De or het muur?

Forms

Singular

de muur

Plural

de muren

Diminutive

het muurtje

Why de?

• No reliable spelling rule decides this one, so de muur is learned together with the word.
• Every plural takes de, so it is de muren whatever the singular takes.
• Every diminutive takes het: het muurtje.

The rules for de and het, with the exceptions

Meaning in English

1. wall
2. wall (figuratively, any barrier which limits access)
3. a type of fast-food vending machine with compartments arranged similar to a wall that contain snacks (chiefly in the phrase "uit de muur trekken")
4. any of various small plants of the Caryophyllaceae family, particularly of genus Stellaria (chickweed) but also including others such as Arenaria (sandwort) and Sagina (pearlwort)