Demonstratives in Dutch

In Brief

Dutch has four basic demonstratives: deze and dit usually point to something nearby (“this/these”), while die and dat usually point to something farther away (“that/those”). The noun determines the form: use deze/die with singular de-words and all plurals, but dit/dat with singular het-words.

Overview

A demonstrative is a pointing word: it identifies a particular person, object, place, or idea. English uses this, that, these, and those. Dutch uses deze, dit, die, and dat. You meet them very early, at A1, because they are useful whenever you choose something in a shop, introduce a person, compare objects, or refer back to something in a conversation.

The main challenge for an English-speaking learner is not the difference between “this” and “that.” It is choosing the form that matches the Dutch article. A noun (a word for a person, object, place, or idea) is normally learned with either de or het: de tafel but het boek. That same distinction controls the demonstrative in the singular.

The beginner rule is highly regular. Learn the article with every new noun, decide whether the noun is singular or plural, and then choose from the four-form table below. Later, you can refine what “near” and “far” mean in conversation and learn how these words stand alone without a following noun.

How It Works

The four basic forms

Meaning	Singular de-word	Singular het-word	Plural (all nouns)
this / these, relatively near	deze	dit	deze
that / those, relatively far	die	dat	die

The contrast works like this:

• de tafel → deze tafel / die tafel
• het boek → dit boek / dat boek
• de tafels → deze tafels / die tafels
• de boeken → deze boeken / die boeken

Dutch plurals always take de, even when the singular takes het. That is why het boek becomes deze boeken, not dit boeken. Number therefore matters just as much as the noun’s article.

Before a noun

When a demonstrative comes directly before a noun, it replaces the definite article de or het. Do not use both:

• de fiets → deze fiets
• het huis → dat huis
• de kinderen → die kinderen

The demonstrative does not change for grammatical roles. It has the same form whether the noun is the subject (who or what performs or experiences the action) or the object (who or what the action affects):

• Deze vrouw werkt hier. — This woman works here.
• Ik ken deze vrouw. — I know this woman.
• Ik praat met deze vrouw. — I am talking with this woman.

Near and far

At the beginner level, treat deze/dit as near the speaker and die/dat as farther away:

• Wil je deze stoel? — Do you want this chair? (the chair here)
• Of wil je die stoel? — Or do you want that chair? (the chair over there)

The distance can also be in time or in the conversation, not only in physical space:

• deze week — this week
• die dag — that day
• dit probleem — this problem, the one currently under discussion
• dat idee — that idea, one already mentioned or treated as more removed

Context and emphasis matter. Dutch speakers do not measure an exact distance before choosing a form. They use the contrast to direct the listener’s attention.

Used without a noun

A demonstrative can also function as a pronoun, which simply means it stands in place of a noun rather than appearing before one.

Dit and dat are especially common when identifying something, commenting on a whole situation, or referring to a statement:

• Dit is mijn kamer. — This is my room.
• Dat is mijn broer. — That is my brother.
• Dat klopt. — That is correct.
• Dit vind ik moeilijk. — I find this difficult.

At the moment of identification, Dutch normally uses neutral dit/dat, even if the noun that follows is a de-word: Dat is mijn broer, not because broer is a het-word, but because dat points to the person or situation before identifying it. Compare:

• Dat is mijn broer. — That is my brother.
• Die man is mijn broer. — That man is my brother.

Deze and die can also stand alone when a specific noun is understood. They are common when choosing or contrasting people and things:

• Welke jas wil je? Deze. — Which coat do you want? This one.
• Deze is goedkoper dan die. — This one is cheaper than that one.
• Wie is die? — Who is that person?

For people, die is very natural. Dit/dat can introduce or identify a person in an X is Y sentence, while standalone deze/die can select or point out a particular person.

With adjectives

The ordinary adjective rules still apply after a demonstrative. In practice, an adjective after deze, dit, die, or dat usually has -e, including with a singular het-word:

• deze rode fiets — this red bicycle
• dit rode boek — this red book
• die oude huizen — those old houses
• dat kleine kind — that small child

This differs from an indefinite singular het-phrase such as een klein kind. The demonstrative makes the phrase definite: it points to a particular child, so the adjective is kleine.

Examples in Context

Dutch	English	Note
Deze man werkt in het ziekenhuis.	This man works at the hospital.	Singular de-word: de man
Is dit kind van jou?	Is this child yours?	Singular het-word: het kind
Ken je die vrouw bij de deur?	Do you know that woman by the door?	Farther-away singular de-word
We kopen dat huis niet.	We are not buying that house.	Singular het-word: het huis
Deze boeken zijn duur.	These books are expensive.	All plurals use deze/die
Wie wonen er in die huizen?	Who lives in those houses?	Plural of the het-word huis
Ik heb deze week weinig tijd.	I have little time this week.	Nearness in time
Op die dag regende het de hele tijd.	On that day, it rained the whole time.	A more remote time
Dit is mijn nieuwe collega.	This is my new colleague.	Neutral identification with dit
Dat is mijn broer.	That is my brother.	Neutral identification with dat
“De trein is vertraagd.” “Dat klopt.”	“The train is delayed.” “That’s right.”	Dat refers to a whole statement
Welke taart wil je? Deze.	Which cake do you want? This one.	The understood noun is de taart
Deze is mooier dan die.	This one is prettier than that one.	Contrast without repeating the noun
Wat is dat?	What is that?	Asking for identification
Ik begrijp dit probleem, maar dat probleem niet.	I understand this problem, but not that problem.	Contrast in the same sentence

Common Mistakes

Choosing by English singular or plural alone

• Wrong: dit tafel
• Right: deze tafel
• Why: English “this” does not tell you which Dutch form to use. Tafel is a de-word (de tafel), so it takes deze.

