de of het haaruitval?
het haaruitval
hair loss
noun · /ˈɦaːr.œy̯tˌfɑl/
It is “het haaruitval”.
Pronunciation, example sentences and the rest of the entry: haaruitval
Forms
- Article
- het haaruitval
- How common
- in everyday Dutch
In a sentence
Ik merk de laatste tijd wat haaruitval.
I've noticed some hair loss lately.
Ernstige stress kan haaruitval veroorzaken.
Severe stress can cause hair loss.
Veel mensen hebben last van haaruitval.
Many people suffer from hair loss.
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 haaruitval” rather than as “haaruitval” 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.