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Disambiguation: Many common Dutch words have more than one meaning.

Disambiguation Home - Aan - Achter - Af - Al - Als - Binnen/Buiten - Daar - Dan - Dat - Door - Eens - Er - Erg - Even - Haast - Het - In - Laat - Maar - Na - Naar - Net - Nog - Of - Om - Onder/Boven - Op - Over - Toen - Uit - Van - Voor - Vroeg - Waar - Wat - Weg - Zo - more

Haast

click to hear
  1. 'hurry, haste' - "It's urgent"
  2. 'almost' - "It's almost unbelievable"

Disambiguation: Dutch 'Haast' - Multiple Meanings and Related Words

1. haast = hurry, haste
spoed = haste, speed, rush, urgency - gauw = quick, soon

opschieten = to hurry
snel = quick, rapid, fast
hard = hard (not soft) // intense // loud // fast

langzaam = slow
geduld = patience
rustig = not hurried
zacht = soft
2. haast = almost, nearly
bijna = almost, nearly
nauwelijks = barely, 'narrowly'

1. 'haast' = 'hurry, haste'

(de) haast click to hear hurry, haste
haastig click to hear 2 3 hurriedly, hastily, hasty
gehaast click to hear 2 3 hurried, hurriedly
zich haasten click to hear to hurry, make haste
Er is haast bij click to hear 2 3 4 'It is urgent'
Er is geen haast bij click to hear 2 there's no need for hurry, there is no rush'
't Heeft geen haast click to hear 2 'there's no need for hurry, there is no rush'
Haastige spoed is zelden goed click to hear slow "Hasty speed is seldom good" - 'Hurry is rarely useful'
Ik zal me haasten click to hear 2 3 4 I'll hurry
Haast je als je de tijd hebt, dan heb je de tijd als je haast hebt click to hear
- 'Hurry when you have time, then you'll have time when you're in a hurry' (informal, singular 'you')
Haast U als U de tijd heeft, dan heeft U de tijd als U haast heeft click to hear
- 'Hurry when you have time, then you'll have time when you're in a hurry' (polite 'you')

Synomyms, Alternates and Related Words

(de) spoed click to hear haste, speed, rush, urgency
spoedig click to hear soon
(het) spoedgeval click to hear 2 3 urgent case, emergency
gauw click to hear 2 quick, soon
dringend click to hear 2 urgent, pressing
urgent click to hear 2 urgent, requiring prompt action
(de) urgentie click to hear urgency
binnenkort click to hear 2 ['within a short time'] - soon
zo spoedig mogelijk click to hear 2 ASAP, 'As soon as possible'
Haastige spoed is zelden goed click to hear slow "Hasty speed is seldom good" - 'Hurry is rarely useful'
Tot gauw! click to hear See you soon!
Kom gauw! click to hear 2 3 Come quick!
in de gauwigheid click to hear in the rush of things, because I had to act quickly
Ik kan zo gauw geen voorbeeld bedenken click to hear 2 3 I cannot think of an example [that quickly] right away
Moeten we al zo gauw weg? click to hear 2 3 Do we have to leave that [quickly] soon?
Ik hoop er gauw naar te kunnen kijken click to hear 2 3 I hope [to be able] to have a look at it soon
't Is dringend click to hear 2 It is urgent
Ze wil je dringend spreken click to hear 2 She wants to talk to you urgently
Ze moet je dringend spreken click to hear 2 She urgently needs to talk to you
Er zijn binnenkort verkiezingen click to hear 2 There will be elections soon

The verb 'schieten' click to hear 2 means 'to shoot.' It's a strong verb:

schieten
to shoot
- schoot
shot
- geschoten
shot
click to hear
schieten
to shoot
- ik schiet
I shoot
- wij schieten
we shoot
- ik schoot
I shot
- wij schoten
we shot
- ik heb geschoten
I have shot
- click to hear 2
Schieten op kleiduiven click to hear 2 3 Shooting at clay pigeons Hij schoot een pijl naar de boom click to hear He shot an arrow at the tree op click to hear for a general or mulltiple targets, naar click to hear for a single target

The compound verb 'opschieten' means 'to hurry' and there is a phrase 'goed kunnen opschieten met' click to hear 2 3 meaning 'to get on well with someone, to like a person.'

