How do you know when a word is de or het?

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We learn it when we are about three years old. After that age it gets more and more difficult.
So you are a little late. 😃

▶All plural nouns take 'de'.
Singular words take 'het' or 'de', depending on their grammatical gender. Singular diminutives always take 'het' (hence 'het meisje').

▶There are some specific rules as to which words are 'het' and which 'de', but these rules are only helpful in a limited number of cases. Most article-noun combinations just have to be learnt by heart.

▶ 'Het-words' are a closed group. New words are nearly always 'de-words'. Consequently, the group of 'de-words' is larger and growing.
If you want to learn the words with their articles, focus on the het-words, any words you don't know are de-words.

▶ Here's a handy android app, appropriately called DEHET 😁
It will tell you which words are 'de' and which 'het'. Naturally.
https://play.google.com/store/apps/details?id=c...