Chapter 13: Definite Articles - 'de' and 'het' (The)

Introduction: Specifying Nouns

In English, we use the word "the" when we are talking about a specific noun that the listener already knows about or that has been mentioned before. This is called the definite article. In Dutch, there are two words for "the": de and het.

'De' or 'Het'?

Choosing between de and het is one of the fundamental challenges when learning Dutch. Every singular noun in Dutch is either a de-word or a het-word. This distinction is based on the grammatical gender of the noun:

De-words: These are historically masculine or feminine nouns.
Het-words: These are historically neuter nouns.

Unfortunately, for most nouns, there are few easy rules to predict whether it's de or het. The best approach is to learn the article together with every new noun you encounter.

Rules and Guidelines

While memorization is key, there are some helpful rules and strong tendencies:

Plural Nouns: This is the easiest rule! ALL plural nouns use de, regardless of whether the singular form was de or het.

de man (the man) -> de mannen (the men)
de vrouw (the woman) -> de vrouwen (the women)
het huis (the house) -> de huizen (the houses)
het boek (the book) -> de boeken (the books)
de fiets (the bicycle) -> de fietsen (the bicycles)

People: Nouns that specifically refer to people (professions, family members, general terms for people) are almost always de-words.

de leraar (the teacher)
de student (the student)
de bakker (the baker)
de broer (the brother)
de tante (the aunt)
de buurman (the neighbour - male)
Exception Example: het kind (the child) is het, but the diminutive het meisje (the girl) follows rule 3.

Diminutives: Nouns made smaller by adding a suffix like -je, -tje, -pje, -etje are called diminutives. ALL diminutive nouns use het.

het huisje (the little house - from het huis)
het tafeltje (the little table - from de tafel)
het boekje (the booklet - from het boek)
het mannetje (the little man - from de man)
het meisje (the girl - diminutive form of meid)

Languages: Names of languages are het-words.

het Nederlands (Dutch)
het Engels (English)
het Spaans (Spanish)

Infinitives Used as Nouns: When a verb's infinitive form (e.g., eten - to eat) is used as a noun (meaning 'the act of eating' or 'the food'), it takes het.

het eten (the food / the eating)
het lezen (the reading)
het schrijven (the writing)

Other Tendencies (Less Reliable):

Fruits, trees, plants are often de (de appel, de boom).
Metals are often het (het goud, het ijzer).
Words ending in -ing, -heid, -ij, -ie, -teit, -tuur are usually de.
Words ending in -isme, -ment are usually het.

(Focus on rules 1-5 first; these others are just loose patterns.)

Why Does It Matter?

Knowing de vs. het is important because it affects:

Which definite article to use (de or het).
How adjectives are spelled when they describe the noun (adjective endings - learned later).
Which pronoun to use when referring back to the noun (hij/hem for de-words, het for het-words - learned later).

Examples in Sentences

De leraar schrijft op het bord. (The teacher writes on the board.) - leraar is de, bord is het.
Het meisje leest de boeken. (The girl reads the books.) - meisje is het (diminutive), boeken is de (plural).
Ik vind het Nederlands moeilijk. (I find Dutch difficult.) - Nederlands is het (language).

Learn Nouns WITH Their Articles!

The most crucial takeaway is this: Whenever you learn a new Dutch noun, learn its definite article (de or het) at the same time. Use dictionaries, flashcards, or vocabulary lists that include the articles. While the rules above help, especially for plurals and diminutives, direct memorization is unavoidable for most singular nouns.