Ik zal opschieten click to hear 2 I'll hurry
Schiet op! click to hear 2 Hurry up!
't Schiet op click to hear 2 It's progressing nicely, it's almost done
Ik kan goed opschieten met Jan click to hear 2 3 I get on well with Jan, I like Jan

Dutch has a word kwiek click to hear 2 that's clearly related to English 'quick,' but it's not much used and it has come to mean 'lively.' (Het) kwik click to hear is 'quicksilver, mercury' and there's a bird with an busy tail called (het) kwikstaartje click to hear ('(little) wagtail.')
The common word for 'quick, rapid, fast' is 'snel click to hear (snelle click to hear 2 3 - snel / snelle click to hear)

(de) snelheid click to hear 2 speed
(de) versnelling click to hear 2 accelaration
(de) zwaartekracht click to hear 2 3 gravity
(de) vaart click to hear 2 speed // momentum, built-up speed
versnellingen click to hear 2 3 'gears' (bike, car)
(de) stroomversnelling click to hear 2 'rapids' (whitewater)
te snel click to hear 2 too fast
(de) snelweg click to hear highway, freeway
(de) sneltrein click to hear fast train, express
(de) sneltreinvaart click to hear 2 rapid pace
(de) snelkookpan click to hear pressure cooker
bliksemsnel click to hear 2 [lightning-fast]
very fast
(de) snelheidsmeter click to hear 2 speedometer
vlug click to hear 2 quick, fast, rapid
(vlug / vlugge click to hear 2 quick, fast, rapid)
vliegensvlug click to hear [flying-fast] very quick
(het) vluggertje click to hear speed-chess match (10-minutes)
(de) hoge snelheid click to hear 2 3 high speed
lage snelheden click to hear 2 3 low speeds
'n snelle reactie click to hear 2 3 a quick reaction
snel eten click to hear to eat quickly, eating fast
't Ging zo snel click to hear 2 3 4 It [went] happened so fast
Het is te snel voor mij click to hear 2 It's too fast for me
U praat te snel voor mij click to hear 2 3 You're talking too fast (for me)
Hij verfde het huis snel click to hear 2 He painted the house quickly
Hij drinkt snel een biertje click to hear 2 He's quickly drinking a beer
Hij berekende snel het verschil click to hear 2 He quickly calculated what the difference was
Hij deed 't werk snel click to hear 2 3 He quickly did the work, he finished the job quickly
Hij bedacht snel een smoesje click to hear 2 3 He quickly [thought up] made up an excuse
Ze zwemt snel click to hear She swims fast, she's a fast swimmer
De boot vaart snel click to hear The [boat] ship [sails] moves fast, it's a fast boat
met hoge snelheid click to hear 2 at high speed
vaart verliezen click to hear 2 3 [losing speed] slowing down, decelerate
in vliegende vaart click to hear [at flying speed] at very high speed // quickly
in volle vaart click to hear 'at full throttle,' ~high speed
Ik gaf haar snel een knipoogje click to hear I quickly winked at her
Hij vertelde ons snel een paar mopjes click to hear 2 He quickly told us a few jokes De verkenner vertelde de kolonel snel wat hij gezien had click to hear 2 The scout quickly told the colonel what he had seen Al is de leugen nog zo snel, de waarheid achterhaalt haar wel click to hear 2 3 4 ['However quick a lie may be, the truth will overtake it'] - Lies won't last, the truth will come out eventually Als je het werk snel doet krijg je meer geld click to hear 2 3 When you do the work quickly you'll get more money

Dutch 'hard' click to hear (harde click to hear 2 - hard / harde click to hear) can mean 'not soft' (literally and figuratively) like in English, and it can like in English mean 'requiring great effort' - 'with great force' or 'with energy or speed' and 'intense, powerful' but Dutch 'hard' is not completely equivalent to English 'hard.' It can also mean 'loud' and 'fast.'
For zacht click to hear 'soft' see below

hardgekookt ei click to hear 2 3 hard-boiled egg
harde harten click to hear 'hard hearts' (unmoved by sympathy, don't feel your pain)
hardvochtig click to hear 2 3 hard-hearted, heartless ('hard' people)
Hij werkt hard click to hear He's working hard
Er moet nog hard gewerkt worden click to hear There still needs to be (a lot of) hard work done, It still needs a lot of hard work
Harder werken aan Nederlands leren click to hear Work harder on learning Dutch (a resolution)
keihard click to hear 2 3 hard, powerful, high-energy, with much effort
Gaat 't hard regenen? click to hear Is it going to rain hard?
Als 't hard regent blijf ik thuis click to hear 2 If it's raining hard I'll stay home
Heb ik hard genoeg geschopt? click to hear Did I kick (the ball) hard enough?
Gisteren schopte ik niet hard genoeg click to hear Yesterday I didn't kick (the ball) hard enough
Ik had de bal harder willen schoppen click to hear I had wanted to kick the ball harder.
Hij schopt de bal heel hard click to hear 2 He's kicking the ball very hard

