Lesson 1. Wanneer ben je jarig? Months, seasons, dates, and ordinal numbers

I can name the months and seasons, say a date and when my birthday is, and say “first, second, twentieth”.

Months, dates, and -de / -ste

Dutch writes months and days with a small letter, unlike English: januari, oktober, maandag. Countries and languages take a capital, as in English: Rusland, Russisch. The checker doesn't check capital letters, so the choice exercises test this rule. When: in + a month or a season — in mei, in de winter (a season takes de, unlike English “in winter”). op + a date or a day — op twaalf mei, op vrijdag. A date is the number, then the month: zeven april (written “7 april”). To ask the date: Wat is de datum? The answer starts with Het is. Ordinal numbers answer “which one?”: de vijfde maand, de derde les. Ending -de: tweede, vierde, zesde … negentiende. Ending -ste: eerste, achtste, twintigste, dertigste, and every number from twenty on. Special: eerste, derde. With no month, the date is the ordinal alone: Op de twaalfde. “It's my birthday” — Ik ben jarig (jarig zijn): literally “I'm the birthday person”. Question and answer: Wanneer ben je jarig? — Ik ben in mei jarig. The word de verjaardag is the day itself: you can't “have” it with hebben. Common mistakes: • ×Ik heb verjaardag → Ik ben jarig. • ×in twaalf mei → op twaalf mei. • ×op de winter → in de winter. • ×drieste, ×tweeste → derde, tweede.

Seasons and months

Months are written with a small letter; a season takes de.

Season	Months
de winter	december, januari, februari
de lente	maart, april, mei
de zomer	juni, juli, augustus
de herfst	september, oktober, november

Ordinal numbers

Most numbers take the ending -de; -ste goes on the eighth, on every number from twenty up, and on the first.

Number	Ordinal	Ending
één	eerste	special
twee	tweede	-de
drie	derde	special
vier	vierde	-de
acht	achtste	-ste
negentien	negentiende	-de
twintig	twintigste	-ste
eenentwintig	eenentwintigste	-ste

Lesson notes

Months, dates, and -de / -ste

Dutch writes months and days with a small letter, unlike English: januari, oktober, maandag. Countries and languages take a capital, as in English: Rusland, Russisch. The checker doesn't check capital letters, so the choice exercises test this rule. When: in + a month or a season — in mei, in de winter (a season takes de, unlike English “in winter”). op + a date or a day — op twaalf mei, op vrijdag. A date is the number, then the month: zeven april (written “7 april”). To ask the date: Wat is de datum? The answer starts with Het is. Ordinal numbers answer “which one?”: de vijfde maand, de derde les. Ending -de: tweede, vierde, zesde … negentiende. Ending -ste: eerste, achtste, twintigste, dertigste, and every number from twenty on. Special: eerste, derde. With no month, the date is the ordinal alone: Op de twaalfde. “It's my birthday” — Ik ben jarig (jarig zijn): literally “I'm the birthday person”. Question and answer: Wanneer ben je jarig? — Ik ben in mei jarig. The word de verjaardag is the day itself: you can't “have” it with hebben. Common mistakes: • ×Ik heb verjaardag → Ik ben jarig. • ×in twaalf mei → op twaalf mei. • ×op de winter → in de winter. • ×drieste, ×tweeste → derde, tweede.