Editing Dutch grammar (section)

===Non-finite forms===

Dutch possesses present and past [[participle]]s.

====Present participle====

The present participle is always progressive in meaning, and indicates that something is performing the action as the subject. It is usually used as an attributive adjective, and inflects as such as well.

* {{lang|nl|Ik heb een '''vallende''' ster gezien.}} ("I saw a '''falling''' star.")
* {{lang|nl|'''Blaffende''' honden bijten niet.}} ("'''Barking''' dogs don't bite.")
* {{lang|nl|Het nieuws verspreidt zich als een '''lopend''' vuurtje.}} ("The news spreads like wildfire." — literally "like a '''running''' fire")

It can also be used as an adverb, meaning "while ...ing". Either the uninflected or inflected form can be used, although the uninflected form is more common outside set phrases.

* {{lang|nl|Al '''doende''' leert men.}} ("One learns '''while doing'''.")
* {{lang|nl|Dit werk is zo makkelijk, ik word '''slapend''' rijk.}} ("This work is so easy, I'm getting rich '''while sleeping'''.")
* {{lang|nl|'''Huilend''' vertelde de jongen wat er die dag gebeurd was.}} ("'''Crying''', the boy told what had happened that day.")

Rarely, the present participle is used as a [[Predicate (grammar)|predicate]], to indicate progressive actions as in English, such as {{lang|nl|De bal was '''rollende'''.}} ("The ball was '''rolling'''."). This is usually associated with a stilted or overly formal style. It is more usual to use {{lang|nl|aan het}} plus the infinitive.

The present participle of a transitive verb can be preceded by an object or an adverb. Often, the space between the two words is replaced with a hyphen or removed altogether, creating a compound adjective.
* {{lang|nl|Ik zat vast in '''langzaam rijdend''' verkeer.}} ("I was stuck in '''slow-moving''' traffic.")
* {{lang|nl|Het hondje slaakte een '''hartverscheurende''' kreet.}} ("The little dog let out a '''heart-rending''' cry.")
* {{lang|nl|'''Stenengooiende''' jongeren zijn een steeds ernstiger probleem.}} ("'''Rock-throwing''' youths are an increasingly severe problem.")

====Past participle====

The past participle indicates completed actions. It is also used to form the [[Perfect (grammar)|perfect]] and the [[passive voice]] with a variety of auxiliary verbs. The formation of these is discussed in the section "periphrastic forms".

As an adjective, the meaning of the past participle can be either active (having performed the action) or passive (having undergone the action), depending on the type of verb:

* For transitive verbs, the meaning is passive. Examples:
** {{lang|nl|De '''gemaakte''' keuze bleek niet zo geweldig.}} ("The '''made''' choice (the choice '''that had been made''') turned out to be not so great.")
** {{lang|nl|'''Gebroken''' glas is gevaarlijk.}} ("'''Broken''' glass is dangerous.")
* For [[unaccusative]] intransitive verbs, the meaning is active. Examples:
** {{lang|nl|De '''gevallen''' man kon niet meer opstaan.}} ("The '''fallen''' man could not get back up again.")
** {{lang|nl|Iedereen ging op zoek naar het '''verdwenen''' hondje.}} ("Everyone went looking for the dog '''that had disappeared'''.")
* For [[unergative]] intransitive verbs, the past participle cannot be used as an adjective at all. These participles can not be used with a copula such as {{lang|nl|zijn}} ("to be") either, but only to form the perfect.

Like present participles, past participles can be preceded by an adverb.
* {{lang|nl|'''Haastig gemaakte''' keuzes leiden later vaak tot problemen.}} ("'''Hastily-made''' choices often lead to problems later.")
* {{lang|nl|Ik heb het liefst '''versgemaakt''' sinaasappelsap.}} ("I prefer '''freshly-made''' orange juice.")
* {{lang|nl|'''Jong geleerd''' is '''oud gedaan'''.}} ("'''Learned young''' is '''done old'''.", a proverb)

====Infinitive====

=====Verb phrases=====
The infinitive can be used in larger verb phrases with an [[auxiliary verb]] or [[modal verb]], much as in English. Like present participles, the infinitive can be accompanied by an object or adverb.

*{{lang|nl|Ik kan de auto '''zien'''.}} ("I can '''see''' the car")

=====Verbal noun=====
The infinitive also doubles as a verbal noun, corresponding to the [[English gerund]] in {{lang|en|-ing}}. The infinitive, when used as a noun, is neuter and has no plural. Dutch also has a feminine gerund in {{lang|nl|-ing}}, but this is no longer productive and usually has a concrete, technical meaning, e.g. {{lang|nl|het lenen}} 'borrowing, lending' vs. {{lang|nl|de lening}} 'loan'; {{lang|nl|het opleiden}} 'educating' vs. {{lang|nl|opleiding}} 'education'.

* {{lang|nl|Het '''doden''' van mensen is verboden.}} – 'The killing of people is forbidden', or less literally 'Killing people is forbidden'.
* {{lang|nl|Ik heb een hekel aan '''wachten'''.}} – 'I hate waiting.'

In the past, the infinitive was inflected for the dative and genitive. There are a few remnants of the latter, e.g. in:

* {{lang|nl|Tot zien'''s'''!}} – 'See you!'
* {{lang|nl|Een uur gaan'''s'''}}. – 'A distance that can be walked in one hour.'

It also occurs in expressions involving {{lang|nl|tot ... toe}} (until ... resulted):

* {{lang|nl|Hij werd tot bloeden'''s''' toe geslagen.}} – 'He was beaten until bleeding resulted.'

=====Impersonal imperative=====
The infinitive is also commonly used as a kind of impersonal or polite imperative (''infinitivus pro imperativo''). This often has a meaning much like the English “one must (not)…” or “please do (not)…” and can be used to soften a direct command into more of a strong request, or to make the command more general (e.g. on signs and in written instructions) rather than directed at the listener or reader at that specific moment in time. The distinction is not always clear, and often both the infinitive and the imperative may be used without a strong difference in meaning.

* {{lang|nl|Niet '''roken'''}} 'No smoking' (or less literally 'please refrain from smoking'), versus {{lang|nl|rook niet}} 'don't smoke!'.
* {{lang|nl|Hier '''betalen'''}} 'Pay here', alternatively {{lang|nl|betaal hier}}.
* {{lang|nl|'''Schudden''' voor gebruik}} 'Shake before use'.

=====With {{lang|nl|te}}=====
The infinitive is often preceded by the preposition {{lang|nl|te}}, analogous to the phrase {{lang|en|to}} + verb in English. It is used in combination with certain verbs like {{lang|nl|beginnen}} 'to begin'.

* {{lang|nl|Hij begon '''te hoesten'''}} ("He started '''to cough'''")

In combination with {{lang|nl|zijn}} 'to be' it can express a potentiality.

* {{lang|nl|Dat was '''te verwachten'''}}  ("That was '''to be expected'''").

The extended form can be used as an adjective:

* {{lang|nl|De '''te verwachten''' menigte}} ("The crowd '''that is to be expected'''")

But it can still carry adverbial expressions or objects:

*{{lang|nl|De '''in dat geval te verwachten''' menigte}} ("The crowd '''that is be expected in that case'''").

Compound infinitives also exist for the perfect and the future, as well as for the passive voice of transitive verbs, and they can be used to form abridged dependent clauses.

*{{lang|nl|Hij beloofde dat '''te zullen betalen'''.}} ("He promised '''that he would pay''' that")