de of het pronkstuk?
het pronkstuk
showpiece
noun · /ˈprɔŋk.stʏk/
It is “het pronkstuk”. The plural is “de pronkstukken”, and like every Dutch plural it takes “de”.
Pronunciation, example sentences and the rest of the entry: pronkstuk
Forms
- Article
- het pronkstuk
- Plural
- de pronkstukken
- Diminutive
- het pronkstukje
- Also means
- centerpiece, prize, gem, jewel
- How common
- in everyday Dutch
In a sentence
Dit schilderij is het pronkstuk van de tentoonstelling.
This painting is the showpiece of the exhibition.
Onze antieke kast is echt een pronkstuk in de woonkamer.
Our antique cabinet is really a showpiece in the living room.
Haar nieuwe sieraad is een waar pronkstuk.
Her new piece of jewelry is a true showpiece.
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 pronkstuk” rather than as “pronkstuk” 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.