Graag, liever, het liefst

Graag, liever & het liefst are like family. They act the same way in a sentence.

An example is usually the quickest way to explain something:

A friend asks you where you'd like to go for dinner. She suggests a pizza restaurant. You do like pizza, but you prefer sushi. So you say:

• Ik eet graag pizza, maar ik eet liever sushi.

With this sentence you express your preferences. You like pizza, but you rather eat sushi.

Your friend adds a third option. She say: Ok, we could go to a pizza restaurant, a sushi restaurant or that new place where they serve great Mexican wraps. She heard good stories about it.

You like all options, but you'd like to express your preference:

• Ik eet graag pizza, maar ik eet liever sushi en ik eet het liefst Mexicaanse wraps!

This makes clear that pizza is good, sushi is better and Mexican wraps are you favourite.

Note that graag, liever & het liefst are not verbs. You usually use them right behind the verb.

• Ik drink graag koffie.
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• Henk gaat liever voetballen dan tennissen.
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• Wij zwemmen het liefst in de zee.

If you have an adverb of time, it could be placed between the verb and graag/liever/het liefst. The word order of adverbs it a bit complex. Here you can read more.

• Ik drink in de ochtend graag koffie.
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• Henk gaat vandaag liever voetballen dan tennissen.
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• Wij zwemmen in de zomer het liefst in de zee.