Learn Hardcore Dutch: Morgen moet ik in de klas een spreekbeurt houden. - Tomorrow I have to give an oral presentation in class.

The finite verb (here: moet) must always be in second position in the sentence.
The first position can be anything: subject, time word, object, etc.

In your sentence, the time word Morgen is put first:

Morgen – position 1
moet – finite verb, so it takes position 2
ik in de klas een spreekbeurt houden – the rest of the clause

So: Morgen moet ik … is perfectly normal Dutch word order.
If the subject comes first instead, you get:

Ik moet morgen in de klas een spreekbeurt houden.
(Subject ik in position 1, verb moet still in position 2.)

Both orders are correct; the rule is simply: the conjugated verb is always second.

Can I also say Ik moet morgen in de klas een spreekbeurt houden? Is there any difference?

Yes, that sentence is also correct:

Ik moet morgen in de klas een spreekbeurt houden.

The difference is mainly emphasis:

Morgen moet ik…
→ Puts more emphasis on tomorrow (contrast: not today, but tomorrow).
Ik moet morgen…
→ More neutral, just stating an obligation you have, including the time.

In casual speech, Ik moet morgen… is probably more common, but starting with Morgen… is very natural too, especially if you’re talking about what will happen tomorrow.

Does Morgen here mean “tomorrow” or “morning”? And why is it capitalized?

In this sentence, Morgen means “tomorrow”, not “morning”.

Dutch has:

morgen (adverb) = tomorrow
- Morgen moet ik werken. – I have to work tomorrow.
de morgen or ’s morgens = the morning / in the morning
- ’s morgens drink ik koffie. – I drink coffee in the morning.

In your sentence, Morgen is capitalized only because it is the first word of the sentence, not because it is a noun. If it were in the middle, you’d write:

Ik moet morgen in de klas een spreekbeurt houden.

Why are there two verbs, moet and houden, in the same clause?

Because they have different grammatical functions:

moet = the modal verb “must / have to” (finite, conjugated for ik).
houden = the main verb in the infinitive, meaning “to hold, to give” (here, “to give a talk”).

The structure is:

moet (have to) + houden (give/hold)
→ “have to give / must give”

This is the same pattern as in English:

I must go. – must (modal) + go (main verb)
Ik moet gaan. – moet (modal) + gaan (main verb)

So Morgen moet ik … houden literally: “Tomorrow must I … hold [a talk].”

Why does houden come at the very end of the sentence?

Dutch typically moves infinitive verbs to the end of the clause.

In a main clause with a modal:

Conjugated verb (modal) → second position
Infinitive(s) → at the end

So:

Morgen (1st position)
moet (2nd position, finite verb)
ik in de klas een spreekbeurt (middle part)
houden (infinitive at the end)

This pattern is very general in Dutch:

Ik wil Nederlands leren. – I want to learn Dutch.
Morgen ga ik een film kijken. – Tomorrow I am going to watch a film.

The last verb in the clause is usually the infinitive (or participle).

What exactly is a spreekbeurt? Is it just a “presentation”?

Spreekbeurt is usually:

an oral presentation or oral report,
typically given by a school pupil (primary or early secondary school)
to their class, often on a fixed topic and for a fixed length of time.

It overlaps with “presentation”, but:

spreekbeurt strongly suggests a school assignment for kids/teens.
For university or business contexts, Dutch more often uses presentatie:
- Ik geef morgen een presentatie op mijn werk. – I’m giving a presentation at work tomorrow.

You can use spreekbeurt for adults jokingly or figuratively, but its core meaning is that school-type assignment.

Why do you say een spreekbeurt houden? Could you use other verbs, like geven?

In Dutch, spreekbeurt commonly pairs with the verb houden:

een spreekbeurt houden = to give / deliver an oral presentation.

This is a fixed collocation. Dutch uses houden with several kinds of “speeches”:

een toespraak houden – to give a speech
een preek houden – to preach / give a sermon
een lezing houden – to give a lecture

You will also hear:

een spreekbeurt geven – possible, but minder gebruikelijk (less standard) than houden.

