Tonen

Tonen is a Dutch verb meaning to show, to display, to exhibit, or to reveal something to someone. It is used when information, evidence, or an object is made visible or understandable. The noun toon, related in meaning, can refer to a display, illustration, or, in other senses, a tone of color or sound.

In present tense, the verb is conjugated as: ik toon, jij toont, hij/zij toont, wij tonen, jullie tonen, zij tonen. The simple past tense forms are ik toonde, jij toonde, hij toonde, wij toonden, jullie toonden, zij toonden. The past participle is getoond, used with hebben in compound tenses (e.g., Ik heb het getoond). The verb can appear in passive constructions as well, often with worden: Het wordt getoond.

Typical uses include showing or presenting something to someone (Ik toon je de kaart), displaying information on a screen (De resultaten worden getoond), or demonstrating a concept (Laten we dit experiment tonen). In media and technology, tonen is common for describing what appears to users, such as “de fout wordt getoond” or “de afbeelding toont op het scherm.” In everyday speech, phrases like “toon me” or “toon het aan” are common.

Etymology traces to medieval Dutch tonen, with related sense changes over time; the related noun toon also appears in Dutch to denote a tone, color, or display. It is distinct from, but etymologically linked to, senses of color and sound that share the root “toon” in Dutch.

See also: toon (n.), tonen in computing, Dutch grammar.