HOW SIMPLE IS THE Simple Present

 

The Simple present

The simple resent is not as simple as you think in Dutch.  We use simple present tense to refer to an event that takes place right now or to a current state. The conjugation of the simple present is as simple as the following:

Ik (stem)                                  = Ik maak

Je (stem) + t                             = Je maak t

Hij (stem) + t                           = Hij maak t

We, jullie, ze  - infinitive        = we maaken

The verbs maken, leren, huren en koken are all subject to the first stem rule:

A LONG VOWEL INFINITIVE REQUIRES A LONG VOWEL STEM

Maken (to make)  stem:maak

Ik -maak                         =I make

Je, hij/zij -maakt            = you make, he/she makes

We,jullie,ze -maaken     =they make

Same rule is for leren, huren,koken (a long vowel infinitive requires a long vowel stem) leer, huur, kook

But you cannot apply the same rule to ‘rust’. rust is always rust. Ik rust, je rust, hij/zij rust en we,jullie, ze rusten  (and keep in mind it is ‘rust’ and not RUUST). May be people are too tired to write double letters! They need rest.

Ik bak vanavond pannenkoeken = Tonight, I will bake pancakes

Ze zingt morgen een liedje voor ons = Tomorrow, she will sing a song for us

Dit jaar doe we nog veel leuk dingen = This year, we will do many nice things

We doen het de volgende keer samen =Next time, we will do it together.

Don’t take it so seriously. This is just to distract you from the boring simple present tense!

Oh No, don’t forget about ‘blaten’ (to bleat) this verb has a complete different rule

Ik,je,hij,zij,  =blaat

We,juliie,ze =blaten  (look again, it is ‘blaten’ and not BLAATEN)

I think you are getting the hang of it until your blood pressure goes up!

But don’t bleed!  Rules are again different!

Bloeden (to bleed)

Ik -bloed

Je,hij,zij- bloedt

We,jullie,ze -bloeden

Same rule applies to ‘leiden’ (to lead)

When the verbs stem ends in -d: even though you cannot hear -t in the 2^nd and 3^rd person singular, you should not forget to add -t!

Special note: observing the rule that a syllable never ends in two identical consonant: if the stem of verb ends in -t like ‘rusten’ (rust) , the stem does not get an extra t in the conjugation of the 2^nd and the 3^rd person singular

Don’t quarrel with me for not being precise! I told you in the beginning simple present is not as simple as you think.

Ruzien (to quarrel) the stem stays same for everything ‘ruzie’

Ik -ruzie

Je, hij -ruzie-t

We,jullie, ze ruzie-n 

Let me add a bit of oil to the fire. Effect is same!

Olien (to oil)

Ik olie

Je,hij- olie-t

We,jullie,ze -olie-n

Now you can start humming about simple present!

Neurine (to hum) May be you should apply the same rule as ruzien and olien

But when the rules get a bit regular and normal we make exceptions to make it more complicated. It is a Dutch style!

Skien (to ski) (stem skie) let me make a little exception for the first person singular. We subtract -e

And make it

Ik ski  (NOT Ik SKIE)

Please note that the examples given above are unstressed personal pronouns. Some pronouns change when they are stressed in a phrase: je/jij, we/wij, ze/zij (both singular and plural)

We have too many rules for simple present. Do we get enough time to apply all these rules? Yes, of course.

There are mainly four cases in which we apply all these rules. The Dutch people are keen users of the simple present. They even use it to refer to the future or hypothetical (conditional) sentences.

1.      Momentary action 

     to refer to a momentary action that coincides with the moment we are talking about it.  If I say “look at the painting”, I am looking while mentioning it. Instead of the simple present tense, we can also use continuous: “ I am looking at the painting”.

 

Ik neem een hapje = I am taking a bite

Het regent = It is raining

Ze valt bijna in slap = She is almost falling asleep

 

2.      Ongoing, habitual, or repetitive action or state

In this case the action or state is not tied to the moment we are talking about it.

Ze werkt bij de overheid = she works for the government

Hij studeert in Maastricht = He studies in Maastricht

Ik woon in Maastricht = I live in Maastricht

 

“Ik woon in Maastricht” implies an on going state. It is likely that I also lived in Maastricht yesterday and I will still live there tomorrow. It is an enduring state, which is not tied to the moment I mention it.

 

Note that the Dutch always use the simple present to refer to a state which is still going on:

Ik woon al drie jaar in Maastricht = I have lived in Maastricht for three years.

Ik tennis al vanaf mijn tiende jaar = I have played tennis ever since I was ten years old.

Hij zorgt al Jaren voor zijn zieke moeder = He has been looking after his ill mother for years.

 

Where the English use the perfect tense, the Dutch use the simple present

 

Habitual or repetitive actions

Zij komt altijd te laat = She is always late

Hij luistert elke morgen naar de radio = He listens to the radio every morning.

Ike et geen vlees = I do not eat meat. ( The vegetarian who says “Ike et geen vlees” want to express that he generaaly (habitually) does not eat meat.

 

3.      Future events or actions

Although we do have a future tense to refer to the actions or event that take place in the future, the Dutch often use the simple present. The speaker uses and adverb of time (tomorrow, next week) to indicate that he is referring to the future.

We eten morgen erwtensoep =we will eat peas soup tomorrow

Hij vliegt aanstaande vrijdag naar Rome = He will fly to Rome coming Friday.

Ik neem er straks nog een = I will have another one in a moment.

 

4.      Conditional sentences: If-then

Where the English use the auxiliary verb ‘will’ after an ‘if clause’, the Dutch are perfectly happy with the simple present. The Dutch equivalent for ‘wil’ (zullen) can be used as well, but it will make a sentence sound rather stiff.

Als je licht uitdoet, kun je de steren beter zien = If you switch off the light, you will see the stars better

Als alles volgens plan verloopt, komen ze volgende week terug naar Nederland = if everything is going to the plan, they will come back to the Netherlands next week. (terugkomen is a seperable compound verb)

Als je te veel cola drinkt, krijg je gaatjes in je tanden. = if you drink too much cola, you will get cavities in your teeth.   

 

So let us stop feeding too much with simple present. It is just like drinking too much cola,, we will get cavities in the brain  and we will forget about simple past and simple future.