Keeping dit or dat in the plural

• Wrong: dit boeken / dat huizen
• Right: deze boeken / die huizen
• Why: Every Dutch plural is a de-word. Use deze for “these” and die for “those,” even when the singular is het boek or het huis.

Adding de or het after the demonstrative

• Wrong: deze de fiets / dat het boek
• Right: deze fiets / dat boek
• Why: The demonstrative occupies the article position. It replaces de or het rather than combining with it.

Matching dat to a noun after is

• Wrong: Die is mijn broer when you are simply introducing someone
• Natural: Dat is mijn broer.
• Why: In an identifying sentence, neutral dit/dat commonly points to the person or thing as a whole. Use die man when the noun itself follows the demonstrative: Die man is mijn broer. Standalone die is possible when deliberately selecting or pointing out a person, so the issue is context rather than an absolute ban.

Forgetting the adjective ending

• Wrong: dit klein kind
• Right: dit kleine kind
• Why: An adjective after a demonstrative normally takes -e. Do not copy the pattern of een klein kind, where an indefinite singular het-word can have no ending.

Usage Notes

Spoken emphasis

Demonstratives are naturally stressed when they make a contrast: déze, not that one; dát idea, not the other idea. Written Dutch normally does not add an accent unless the writer needs to mark unusually strong contrast or prevent ambiguity. In ordinary text, deze and dat are enough.

That is often broader than physical distance

English and Dutch both use demonstratives to manage a conversation, but their choices do not always line up word for word. Dutch dat frequently refers back to an event, claim, or fact:

• Dat weet ik niet. — I don’t know that.
• Dat is jammer. — That’s a pity.
• Dat bedoel ik. — That’s what I mean.

Here dat does not point to a distant physical object. It packages the previous idea as one neutral whole. Dit more often presents something as current or about to be explained: Dit is het probleem: … (“This is the problem: …”). The boundary is flexible and depends on how the speaker frames the information.

People and politeness

Using die man or die vrouw is grammatically neutral, but repeatedly pointing at someone and saying die can sound blunt, just as “that person” can in English. When appropriate, use a name, role, or more tactful description. This is a social choice, not a special grammar rule.

Beyond the Basics: Advanced Use

You do not need to master the following points at A1, but they explain forms you will meet later.

Referring to an entire clause

Neutral dit and dat can refer not just to one noun but to a complete action or situation:

• Hij heeft de baan gekregen. Dat had ik niet verwacht. — He got the job. I had not expected that.
• Ze wil morgen vertrekken. Dit levert een probleem op. — She wants to leave tomorrow. This creates a problem.

Writers often choose dit to make the previous information the active topic of the next sentence. Dat is extremely common in speech and can sound less formal or less deliberately structured. This is a tendency, not a rigid rule.

The relative use of dat and die

The same spellings die and dat also appear as relative pronouns, words that introduce a description of a noun:

• de man die daar staat — the man who is standing there
• het boek dat ik lees — the book that I am reading

That is a different grammatical job. The familiar de/het pattern remains helpful—die follows a de-word and dat follows a singular het-word—but relative clauses deserve their own lesson.

Formal and more precise alternatives

When “the one” or “those who” could be unclear, Dutch can use degene and degenen:

• Degene bij het raam is mijn docent. — The one by the window is my teacher.
• Degenen die klaar zijn, mogen vertrekken. — Those who are ready may leave.

These forms are more explicit and often more formal than standalone die or deze. You will encounter them in careful writing, instructions, and administrative language.

Fixed time expressions do not always follow a simple distance diagram

Common phrases should be learned as whole expressions: deze week (this week), dit jaar (this year), die avond (that evening), and dat moment (that moment). Their demonstrative still agrees with the noun, but the choice between the near and far set reflects the speaker’s viewpoint in time or in the story.

Practice Tips

1. Learn nouns with their article. Write de tafel and het raam, not just tafel and raam. Then make four quick phrases: deze tafel, die tafel, dit raam, dat raam.
2. Transform singular into plural. Say dit boek → deze boeken and dat kind → die kinderen. This directly trains the switch that English-speaking learners often miss.
3. Practise real pointing and conversation. Look around a room and make pairs such as deze stoel / die stoel. Then practise neutral reactions—Dat klopt, Dat weet ik niet, Dit is belangrijk—so you learn both noun phrases and standalone uses.

Related Concepts

• Prerequisite: De and Het Words — knowing whether a singular noun takes de or het lets you choose the correct demonstrative.