afkoelt

Afkoelt is not a standard dictionary entry in Dutch. In normal Dutch, the present tense third-person singular form of the verb afkoelen is written as two words: koelt af. The prefix af- is separable, so the correct construction in a simple present sentence is typically deconstructed into koelt af (e.g., De vloeistof koelt af).

Etymology and meaning: afkoelen is formed from the prefix af- meaning “down/off” and the verb koelen meaning “to cool.” The combined meaning is to become cooler or to lose heat. The prefix af- is common in Dutch with many verbs, and it is usually separated in finite tenses, depending on sentence structure.

Grammar and usage: In standard Dutch, the prefix in separable-prefix verbs is placed after the verb in present tense clauses, resulting in koelt af rather than afkoelt. The past tense and participles use different forms: het is afgekoeld (has cooled down). In subordinate clauses with infinitives, the verb may appear as koelen af or afkoelen, depending on construction, but the present-tense form remains koelt af when the subject is he/she/it.

Common confusions: The form afkoelt is frequently seen as a misspelling or a mistaken attempt to fuse the prefix with the stem. Writers should prefer koelt af in present tense sentences to avoid dialectal or typographical errors. The related terms are koelen (to cool), afkoelen (to cool down), and afgekoeld (cooled down).

See also: afkoelen, koelen, afgekoeld.