Dutch 'hard' with words of sound can also mean 'loud'

Hij lacht hard click to hear He's laughing loudly
hard praten click to hear 2 to talk loudly
harde muziek click to hear 2 loud music
keihard click to hear 2 3 very loud
See also: The Senses: Hearing

English 'driving hard' means to really put energy into it, making a serious effort, and it also means 'pushing hard,' literally and figuratively, while Dutch 'hard rijden' click to hear 2 just means 'fast driving or riding.' With Dutch verbs of movement 'hard' means 'fast.'

hardlopen click to hear 2 3 ['to walk fast'] - to run

hardlopen
to run
- ik loop hard
I'm running
- ik liep hard
I ran
- ik heb hardgelopen
I have run
click to hear 2 3
Morgen wil ik gaan hardlopen click to hear 2 Tomorrow I want to go running
ik rij(d) te hard click to hear 2 I'm driving (or riding) too fast
Hij kan erg hard fietsen click to hear 2 He can ride a bike very fast, he is a very fast biker
Keep in mind that Dutch 'rijden click to hear 2 means both 'to drive' and 'to ride.' It's a strong verb:
rijden
to ride/to drive
reed
drove/rode
gereden
driven/ridden
click to hear
rijden
to ride/to drive
- ik rijd
I drive/ride
- wij rijden
we drive/ride
- ik reed
I drove/rode
- wij reden
we drove/rode
- ik heb gereden/
ik ben gereden
I have driven/ridden

click to hear 2

The opposite of 'snel click to hear 'fast, quick, rapid' is 'langzaam' click to hear (langzame click to hear 2 3 - langzaam/langzame click to hear) 'slow.' The Z is often 'softened' to an S: "langsaam" click to hear 2 ("langsaam/langsame" click to hear 2)

Ik loop langzaam click to hear I'm walking slowly, I'm a slow walker
Ik reed heel langzaam naar huis click to hear 2 I drove/rode home very slow
Je reed te langzaam click to hear 2 You were driving/riding too slow
langzaam aan click to hear 2 Go slow, don't rush, take it easy
langzaam maar zeker click to hear 2 3 slowly but certainly
De vader voerde het kind langzaam een bord pap click to hear 2 3 The dad slowly fed the child a plateful of porridge
Dit is (niet) verschrikkelijk langzaam click to hear slow 2 This is (not) terribly slow.
Verschrikkelijk langzaam click to hear slow 2 Terribly slow
langzamerhand click to hear 2 3 [slowly] - gradually
See and Hear also: Slow Dutch
traag click to hear 2 slow, sluggish, languid
Onnatuurlijk traag click to hear slow 2 3 Unnaturally tardy, sluggish - more Slow Dutch
(de) vertraging click to hear 2 delay
Ik had vertraging click to hear 2 3 'I was late' (there was a delay)
't Leidde tot veel vertraging click to hear 2 3 It led to much delay, it caused much delay
not related:  (de) tragedie click to hear 2 3 tragedy
and  tragisch click to hear 2 (tragische click to hear) tragic

'Patience' is (het) geduld click to hear 2
'patient' is geduldig click to hear 2 3
'impatient' is ongeduldig click to hear 2
'patient,' a person under medical care is (de) patiënt click to hear - Medical
The card game 'solitaire' is called 'Patience' click to hear 2 3 in Dutch (French pronunciation)

Geduldig zijn click to hear Be patient (a resolution ->>
Geduld oefenen click to hear ['Exercise patience'] - Be patient (a bit old-fashioned)
Geduld is een schone zaak click to hear Patience is a beautiful thing, patience is good
Hij wachtte geduldig op z'n beurt click to hear 2 3 He waited patiently for his turn
Hij onderging de behandeling geduldig click to hear 2 He patiently underwent the treatment

Dutch rustig click to hear (rustige click to hear 2 3 means 'not hurried' - 'calm, peaceful, quiet, steady, not much activity'

