The Subject
In (almost) every sentence (clause), there is a subject.  Think of the subject as the main actor with the leading role in the movie. The subject of a sentence (clause) is the noun or pronoun that is performing the action of the direct verb (persoonsvorm) in that clause. The subject determines what the conjugated form of the direct verb (persoonsvorm) will be.

The Object
A sentence (clause) is almost always never complete unless there is an object. The object of a sentence is the “thing that corresponds to the verb, i.e. the person or thing that is having the action of the verb performed on it.

The Dutch Verbs
A verb is the part of speech which expresses the action or state in a sentence (clause). A verb indicates an action or situation in a sentence (clause).

There are two kinds of verbs that are used in Dutch: the direct verb (persoonsvorm) and the indirect verb (infinitief).

In almost every sentence (clause), there is the finite verb (persoonsvorm). The direct verb (persoonvorm) corresponds to the subject and is conjugated according to the subject. Think of the direct verb (persoonsvorm) and the subject as partners in crime, belonging to each other and making the sentence flow.

A sentence (clause) can also contain an indirect verb (infinitief). An indirect verb (infinitief) is the “original” form of the verb that is found in the dictionary. The indirect verb (infinitief) is also known as the finite verb.

The indirect verb (infinitief) will never change in form and ever often ends in -en.  In English, the infinitive starts with “to”: to work, to play, to relax. The indirect verb(infinitief) is often placed in the end of a sentence.In almost every sentence (clause), there is only one finite verb (persoonsvorm) that corresponds to the subject, but there can be more than one indirect verb(infinitive).