In everyday Dutch around schools, een spreekbeurt houden is the normal phrase you’ll hear from teachers, students, and parents.

Why is it in de klas and not in klas or op school?

Several points here:

Article “de”
- klas is a common noun and takes the definite article de:
  - de klas = the class / the classroom
- You must use an article here; *in klas is wrong in standard Dutch.
Meaning of “klas”
- de klas can mean:
  - the group of students (the class), or
  - the classroom (the room), depending on context.
- in de klas here is like English “in class / in the classroom”.
Why not “op school”?
- op school = at school (general location), not specifically in the class session.
- in de klas = specifically in the classroom / during class.
- So in de klas fits better with giving a talk to your classmates.

So Morgen moet ik in de klas een spreekbeurt houden = “Tomorrow I have to give an oral presentation in class.”

Can I say Morgen moet ik een spreekbeurt in de klas houden instead? Is that still correct?

Yes, that is also correct:

Morgen moet ik een spreekbeurt in de klas houden.

Dutch allows some flexibility in the order of:

adverbials like in de klas, and
objects like een spreekbeurt.

Both of these are fine:

Morgen moet ik in de klas een spreekbeurt houden.
Morgen moet ik een spreekbeurt in de klas houden.

Subtle nuance (often very small):

Version 1 can sound a bit more like “Tomorrow, in class, I have to give a talk.” (class as the setting)
Version 2 can sound a bit more like “Tomorrow I have to give a talk in class.” (slightly more focus on the talk).

But in normal conversation, they’re essentially interchangeable and both natural.

How would this sentence look in a subordinate clause with omdat or dat?

In a subordinate clause, Dutch moves all verbs to the end, in a cluster.

Starting sentence (main clause word order):

Morgen moet ik in de klas een spreekbeurt houden.

Subordinate clauses:

With omdat (because):
- Ik ben zenuwachtig omdat ik morgen in de klas een spreekbeurt moet houden.
  - Literally: “I am nervous because I tomorrow in the class a talk must hold.”
With dat (that):
- Ik weet dat ik morgen in de klas een spreekbeurt moet houden.
  - “I know that tomorrow I have to give a talk in class.”

Notice:

In the subordinate clause, both moet and houden go to the end:
- … een spreekbeurt moet houden.
There is no verb-second after omdat or dat.

What are the gender and plurals of spreekbeurt and klas? Do they change this sentence?

spreekbeurt
- Gender: de-word → de spreekbeurt
- Plural: spreekbeurten
- Example: Volgende week houden drie kinderen spreekbeurten.
klas
- Gender: de-word → de klas
- Plural: klassen
- Example: Er zijn drie klassen in die school.

In your sentence you use singular + indefinite article:

een spreekbeurt – one (unspecified) presentation
in de klas – a specific class (the one you attend)

Changing number would change the sentence, for example:

Morgen moet ik in de klassen spreekbeurten houden.
– “Tomorrow I have to give presentations in the classes.”
(Now plural, and the meaning is quite different.)

But as written, the genders don’t force any special changes in this particular sentence beyond using de and the correct plural forms where needed.

How do you pronounce morgen, spreekbeurt, and klas?

Approximate pronunciations (Dutch → rough English):

morgen – /ˈmɔr.ɣə(n)/
- mor like the mor in morning but shorter.
- g = a guttural sound, like a rough h in the back of your throat.
- Final -en often sounds like a weak -uh or even almost disappears: MOR-ghə.
spreekbeurt – /ˈspreːk.bøːrt/
- spree(k) but with a long ay sound: spring without the -ing, more like sprake.
- ee = long “ay” as in say.
- eu in beurt is like the vowel in French “peu”, lips rounded, not in English.
- End -rt is pronounced, though the t may be light: SPRAKE-burt (but with that French-like eu).
klas – /klɑs/
- k as in cat, l as in let.
- a is short, like the u in British English “cup” but a bit more towards a.
- Final s like in bus: klahs.

If you want to practice, saying the whole sentence slowly:

MOR-ghə(n) moet ik in de KLAS een SPRAKE-beurt houden
(with the Dutch guttural g and the rounded eu in beurt).