A Dutch verb in the infinitive form (almost always) consists of two parts, a stem and an
-en ending. Knowing this small, but significant piece of trivia can be of much help when
you start conjugating the Dutch verbs!

Remember that verbs indicate an action or a situation in a sentence, adding a bit more
spice to a sentence. The verb adapts itself to the subject, the main character in the
sentence. When you use verbs, you can’t escape the fact that their structure also changes according to tenses, the “time” of a verb’s action or state of being.

In dealing with tenses and utilizing the Dutch verbs, you must keep in mind:
1. How to formulate the Dutch verbs to coordinate with the tenses.
2. When to use those tenses.

Let’s first start off with three important tenses to help you on your way to Dutch fluency;
the present tense, the simple past tense, and the simple perfect tense.

The Present Tense (De Tegenwoordige Tijd)
The present tense in Dutch is generally used in three situations;

• to describe what is happening now at the present moment
• to describe what is happening sometimes, generally or always
• to describe what is going to happen

With the exception of komen, zijn, hebben and other modals,  (almost) all Dutch verbs can be conjugated in the present tense according to a general guideline:

The Past Tense (Het Imperfectum: Verleden Tijd)
The imperfect tense (imperfectum), also known as the simple past,  describes what occurred in the past. The imperfect tense (imperfectum/simple past) is generally formed by adding a -te/-ten or -de/-den to the stem of the verb.

The Past Tense (Het Perfectum: Verleden Tijd: The Present Perfect Tense)

As one becomes more familiar with Dutch, one will soon start to notice that there is a general preference for the present perfect tense (perfectum) over the imperfect tense (imperfectum/simple past). The present  perfect tense (perfectum) consists of two parts:

• A direct verb “hebben” or “zijn”
• A past participle (deelwoord) = ge+stem+ d/t

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