Why Speaking catches candidates off guard — and how to prepare
The Speaking section is the only part of the MVV exam where a human judges your answer. You sit at a computer at the Dutch embassy, put on a headset, and speak Dutch into a microphone. A human examiner listens to the recording afterwards and scores each item on adequacy, pronunciation and fluency (0–2 points each). There are 22 items in 30 minutes: 10 personal Q&A questions and 12 sentence completions. Pass mark: 34 out of 44 points.
What most preparation guides don't tell you: the entire question pool is fixed and public. There are exactly 539 items — 82 Q&A questions and 457 fill-in sentences. Your exam randomly picks 22. This means you can practise every single item that could appear. Candidates who cover the full pool consistently score higher than those who practise without structure.
The key skill isn't accent — it's producing a complete, grammatically correct Dutch sentence under time pressure. The examples below show you exactly what that looks like, with audio on every item so you can hear the correct pronunciation before recording yourself.
💡 Helping a partner prepare from abroad? Click 🌐 Choose language above — example answers appear in their language too, the same way the full MVV Klaar app works.
8 real Speaking Q&A examples
Personal questions about your life, family and move to the Netherlands — answered in a full spoken sentence, not a single word.
Bij wie gaat u wonen in Nederland?
With whom will you live in the Netherlands?
Bij mijn man, Ahmed.
With my husband, Ahmed.
Hoe vaak bent u al in Nederland geweest?
How many times have you been to the Netherlands?
Twee keer.
Two times.
In welk land bent u geboren?
In which country were you born?
In India.
In India.
Waar woont uw familie?
Where does your family live?
In India.
In India.
Wat doet u graag met uw vrienden?
What do you like doing with your friends?
Praten en lachen.
Talking and laughing.
Wat hebt u geleerd op school?
What did you learn at school?
Rekenen en schrijven.
Math and writing.
Wat voor kleren draagt u vaak?
What kind of clothes do you often wear?
Een broek en een trui.
Pants and a sweater.
Welke dieren vindt u leuk?
Which animals do you like?
Katten en honden.
Cats and dogs.
8 real Fill-in examples
A sentence is read aloud with the ending missing — you complete it naturally, matching how a native speaker would finish the thought.
’s Avonds doe ik mijn ring af. Ik leg mijn ring altijd...
In the evening I take my ring off. I always put my ring...
op de kast.
on the cabinet.
Claire kijk uit het raam. Ze kijkt naar...
Claire looks out the window. She is looking at...
de straat.
the street.
Eva doet boodschappen. De tas is...
Eva is doing groceries. The bag is...
heel zwaar.
very heavy.
Jan drinkt bier. Hij doet dat...
Jan drinks beer. He does that...
in het café.
in the cafe.
Martijn is bij de apotheek. Hij haalt...
Martijn is at the pharmacy. He fetches...
zijn medicijnen op.
his medicines.
Stan gaat naar school. Hij leert...
Stan goes to school. He learns...
Nederlands spreken.
to speak Dutch.
Tamal moet remmen. Hij ziet een...
Tamal must brake. He sees a...
rood stoplicht.
red traffic light.
De soep is te zout. Ik vind het...
The soup is too salty. I think it is...
niet lekker.
not tasty.
What topics come up in the Speaking exam?
The 82 Q&A questions cover five main topic areas. Your exam draws 10 at random — but any of these could appear. Knowing the themes and practising typical answers in advance removes most of the surprise on exam day.
1. Family & living situation
Who you live with, your partner, children, family in the Netherlands — the most common topic area.
Bij wie gaat u wonen in Nederland?
With whom will you live in the Netherlands?
→ Bij mijn man / vrouw / partner. (With my husband / wife / partner.)
Heeft u kinderen?
Do you have children?
→ Ja, ik heb twee kinderen. / Nee, ik heb geen kinderen. (Yes, I have two children. / No, I have no children.)
Waar gaat u wonen in Nederland?
Where will you live in the Netherlands?
→ In Amsterdam / Rotterdam / Utrecht. (In Amsterdam / Rotterdam / Utrecht.)
2. Daily routine & time
What time you wake up, go to bed, eat, start work — requires Dutch time expressions.
Hoe laat gaat u 's avonds naar bed?
What time do you go to bed in the evening?
→ Om elf uur. (At eleven o'clock.)
Hoe laat staat u op?
What time do you get up?
→ Om zeven uur. (At seven o'clock.)
Hoe gaat u naar uw werk?
How do you get to work?
→ Met de fiets / bus / auto. (By bicycle / bus / car.)
3. Work, study & plans in the Netherlands
Your job now, plans to work or study in the Netherlands, and language learning.
Wat doet u voor werk?
What do you do for work?
→ Ik werk als verpleegkundige / leraar / in een winkel. (I work as a nurse / teacher / in a shop.)
Wilt u in Nederland werken?
Do you want to work in the Netherlands?
→ Ja, ik wil graag werken in Nederland. (Yes, I would like to work in the Netherlands.)
Leert u al Nederlands?
Are you already learning Dutch?
→ Ja, ik leer Nederlands met een app / op school. (Yes, I am learning Dutch with an app / at school.)
4. Free time & hobbies
What you enjoy, sports, cooking, socialising — straightforward but needs confident Dutch verbs.
Wat doet u graag in uw vrije tijd?
What do you like to do in your free time?
→ Ik kook graag / lees graag boeken / sport graag. (I like cooking / reading books / doing sports.)
Wat doet u graag met uw vrienden?
What do you like to do with your friends?
→ Ik ga graag uit eten met mijn vrienden. (I like going out to eat with my friends.)
5. Health & personal background
Where you were born, your nationality, previous visits to the Netherlands.
In welk land bent u geboren?
In which country were you born?
→ In India / Nigeria / Thailand / Armenië. (In India / Nigeria / Thailand / Armenia.)
Hoe vaak bent u al in Nederland geweest?
How many times have you been to the Netherlands?
→ Twee keer. / Één keer. / Nog nooit. (Twice. / Once. / Never yet.)
Hoe voelt u zich vandaag?
How do you feel today?
→ Ik voel me goed, dank u. (I feel well, thank you.)
Try it — real audio and recording, right on this page
Every example above has a real 🔊 Play button using the same Dutch audio as the actual app, and a 🎤 Record button so you can practise saying your own answer aloud and play it back — matching the real exam format, where you speak into a microphone rather than type or select an answer.
Three ways to practise — Study, Practice, Exam mode
Every section, including Speaking, has three distinct modes:
- 📖 Study mode — see answers as you go, ideal for a first pass through unfamiliar items
- ✏️ Practice mode — answer first, then check, for testing what you've actually retained
- 🎯 Exam mode — timed and scored, just like the real thing, so exam-day format isn't a surprise either
Questions shown in your language
Every question includes an English translation alongside the original Dutch — visible above for all 16 examples. In the actual app, this extends to 29 languages, including Arabic, Turkish, Hindi, Tagalog, Portuguese, Farsi, Urdu, Somali, and more.
20 Q&A questions and 114 fill-in sentences (about 25% of the bank) are free, no account needed. Full access to all 539 items — with audio and recording — is a one-time €9.99, not a subscription.
Try Speaking practice — 25% free to start →