de of het kwikzilver?
het kwikzilver
mercury
noun · /ˈkʋɪkˌsɪl.vər/
It is “het kwikzilver”.
Pronunciation, example sentences and the rest of the entry: kwikzilver
Forms
- Article
- het kwikzilver
- How common
- in everyday Dutch
In a sentence
Vroeger zat er kwikzilver in thermometers.
There used to be mercury in thermometers.
Kwikzilver is een giftige stof.
Mercury is a toxic substance.
Het kwikzilver rolde over de vloer.
The mercury rolled across the floor.
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 kwikzilver” rather than as “kwikzilver” 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.