You'll master the mechanics of pointing in Dutch today. Using the aanwijzend voornaamwoord deze die correctly ensures you score higher points during the Spreken (Speaking) section of your inburgeringsexamen (integration exam). This guide focuses on de (the) words to help you avoid common errors made by students. You'll learn to distinguish between items in your hand and objects across the street. By the end, your Dutch sentences will sound more natural to the DUO examiners.
Use 'deze' for things that are close — Apply 'deze' for items you are holding or are nearby.
You use deze (this) for things near you. When you hold a pen in your hand, you call it deze pen (this pen) because it's physically close to your body. If you can touch the object without walking, deze is the correct choice. You'll often use this during the exam when pointing at a paper or a picture on the table in front of you. Since the distance is small, you don't use the far-away version.
Imagine you're at the gemeente (municipality) to pick up a new driving license. You hold your old card and tell the clerk that you want to replace deze kaart (this card). The proximity of the card to your hand dictates the grammar. You'd never use die (that) in this specific situation. Using the wrong pointer makes your Dutch sound confusing to native speakers. Focus on the physical distance between your torso and the object you describe.
In your daily life, you might visit the huisarts (GP) for a check-up. You point to your shoulder and say that deze schouder (this shoulder) hurts. Because the shoulder is part of your body, it stays in the close category. You use deze for everything within arm's reach. Practice this by touching items on your desk right now. Call them deze telefoon (this phone), deze computer (this computer), or deze mok (this mug). These items belong to you and occupy your immediate space.
Use 'die' for things further away — Apply 'die' for items across the room or previously mentioned.
You use die for distant things. If you see a car parked across the street, you refer to it as die auto (that car). The distance requires a different word than the objects you can touch. During the Luisteren (Listening) part of the exam, you might hear someone talk about a building in another city. They'll use die because the building isn't in the room with them. It stays far away from the speaker's physical position.
Abstract concepts or things mentioned earlier also fall into this category. If your friend tells a story about a party last week, you ask about die avond (that evening). Even though the evening isn't a physical object you can point at, it's distant in time. Use die whenever the subject isn't present or is far away from your current location. This applies to memories, future plans, or people you haven't seen in months.
Consider a scenario at the train station where you're looking for your platform. You see a train arriving at the far end of the station. You tell your travel partner that die trein (that train) is leaving soon. Because you can't touch the train from your position, die is the mandatory choice. You'll see this frequently in the reading texts provided by DUO during your preparation for the Lezen (Reading) exam. Using die signals to your listener that the object is out of reach.
The relationship with 'de' articles — Understand why these pronouns only work with 'de' words.
Dutch nouns have genders. You must know if a word uses de or het before you can pick a pointer. This specific lesson covers only nouns that take the de article. If a word is a de word, it'll always use deze or die. You can't mix these with het words like het huis (the house) or het kind (the child). It's a fundamental rule of Dutch grammar.
Changing 'de stoel' to 'deze stoel'
You start with the basic article. Take the word de stoel (the chair) as your primary example. When you want to be specific, you drop the article and replace it with your pointer. If you're sitting in the chair, it becomes deze stoel. If the chair sits in the corner of the room, it becomes die stoel. This transition is simple once you memorize the gender of the noun. You never use both the article and the pointer at the same time.
Using 'die' for people
People always take the de article in Dutch. This means you'll always use deze or die when referring to specific individuals. When you see a man standing by the window, he is die man (that man). If a woman stands right next to you, she is deze vrouw (this woman). This rule applies to everyone including the docent (teacher), the buurman (neighbor) and even the King. You should practice this during the Speaking exam when describing people in the prompt images.
Practice with classroom objects
Look around your study space. You see de tafel (the table) and de lamp (the lamp) in almost every classroom. If you're leaning on the table, call it deze tafel. If the lamp hangs from the ceiling high above your head, call it die lamp. Your OV-chipkaart (transport card) is also a de word. When you hold it to check in at the station, you're holding deze kaart. Labeling items in your mind helps build muscle memory for the exam.
Common mistake: Using 'deze' for plurals — Learn why 'deze' and 'die' are both used for plural nouns.
Plural nouns always use de. It doesn't matter if the singular version was a het word. For example, het boek (the book) becomes de boeken (the books) in the plural form. Because the plural uses de, you must use deze or die to point at them. Many students try to use dit or dat for plural het words, but that's a mistake. Always look at the plural article before choosing your pointer.
If you have several documents from the Belastingdienst (Tax Office) on your desk, they're deze papieren (these papers). If those same papers are in a cabinet across the office, they're die papieren (those papers). This shift to de for all plurals makes your job easier. You only need to remember two pointers for every plural noun in the Dutch language. This simplicity helps you during the Schrijven (Writing) exam when you list multiple items.
Errors often happen when students translate directly from their native language. In English, we have four words: this, that, these, and those. In Dutch, for de words and all plurals, you only have deze and die. You use deze for both "this" and "these". You use die for both "that" and "those". This consolidation reduces the number of words you need to memorize during your study sessions.
Bottom line
The most important rule to remember is that deze and die only accompany de nouns or their plural forms. Use deze for items you can touch and die for everything else. This distinction is essential for passing your Speaking exam with a high score.
