de of het varkensvlees?
het varkensvlees
pork
noun · /ˈvɑrkə(n)sˌfleːs/
It is “het varkensvlees”.
Pronunciation, example sentences and the rest of the entry: varkensvlees
Forms
- Article
- het varkensvlees
- How common
- in everyday Dutch
In a sentence
Ik eet liever kip dan varkensvlees.
I prefer chicken to pork.
Sommige mensen eten geen varkensvlees.
Some people don't eat pork.
Voor dit gerecht heb je varkensvlees nodig.
For this dish, you need pork.
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 varkensvlees” rather than as “varkensvlees” 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.