Alles was rustig click to hear All was quiet
rustig aan click to hear 2 don't rush, take it easy, calm down
rustig rijden click to hear drive calmly, don't rush
rustig maar click to hear 2 3 4 5 "there, there" (trying to comfort an upset person)
Drink eerst even rustig een kopje thee click to hear 2 First take a moment to relax and drink a cup of tea
Ik vind 't wel rustig click to hear 2 (3) ~I like the quiet (of it)
(de) rust click to hear 2 is 'rest,' a period of quiet and recuperation; rusten click to hear 2 is 'to rest' - more
(de) onrust click to hear 'unrest, turmoil; restlessness'

See also: stil click to hear 2 (stil / stille click to hear 2) 'quiet, silent, no sound' ‑>>

'Zacht click to hear ( zachte click to hear 2 - zacht / zachte click to hear) is 'soft'
zachtjes click to hear 'softly, gently, carefully'
zachtaardig click to hear 2 kind-hearted, sweet-natured, mild-mannered

(een) zachtgekookt ei click to hear 2 3 soft-boiled egg (still-liquid yolk)
Zacht als boter click to hear 2 Soft as butter
Zo zacht als boter click to hear As soft as butter
Even zacht als boter click to hear 2 Just as soft as butter
Voel hoe zacht de stof is! click to hear 2 3 Feel how soft the fabric is!
zachte muziek click to hear 2 3 soft music (not loud)
een zachte stem click to hear 2 3 a quiet voice (not loud)
Hij zei heel zachtjes 'ja' click to hear 2 3 He said 'yes' very softly
een zachte winter click to hear 2 3 a mild Winter
een zacht prijsje click to hear 2 3 'a soft price' - a rather low price, possibly fishy

Zachtjes aan, dan breekt het lijntje niet click to hear slow slow2 [Go [softly] slow so the [line] rope doesn't break] - Easy does it

The pronunciation of the G in the South of The Netherlands and in the North of Belgium is called (de) 'zachte G' click to hear 2 3 - more
'Groots met Een Zachte G' click to hear 2 'Great, majestic with a soft G' (A Guus Meeuwis show) 'Zachte G' click to hear 2 3

2. 'haast' = 'almost, nearly'

'Haast' click to hear can also be an adverb meaning 'almost, nearly.' 'Welhaast' click to hear 2 3 is an older form
't Is haast onmogelijk click to hear 2 3 It's nearly impossible
't Is welhaast onmogelijk click to hear 2 3 It's nearly (well nigh?) impossible
Dat is haast niet te doen click to hear 2 3 That's almost impossible (to do) - it's going to be a very difficult job
't Is haast ongelooflijk click to hear 2 It is almost unbelievable, it's hard to believe
Er is haast geen geld click to hear 2 3 There is [almost no, hardly any] very little money
Je zou haast denken ... click to hear 2 3 You would almost think ...
Hij heeft haast niks gegeten click to hear 2 3 He [ate almost nothing] barely ate anything

Synomyms, Alternates and Related Words

Bijna click to hear 2 is also a common word for 'almost, nearly, barely'
bijna nooit click to hear 2 almost never
bijna altijd click to hear almost always, almost every time
bijna even goed als ... click to hear 2 3 almost as good as ...
bijna net zo leuk click to hear 2 3 4 Almost as nice (funny, entertaining)
Het is bijna klaar click to hear It's almost ready
We zijn er bijna click to hear 2 We're almost there
Ik viel bijna click to hear 2 I almost fell, I came close to falling
De minuutwijzer beweegt bijna niet meer click to hear slow The minutes hand barely moves anymore

Nauwelijks click to hear 2 is 'barely,' 'almost no,' "narrowly"
Also: ternauwernood click to hear

Er is nauwelijks verschil click to hear 2 3 4 There is hardly any difference
Hij kan nauwelijks nog lopen click to hear 2 He can barely walk anymore
Hij kon nauwelijks nog lopen click to hear 2 He could barely walk anymore
Er is nauwelijks regen gevallen click to hear 2 3 There has [barely fallen rain] hardly been any rain
Ik heb hem nauwelijks gekend click to hear 2 3 I barely knew him

Dutch Vocabulary Overview - Dutch Grammar Overview - Listen to and Read Dutch

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Don't be a dief (thief) / dievegge (female thief) - diefstal (theft) - stelen (to steal) - heler (dealer in stolen goods) - hear Dutch - 2