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

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

Vroeg

1. vroeg = early

	vroeger = earlier // before, in the past		laat = late - later = later

2. vroeg = asked

'Vroeg'

can be an adjective or adverb meaning 'early.' When used as an adjective, it often gets an -E ending: vroege

vroege vogels 2	'early birds' - people who are up early
's morgens vroeg 2 3	early in the morning
Het is nog vroeg	It's still early
't Is nog te vroeg 2 3	It's still too early
't Is nog te vroeg om op te staan 2 3	It's still to early to get up, it's too early to get up yet
Hij is vroeg 2	He is early
Ik sta elke dag vroeg op 2	I get up early every day
onmenselijk vroeg 2	[inhumanely] impossibly, beastly early
'Biologisch' is vroeg 19e eeuwse landbouw 2	'Organic' is early 19th-Century agriculture
'Biologisch' is niks anders dan vroeg 19e eeuwse landbouw 2	'Organic' is nothing else than early 19th-Century agriculture
De morgenstond heeft goud in de mond 2	[The dawn hour has gold in its mouth] - The early bird gets the worm

'Vroeger

can 'literally' be the comparative degree of 'vroeg' but it usually means 'before, in the past' - more.

vroeger of later	[earlier] sooner or later
Dan moet je vroeger opstaan 2 3	'Then you'll have to get up earlier' - i.e. for that you'll have to be more alert and more active
heel vroeger 2	[much before] a long time ago, far in the past
Vroeger was alles beter	'Everything was better in the past'
Vroeger was geluk heel gewoon 2	[In the past ...] Happiness used to be quite common
Vroeger kostte een zakje patat een kwartje	In the past, you could have a small bag of French fries for a quarter
Dat deed ik vroeger ook 2 3	I did that too in the past, I used to do that too

The opposite of 'vroeg' ('early') is 'laat' ('late') - more and 'later' is 'later'

's avonds laat 2	late in the evening, late at night
een paar jaar later	a few years later
later dat jaar 2	later (in) that year

'vroeg'

can also be a verb form, the simple past tense singular of 'vragen'

2 ('to ask')

vragen
to ask

ik vraag
I ask

wij vragen
we ask

ik vroeg
I asked

wij vroegen
we asked

ik heb gevraagd
I have asked

Hij vroeg om water 2	He asked for water
Hij vroeg om een glas water 2 3	He asked for a glass of water
Hij vroeg om een verklaring 2	He asked for an explanation
Hij vroeg waar 't station was 2	He asked where the station was
Ze vroegen om geld 2 3	They asked for money