This is the 64th most frequent Dutch word.
ben
The Dutch word "ben" means "am" (first-person singular form of "to be").
Here, 'ben' is the first-person singular form of the verb 'zijn', meaning 'to be,' used to describe the subject 'I' as a student.
Ik ben een student.
I am a student.
In this sentence, 'ben' starts the question in the second-person singular form, inverted from its usual order when forming questions in Dutch.
Ben jij blij?
Are you happy?
Here, 'ben' is used with 'aan het' to form the present continuous tense, indicating an action happening right now.