gehele

Gehele is a Dutch adjective used to express totality, meaning “whole” or “entire.” It functions as an inflected form of the base adjective geheel and is placed before a noun to indicate that nothing is left out. In everyday language, the more common form is hele, but gehele appears in formal or written Dutch, especially before feminine or plural nouns.

Forms and usage

The choice between hele and gehele depends on style and the noun that follows. In many everyday phrases with neuter singular nouns, you will hear het hele boek (the whole book) or het hele verhaal (the whole story). In more formal or emphasized contexts, particularly with plural or feminine nouns, de gehele groep (the entire group) or de gehele bevolking (the entire population) is common. The word can also function as part of the noun phrase het geheel, meaning “the whole” as a concept or totality.

Relation to related terms

Geheel is the base adjective, while geheel can also appear as a noun meaning “the whole,” for example in phrases like in het geheel genomen (taken as a whole). The adjective synonyms include volledig and compleet, which are often used in similar contexts, with nuances: volledig emphasizes completeness, compleet emphasizes wholeness or perfection of a set.

Etymology and variants

Geheel derives from older Dutch forms through the history of the language, yielding the modern attributive forms hele and gehele. While the meaning remains stable, the preferred spelling can vary by register and regional use. In contemporary Dutch, both hele and gehele are standard, with meerdere contexts favoring one or the other.

See also

The concept of totality in Dutch language includes related phrases like in het geheel genomen and helemaal, which express emphasis on completeness.