Introduction: Talking About the Past

The Perfect Tense (Voltooid Tegenwoordige Tijd, often abbreviated as V.T.T.) is the most common way to talk about completed actions in the past in spoken Dutch. It corresponds roughly to the English Present Perfect ("I have worked") or sometimes the Simple Past ("I worked"), especially when the action is finished but might have relevance to the present.

It's formed using an auxiliary (helping) verb ë either hebben (to have) or zijn (to be) ë and a past participle (voltooid deelwoord) of the main verb. This chapter focuses on the vast majority of verbs that use hebben as the auxiliary.

Formation of the Perfect Tense with hebben

The structure is:

Subject + Conjugated hebben + (Object/Adverbials/Rest) + Past Participle

There are two key components:

1. Conjugated hebben: You need the correct present tense form of hebben based on the subject:

2. Past Participle (voltooid deelwoord): This is the form of the main verb that indicates the action is completed. It goes to the end of the clause.

• Regular Verbs: The past participle is usually formed with ge- + stem + -d or -t.
• Rule: Use the 't kofschip (or 't fokschaap) rule: If the last letter of the verb stem is one of the consonants in 't kofschip (t, k, f, s, ch, p), the past participle ends in -t. Otherwise, it ends in -d.
• werken (to work) -> stem werk (k is in 't kofschip) -> ge + werk + t = gewerkt
• maken (to make) -> stem maak (k is in 't kofschip) -> ge + maak + t = gemaakt
• praten (to talk) -> stem praat (t is in 't kofschip) -> ge + praat + t = gepraat (Stem already ends in -t, so no extra -t is added)
• wonen (to live) -> stem woon (n is NOT in 't kofschip) -> ge + woon + d = gewoond
• leren (to learn) -> stem leer (r is NOT in 't kofschip) -> ge + leer + d = geleerd
• reizen (to travel) -> stem reis (s is in 't kofschip) -> ge + reis + d = gereisd (Stem changes z->s, but use the stem reis. s is in 't kofschip -> ends in -t. Correction: reizen -> stem reiz, z is NOT in 't kofschip -> ge + reis + d = gereisd - The kofschip rule applies to the sound of the stem ending, less so the spelling change. Reizen -> /z/ sound -> -d)
• leven (to live) -> stem leev -> leef. f is in 't kofschip -> ge + leef + d = geleefd (Stem changes v->f, but use the stem leev. v is NOT in 't kofschip -> ends in -d*)
• Revised Kofschip Application: Determine stem. Check if the original infinitive ending sound before -en corresponds to a t, k, f, s, ch, p sound. If yes, add -t, if no, add -d. This handles v->f and z->s better. Reizen ends in /z/ sound, so gereisd. Leven ends in /v/ sound, so geleefd.
• Verbs starting with be-, ge-, er-, her-, ont-, ver- do not get an extra ge- prefix in the past participle.
• betalen (to pay) -> stem betaal -> betaald (no ge-)
• vertellen (to tell) -> stem vertel -> verteld (no ge-)
• geloven (to believe) -> stem geloof -> geloofd (no ge-)

• Irregular Verbs: These verbs have unique past participles that don't follow the regular pattern and must be memorized. Many common verbs are irregular.
• zien (to see) -> gezien
• kopen (to buy) -> gekocht
• spreken (to speak) -> gesproken
• eten (to eat) -> gegeten
• drinken (to drink) -> gedronken
• schrijven (to write) -> geschreven
• (Many more exist - learning these is crucial for A2)

Examples in Sentences

• Ik heb gisteren hard gewerkt. (I worked hard yesterday.)
• Jij hebt de rekening al betaald. (You have already paid the bill.)
• Hij heeft een nieuwe fiets gekocht. (He has bought a new bicycle.)
• Zij heeft Nederlands geleerd. (She has learned Dutch.)
• Wij hebben de film gezien. (We have seen the film.)
• Jullie hebben lekker gegeten. (You [pl.] have eaten well / had a nice meal.)
• Zij hebben lang in Spanje gewoond. (They lived in Spain for a long time.)

Questions in the Perfect Tense

Form yes/no questions by inverting the subject and the auxiliary verb hebben:

Conjugated hebben + Subject + (Rest) + Past Participle?

• Heb jij de mail geschreven? (Have you written the email?)
• Heeft hij zijn huiswerk gemaakt? (Has he done his homework?)
• Hebben jullie de tickets gekocht? (Have you [pl.] bought the tickets?)

The perfect tense with hebben is fundamental for discussing past events in Dutch. Master the conjugation of hebben and learn how to form past participles using the ge- + stem + -d/-t rule (remembering 't kofschip and exceptions like be-, ge-, etc.). Crucially, start memorizing the past participles of common irregular verbs. Remember the structure: Subject + hebben + ... + Past Participle.