Verbs - present

Let's take a very common Dutch word: fietsen - which means'to ride a bicycle'. For the different persons it shows thefollowing forms:

    singular                  plural1 - ik fiets                  wij fietsen2 - jij fietst - fiets jij    jullie fietsen    u fietst                  (u fietst)3 - hij/zij fietst            zij fietsen

So the form for ik is the verb without the -enpart (this we call 'de stam'). And:

• If it should end on a 'long' vowel it has to become adouble one: for nemen (to take) it will be ikneem and for lopen (to walk)it should be 'ikloop'. There are a few exceptions, though - for komen(to come), for example it should be ik kom.
• Dutch words never end on double consonants, so for theik-form you also take half of a double consonant away.For rennen (to run) it would thus be ik ren andnot ik renn.
• Dutch words also never end on a v or a z.They become f and s. So for blazen (toblow) it will be ik blaas and for beloven (topromise) it will be ik beloof.

You take this form and add a t for the second and thirdperson singular, but you take it off again when the subjectjij or je comes after the verb instead ofbefore.

For plural you simply always take the infinitive form. Theonly exception is when you use u: this form for 'you',used when it has to be polite, can be used for singular andplural, but keeps the singular form.

The few irregular verbs in the present tense are onlyirregular for singular forms - plural forms always get theinfinitive form:

hebben (to have):      ik heb, jij hebt, u hebt/heeft, hij/zij heeftkunnen (to can, to be able to):      ik kan, jij kan/kunt, u kan/kunt, hij/zij kanmogen (to may, to be allowed to):     ik mag, zij mag, hij/zij magwillen (to want):      ik wil, jij wil/wilt, u wil/wilt, hij/zij wilzijn (to be):     ik ben, jij bent, u bent, hij/zij iszullen (to shall, to will):     ik zal, jij zal/zult, u zal/zult, hij/zij zal