra emphasis on kinderachtig, almost like an afterthought:
“Tom talks with his sister – in a childish way.”
Default Dutch word order in a simple main clause is:
[Subject] – [finite verb] – (manner/time) – (place/other details].
So Tom (subject) praat (verb) kinderachtig (manner) met zijn zus (with whom) is the natural pattern.
Both met and tegen can be used with verbs of speaking, but they’re slightly different:
met = “with” → suggests a two‑way conversation
- Tom praat met zijn zus. = Tom is (having a conversation) with his sister.
tegen = “to” → emphasizes speaking in one direction
- Tom praat tegen zijn zus. = Tom talks (to) his sister.
This could suggest he’s doing most of the talking, or even talking at her.
- Tom praat tegen zijn zus. = Tom talks (to) his sister.
In everyday language, met is more neutral for “talking with someone”, especially if you think of it as a normal conversation. Tegen can add a nuance that he is talking to her, not necessarily with mutual exchange.
In met zijn zus, zijn is the possessive pronoun his.
- Tom praat kinderachtig met zijn zus.
→ zijn refers to Tom (Tom’s sister).
If the subject were female:
- Anna praat kinderachtig met haar zus.
→ haar = her
So:
- zijn = his
- haar = her
Their position is the same: met zijn zus, met haar zus.
Yes. Dutch works the same way as English here:
- Tom praat kinderachtig met zijn zus.
- Hij praat kinderachtig met zijn zus. = He talks childishly with his sister.
As long as it’s clear from context who hij (he) refers to, you can replace the name with the pronoun.
All relate to “sister”, but with different nuances:
zus – the normal, neutral word for sister.
- zijn zus = his sister.
zusje – diminutive, literally “little sister”.
It often means younger sister, or just sounds more affectionate.- zijn zusje = his little/younger sister.
zuster – more formal/old‑fashioned in the sense “sister”.
Today it’s mostly used:- for nuns (religious sisters), or
- in older or very formal style.
In everyday speech, people usually say zus or zusje.
Yes. Dutch has one present tense where English has two main forms:
- Simple present: Tom talks childishly with his sister.
- Present continuous: Tom is talking childishly with his sister.
Tom praat kinderachtig met zijn zus can correspond to either of these, depending on context. Dutch normally does not form a separate continuous tense for ordinary sentences like this.
Approximate English-like pronunciations:
praat – /praːt/
- aa = a long “a” like in British “father”.
- Final t is pronounced: praaht.
zijn – /zɛin/ or /zɛɪn/ (varies slightly by region)
- Sounds a bit like English “zine”.
kinderachtig – /ˈkɪndərˌɑxtəx/
- kin as in “kin”
- der like “der” in “murder” (unstressed, schwa sound: dərr)
- ach = the harsh ch sound as in German “Bach”
- final g is often the same harsh sound as ch, especially in the Netherlands.
zus – /zʏs/
- u is like the French u in “lune”, or like ü in German “München”.
- There is no exact English equivalent; it’s a rounded version of the vowel in “bit”.
These are just approximations; hearing native audio is the best way to get these right.
They look the same in writing, but their function and position differ:
zijn as a possessive (his):
- met zijn zus = with his sister
It comes before a noun.
- met zijn zus = with his sister
zijn as a verb (“to be” – infinitive or 1st/3rd person plural):
- Wij zijn moe. = We are tired.
- Zij zijn blij. = They are happy.
Here it functions as the main verb of the sentence.
In Tom praat kinderachtig met zijn zus, it’s clearly the possessive because it’s followed by a noun (zus).
For a yes–no question in Dutch, you put the finite verb first:
- Statement: Tom praat kinderachtig met zijn zus.
- Question: Praat Tom kinderachtig met zijn zus?
= Is Tom talking childishly with his sister?
No extra words like “do/does” are needed; just move the verb to the front.