de of het broeikaseffect?
het broeikaseffect
greenhouse effect
noun · /ˈbrui̯.kɑs.ɛˌfɛkt/
It is “het broeikaseffect”.
Pronunciation, example sentences and the rest of the entry: broeikaseffect
Forms
- Article
- het broeikaseffect
- How common
- in everyday Dutch
In a sentence
Het broeikaseffect is een groot probleem.
The greenhouse effect is a big problem.
Iedereen praat over het broeikaseffect.
Everyone talks about the greenhouse effect.
CO2 versterkt het broeikaseffect.
CO2 strengthens the greenhouse effect.
Why this article
No rule predicts it
This one has to be memorised. No spelling pattern marks it as neuter, which is exactly why it is worth learning as “het broeikaseffect” rather than as “broeikaseffect” on its own.
The rules that do work
- • Every plural takes “de”, without exception.
- • Every diminutive ending in -je takes “het”, without exception.
- • Nouns ending in -ing, -heid, -tie, -teit or -schap take “de”.
- • Roughly two thirds of all nouns take “de”, so it is the better guess.
Other nouns whose article has to be memorised
Stop guessing de and het
Woordje has a practice mode for exactly this: it shows a noun and asks for the article, and keeps asking until you stop getting it wrong.