Verbs with the prefix _be-_, _ver-_, _ont-_, _ge-_ or _er-_ are inseparable: they stay in one piece, so you say _Ik betaal_ and _Ik vertel het je_. The same goes for everyday _her-_ verbs like _herhalen_. These prefixes (small syllables glued to the front of a verb) are unstressed, and in the perfect tense the past participle (the form after _heb_ or _ben_) gets no extra _ge-_: _betaald_, _verteld_, _ontmoet_.
The pattern
A verb with the unstressed prefix _be-_, _ver-_, _ont-_, _ge-_ or _er-_ never splits, and its past participle gets no extra _ge-_. Everyday _her-_ verbs such as _herhalen_ and _herkennen_ work the same way.
- The verb stays whole in every position: _Ik betaal._ _Betaal jij?_ _Ik weet dat hij betaalt._
- You stress the verb part, not the prefix: _ta_ in _betalen_, _tel_ in _vertellen_, _moe_ in _ontmoeten_.
- Make the participle as usual, just without _ge-_: _herhalen_ gives _herhaald_, _ontmoeten_ gives _ontmoet_. Irregular verbs keep their vowel change: _verkopen_ gives _verkocht_, _begrijpen_ gives _begrepen_.
- Everyday examples: _bezoeken_ (visit), _vergeten_ (forget), _verhuizen_ (move house), _ontbijten_ (have breakfast), _herkennen_ (recognise), _gebeuren_ (happen), _geloven_ (believe), _erkennen_ (recognise officially).
- _Her-_ is less tidy: a few long, formal _her-_ verbs follow other patterns, such as _herstructureren_ (restructure), which gives _geherstructureerd_. You will rarely need them.
Examples
| Ik betaal vandaag de koffie. | I'm paying for the coffee today. |
|---|---|
| Ik vertel het je morgen. | I'll tell you tomorrow. |
| Mei verkoopt haar oude fiets. | Mei is selling her old bike. |
| Bas ontvangt een brief van de gemeente. | Bas receives a letter from the municipality. |
| Herken je die man? | Do you recognise that man? |
| Daan heeft de rekening al betaald. | Daan has already paid the bill. |
| Ik heb Ahmed op de verjaardag van Lotte ontmoet. | I met Ahmed at Lotte's birthday. |
| De huisarts heeft het twee keer herhaald. | The GP repeated it twice. |
| Wat is er gebeurd? | What happened? |
| Is je diploma hier erkend? | Is your diploma recognised here? |
Why it works this way
In [separable verbs](#/lesson/separable-verbs) like _opbellen_ and _meenemen_, the stressed first part can move away from the verb to the end of the sentence: _Ik bel je straks op._ That first part is often also a word on its own, like _op_ or _mee_, but that alone does not make a verb separable.
The prefixes in this lesson work differently: they are short, unstressed syllables that are not words on their own, and they never move. Some add a clear meaning: _her-_ often means again, so _herkennen_ is literally to know again. In many verbs the meaning is hard to see: the _ver_ in _vertellen_ has nothing to do with _ver_ (far). Either way, the prefix belongs to the verb as firmly as "for" belongs to forget in English. You would never say "I get it for", so do not say _Ik tel het je ver_.
The participle has its own fixed pattern: verbs with these prefixes take no extra _ge-_, so _betalen_ gives _betaald_, not _gebetaald_. You will meet more verbs like this in [Participles without ge-](#/lesson/participles-without-ge).
One check: these prefixes are unstressed, so a stressed first syllable is not one of them. In _bellen_, _geven_ and _verven_ (to paint) you stress the first syllable, so it is simply part of the verb, and the participles are normal: _gebeld_, _gegeven_, _geverfd_. A few loanwords only look as if they have a prefix: _verifiëren_ (to verify) gives _geverifieerd_. And the _er_ in _eruitzien_ (to look, as in looking good) is the separate little word _er_, so that verb does split: _Je ziet er goed uit._ Stress can even change a verb's meaning, as you will see in [One verb, two meanings](#/lesson/stress-decides).
If you speak German, you have a head start: German be-, ver-, ent- and er- also stay attached and also skip ge-. Dutch _ont-_ is simply the cousin of ent-.
Remember: _be-_, _ver-_, _ont-_, _ge-_ and _er-_ are glued to the verb. They never move to the end of the sentence, and they leave no room for an extra _ge-_ in front.
Watch out
- Not: _Ik heb de rekening gebetaald._ Say: _Ik heb de rekening betaald._ (no extra _ge-_ in front of _be-_)
- Not: _Ik heb Sanne gisteren geontmoet._ Say: _Ik heb Sanne gisteren ontmoet._ (no extra _ge-_ in front of _ont-_)
- Not: _Ik zoek morgen mijn oma be._ Say: _Ik bezoek morgen mijn oma._ (_be-_ never splits off like _op_ in _opbellen_)
- Not: _Hij verteld het altijd._ Say: _Hij vertelt het altijd._ (present tense is stem plus _t_; _verteld_ is the participle)
- Not: _Ik heb haar beld._ Say: _Ik heb haar gebeld._ (in _bellen_ you stress _bel_, so _be_ is not a prefix here)
Quick check
- Fill in the participle of _verkopen_: _Joris heeft zijn fiets gisteren ..._
- Choose the correct sentence: _Wij verhuizen in mei._ or _Wij huizen in mei ver._
- Fix the sentence: _Carlos heeft de vraag niet gebegrepen._
- Fill in the present tense of _vertellen_: _Emma ... haar buurman het nieuws._
Answers
- _verkocht_ (_kopen_ gives _gekocht_; with _ver-_ the _ge-_ disappears)
- _Wij verhuizen in mei._ (_ver-_ never splits off)
- _Carlos heeft de vraag niet begrepen._ (no extra _ge-_ in front of _be-_)
- _vertelt_ (present tense: stem _vertel_ plus _t_)
Use it today
Tonight, write three sentences about your day with _betaald_, _ontmoet_ and _verteld_, for example _Ik heb de boodschappen betaald._ Read them aloud and put the stress on the verb part, not on the prefix.