I tried to give you some time since the last post to get a look at the Dutch proverbs. Let’s take a look at some of these proverbs.
1) Als twee honden vechten om een been, loopt de derde er mee heen. Means that when two dogs fight over a bone, an unsuspecting dog will creep up and carry the bone away. It’s used to explain situations where fighting between two opposing groups allows an outside party to snatch the prize away without having the opposing groups notice.
2) De druppel die de emmer doet overlopen. Literally means, the drop that floods the bucket. In English you would say, the straw that breaks the camel’s back. This proverb is used to refer to situations where an inconsequential incident can lead to a disaster. I used this in reference to my computer when the smallest little glitch caused my entire computer to crash.
3) Een open deur intrappen. Literally means, kicking in an open door. In other words, it’s used to describe situations where someone states the obvious. Since the door is already open, kicking the door open with your foot is pointless. It’s like saying, “why would you bother to kick the door in, when it’s plain obvious that the door is already open.”
4) Achter het net vissen. Literally means, to fish behind the net. This could mean, to miss an opportunity, or “wasted effort”. When you fish behind someone’s net, that person has already obtained the fish, leaving you with no fish.
5) Wie zijn neus schendt, schendt zijn aangezicht. Literally means, he who hurts his nose, hurts his face. This means that accusing a close relative of wrong doing will automatically lead to negative speculation about yourself. For example, if you accuse a relative of stealing, people may think that you may have the same tendency to do the same because you are a part of the same family.
6) Al doende leert men. Means, while doing, one learns. In other words it means that you learn by practicing. I use this phrase in reference to learning Dutch. Practicing with a native speaker can help you master the language in due time.
This is it for today. We’ll go over the rest next time.
