Dutch Idioms 28: Throwing the Child Away Posted by Sten on Mar 31, 2022
Today, I want to discuss one of my favorite uitdrukkingen (expressions) in the Dutch language. Because it is so weirdly unique, I want to dedicate this entire post of Dutch Idioms to it. It involves bathing your little baby in nice warm water, but then considering throwing out that water, including the baby! What on earth…
Curious Dutch Words – Monnikenwerk Posted by Sten on Mar 28, 2022
It’s a situation we’re probably all too familiar with: You know you have that paper to write, but it is saaaaai (booooring). This eentonig (monotonous) subject and the ridiculous length that you are required to write about it… Come on! Daar heb ik geen tijd voor! (I don’t have time for that!) In Dutch, we sometimes…
Getting Gas in the Netherlands – Vocabulary Posted by Sten on Mar 11, 2022
Benzineprijzen (gasoline prices) have gone off the rails in the Netherlands. They shot well above 2 euros per liter (in American terms, that’s more than 8 dollars per gallon!), with record stijgingen (increases). A main reason given is de oorlog in de Ukraine (war in Ukraine). Some tankstations (gas stations) took this crisis as an opportunity for…
You Heard Of Dutchman Aldies Ghoet-Koper? Neither Has He. Posted by Sten on Mar 4, 2022
Because he doesn’t exist! Aldies Ghoet-Koper is a fictional character created forever ago by Caz! radio – a radiostation (radio station) in the Netherlands. Listen to the fragment below. Why was this character created, though, and what’s so funny about this? Here are Dutch jokes with names. Aldi is cheaper It’s no secret that supermarkten (supermarkets) fight for our attention…
Dutch Late Night Host Arjen Lubach Is Back! Posted by Sten on Feb 28, 2022
Arjen Lubach is a Dutch comedian who gained international fame with his show Zondag met Lubach (Sunday with Lubach). This show held every Sunday evening discussed news with a comedic twist, similar to American formats like The Daily Show, Last Week Tonight and the Colbert Report. Lubach became most famous for his short skit America First, The Netherlands…
Wat móét ik nou hiermee? Accents on Dutch Words, Explained Posted by Sten on Feb 21, 2022
Dutch is pretty straightforward. Unlike German, French, Spanish or some Nordic languages, we don’t put accents on our letters! But then words like ingeënt, kopiëren, reünie, drieënvijftig, geïnd and tweeën say hello. This is what we call het trema (diaeresis), and in the Netherlands, it doesn’t signify that we pronounce the letter differently, but it’s rather an indication that…
What the heck is “grass duning”? – Curious Dutch Words Posted by Sten on Feb 15, 2022
We have plenty of weird, obscure words in the Dutch language. Here’s one that I really like, but that probably won’t survive. So perhaps by writing this blog, we can keep the word grasduinen alive. But what does grasduinen mean? It’s a regular verb, but it sounds odd. According to the Van Dale means “zich…