[Dutch flag]
colors
[plate of food]
meals
[a house]
the house
[a path]
the outdoors
[books]
media
[jacket]
clothing
[a mirror]
beauty
[glasses, watch, etc.]
necessities

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Not Basic Dutch - Hear Beautiful & Fun Dutch Words

ondersteboven click to hear 2
achterstevoren click to hear 2
verkeerdom click to hear
binnenstebuiten click to hear 2
hear 4 - 2
[downside-up] upside down
backward
the wrong way 'round
inside-out
andersom click to hear

(het) tegenovergestelde click to hear 2

the other way 'round

(the) opposite

[Marco at desk, early morning]

oorverdovend
oogverblindend
tongstrelend
hear
ear-deafening (very loud)
eye-blinding (very bright)
tongue-caressing (very good-tasting)
hartverscheurend
bloedstollend
hear
heart-rending
blood-curdling
vooruitgang
tegenslag
hear
(progress)
(setback)
uitzondering
onregelmatig
hear - 2
(exception)
(irregular)
stelling
bewijs
tegenvoorbeeld
hear
(theorem)
(proof)
(counter example)
[porridge boiled over]
de pap is overgekookt click to hear >>

The saying: De uitzondering die de regel bevestigt - hear - 2 - ("The exception that confirms the rule") is often heard in Dutch, but it is of course nonsense. If a counter-example - (het) tegenvoorbeeld click to hear 2 can be found the rule is invalid. I remember reading somewhere that the original Latin was something like "The exception that tests the rule."

vergezocht
voor de hand liggend
vanzelfsprekend
hear
(far-fetched)
(obvious)
(self-evident)
tegenstander click to hear 2
concurrent click to hear 2
('adversary, opponent')
('competitor' - mostly business) - a word from French
Gebed zonder end click to hear - 2 - ['prayer without end'] something that takes very long (also an Amsterdam street name)
Er komt geen eind aan click to hear - 2 - there is no end to it, it goes on and on
't Houdt maar niet op click to hear - 2 ('it just never stops')

vogelverschrikker click to hear ('scarecrow' literally 'scare-birds')
spruitjesgeur click to hear - 2 ('the smell of Brussels sprouts' - said to prevail in Dutch literature)
leedvermaak click to hear ('Schadenfreude')
gênant click to hear ('embarassing' - a word from French: the Dutch are not easily embarassed)
armoedig click to hear ('looking poor')
eng click to hear ('scary')
engerd click to hear ('a creep')
huichelaar click to hear ('a hypocrite') - huichelachtig click to hear ('hypocritical')
walgelijk click to hear 2 ('disgusting')
gruzelementen click to hear ('smithereens')
zuinigheid click to hear - 2 - 3 ('frugality' - a very Dutch trait)
spiksplinternieuw click to hear ('brand new')
bliksemsnel click to hear 2 ('[lightning-] very fast')
aantrekkelijk click to hear ('attractive')
onweerstaanbaar click to hear - 2 ('irresistible')
geestig click to hear ('witty')
aarzeling click to hear ('hesitation')
teleurstelling click to hear ('disappointment') - teleurstellend click to hear ('disappointing')
gebruiksaanwijzing click to hear - 2 ('manual' [pointer for use])
knipselkrant click to hear ('newspaper cuttings service')
grootgrutter click to hear ('supermarket chain' - ironic use only)
ons koude kikkerland click to hear 2 ("our chilly frogs' country" - it's a place with wretched weather but it's home)
bij nader inzien click to hear ('[upon closer inspection] - now that I think about it ...')
alle beetjes helpen click to hear ('every little bit helps')
't Vogeltje zit zo zoet op z'n nestje click to hear ('the little bird is sitting on its nest so sweetly')

Billy Eric showed me his painting of a levee about to break, in very bad weather, and I wrote back to him a sentence that I only later noticed to be of some interest:
"Je geeft het slechte weer zo mooi weer" click to hear ('You depict the bad weather beautifully')
weer = weather (also: again); weergeven = to depict, represent, paint

Wereldwijde week van de veiligheid click to hear - 2 ('Global safety week' - a company slogan)
Ik werd wakker van de wekker click to hear ('I was woken up by the alarm clock')

Angst en vrees click to hear ('fear and dread' - vrees is when you know what you're afraid of, angst is an undefined fear)
De mens lijdt het meest van het lijden dat-ie vreest click to hear ('Man suffers most from the suffering he fears' - a sentiment somewhat similar to President Roosevelt's 'The only thing we have to fear is fear itself' - FDR)

More Fun Words

[grapes]
food
[pan]
kitchen
[rose]
flowers
[cows]
animals
[a building]
buildings
[bus]
traffic
[flame]
fire
[lightswitch]
electricity

>>

email - Copyright © Marco Schuffelen 2006. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, redistributed, or hotlinked to.
Don't be a dief (thief) / dievegge (female thief) - diefstal (theft) - stelen (to steal) - heler (dealer in stolen goods) - hear Dutch - 2