Adjective Inflection (the -e Rule)

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In Dutch, most adjectives get an -e ending when they are placed directly before a noun. This is the default setting for the majority of noun-adjective combinations.

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Adjectives used before 'de-words' (masculine or feminine nouns) always take an -e ending, regardless of whether the article is definite (de) or indefinite (een).

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Adjectives before plural nouns always get an -e ending. It does not matter if the noun is originally a 'de' or 'het' word; in plural, they all behave the same way.

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When a 'het-word' (neuter noun) is preceded by the definite article 'het', 'dit' (this), or 'dat' (that), the adjective gets an -e ending.

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This is the most important exception! If a 'het-word' is preceded by 'een' (a/an), the adjective does NOT get an -e ending.

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Just like with 'een', adjectives before 'het-words' do NOT get an -e when preceded by 'geen' (none/no) or when there is no article at all.

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When an adjective comes after a verb (like 'zijn' - to be) and describes the subject, it never gets an -e. It stays in its base form.

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Adjectives that describe what something is made of and end in -en (like 'houten' - wooden, 'gouden' - golden) never get an extra -e.

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When adding -e to an adjective with a long vowel (double vowel like aa, ee, oo, uu), one vowel is dropped to keep the sound long in an open syllable (e.g., groot -> grote).

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When adding -e to an adjective with a short vowel, the final consonant is doubled to keep the vowel sound short (e.g., dik -> dikke).

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When adding -e, a final 'f' often changes to 'v' and a final 's' often changes to 'z' (e.g., lief -> lieve, grijs -> grijze).

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Summary of 'No -e' rules: 1. Predicative (after verb). 2. Indefinite (een/geen/none) + Het-word. 3. Material adjectives ending in -en.