Tag: dutch

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Mastering Dutch: the 1000 Most Common Words

Learning Dutch can be a daunting task, but focusing on the most common words can make the process much more manageable and effective. In this blog post, we’ll explore the benefits of learning the 1000 most common words and how it can accelerate your language learning journey.

Why Focus on the 1000 Most Common Dutch Words?

  1. Efficiency in Learning: By concentrating on the most frequently used words, you can quickly understand and participate in everyday conversations. These words form the backbone of the language, appearing in a significant portion of spoken and written Dutch.
  2. Building Confidence: Mastering these common words boosts your confidence as you start recognizing and using them in real-life situations. This early success can motivate you to continue learning and expanding your vocabulary.
  3. Improved Comprehension: Understanding the most common words helps you grasp the context of conversations and texts more easily. This comprehension is crucial for effective communication and further language acquisition.
  4. Foundation for Advanced Learning: Once you have a strong grasp of these essential words, learning more complex vocabulary and grammar becomes less intimidating. You’ll have a solid foundation to build upon, making advanced learning smoother and more enjoyable.

Here’s a video of the 1000:

Here’s a list of the 100 most common ones, with a sample sentence:

These words are just the beginning. By learning them, you’ll be able to form basic sentences and understand a large portion of everyday Dutch conversations.

Take Your Dutch to the Next Level

Ready to dive deeper into Dutch? Yes, learning those 100 – or 1000 – by heart won’t get you that far. But my Dutch courses on Udemy are designed to help you master the 1000 most common words in context. With three comprehensive courses, you’ll cover essential vocabulary, practical phrases, and key grammar points, all tailored to help you understand, speak, and write Dutch with confidence.

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10 tips for expats learning Dutch

Learn the Dutch language from Belgium, also called Flemish

New in the Netherlands or Belgium? Willing to learn the Dutch language? Here are 10 tips for foreigners learning Dutch.

10 pro Dutch tips
  • Many people in the Netherlands and Belgium speak English. So as soon as they hear you’re not a native, they’ll switch to English or even another language. To avoid this, pretend you don’t know English. Or use a horrible accent when you’re answering. Success guaranteed!
  • Look around. Names of streets have meanings. Road signs too. For example, one of my students thought ‘herhaling’ meant end in English. He was also surprised he has so many speeding tickets. Turns out herhaling means repetition, and this for zones where you could only drive 30 km/h!
  • Dutch is one of the closest languages to English! So if you think you recognise a word, it might be the right translation!
      Writing during classes can help you a lot!
  • Libraries are free in Belgium and the Netherlands. Beginners can explore the kids’ sections and work their way up to fluent native level with novels.
  • Dutch or Flemish? Dutch (‘Nederlands’) is both countries’ official language, but Flemish (‘Vlaams’) is the dialect spoken in Belgium. Written, it’s 99% the same. Spoken, the accent is different. You can compare it to Brazilian Portuguese and the one spoken in Portugal.
Classes & courses
  • Dutch often combines different words. For instance, praten is to talk and groep means… group, you’ve guessed it. So a ‘praatgroep’ is a group where people talk. Easy!
  • Meeting Dutch people and Belgians can prove to be difficult. But why don’t you start with expat groups and work your way from there? Additionally, many cities have taalcafés. It’s an evening where languages are exchanged. Google the word taalcafé and your city or one nearby to find language exchange partners.
  • Another way to meet like-minded people is via evening classes. CVO courses are relatively cheap and you’ll find friends who share your struggles. Try to talk only in Dutch with the other students.
  • Working with Dutch-speaking colleagues? Ask them one word a day. That’s over 300 a year… And tons of funny conversations.
  • Last tip: join my Facebook group for Dutch learners, buy my online class for beginners and book some online language lessons with me ($10 extra)!

Also monthly tips to learn Dutch in my newsletter…

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Present continuous in the Dutch language: aan het

How do you say ‘I’m eating’ in Dutch? Or: I’m walking now? Yes, English speakers often use the present continuous: to be + verb + ing attached. But how do you use it in Dutch?

Simple:

  • Ik eet. (I’m eating)
  • Ik wandel nu. (I’m walking now)

Isn’t that the simple present? Yes.

Present continuous or not?

In Dutch, the present continuous isn’t used as often as in English. That’s why Dutch language teachers sometimes even forget to mention it. It is used to explicitly stress the verb.

When you use the present continuous, use to be + aan het + infinitive.

So if someone is calling you and you want to tell that person you’re eating and you’d like to diplomatically say you can’t speak for the moment, you can answer:

  • Ik ben aan het eten (I’m eating).

    a woman is reading and learning Dutch
    Ze is aan het lezen (she’s reading)

Or if you’re informing your son is walking, and he shouldn’t be disturbed:

  • Hij is aan het wandelen nu (He’s walking now).

And if you’re studying Dutch together (bonus points if you do) with some pals :

  • We zijn Nederlands aan het studeren nu (We’re studying Dutch now).

To ask a question with aan het, you can ask:

  • Wat ben je aan het doen? (What are you doing?)
  • Ik ben aan het dansen. (I’m dancing)

Note that the past continuous simply uses the past tense of to be:

  • Ik was aan het dansen (I was dancing).

Exercises

Translate the following with the present continuous:

  1. They are eating in the restaurant.
  2. We’re dancing outside now.
  3. What were you doing?
  4. I’m studying.
  5. What are you studying? (plural)

Solutions

  1. Ze zijn aan het eten in het restaurant.
  2. We zijn nu buiten aan het dansen.
  3. Wat was je aan het doen?
  4. Ik ben aan het studeren.
  5. Wat zijn jullie aan het studeren?

 

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All in Dutch: al, alle, alles, allen, allemaal

Learn the Dutch language from Belgium, also called Flemish

So when an English-speaking student is learning the Dutch translation for ‘all’, all hell breaks loose. How do you explain to a student there are five (!) ways to translate ‘all’?

Let’s see them all:

  1. Is that all?
  2. All are here. (as in people)
  3. All people are here.
  4. All the people are here.
  5. We are all here.

All as in everything

If you can replace the ‘all’ by everything, you use ‘alles’.

  • Is dat alles? (Is that all)

All as in everyone

If you can replace the ‘all’ by everyone, you use ‘allen.’ You can also use iedereen.

  • Allen zijn hier. (all are here)

All plus nouns

When you’re using all plus a noun, you use ‘alle.’ There’s nothing standing between de ‘all’ and the noun.

  • Alle mensen zijn hier. (all people are here)

All plus article plus nouns

If there’s an article or a pronoun (this, that) in between the all and the nouns, it’s ‘al.’

  • Al de mensen zijn hier. (all the people are here)

All or everything?

All separated from the noun

When all stands behind the noun, use ‘allemaal’. Allen can also be used in case of people.

  • We zijn allemaal hier.  (we are all here)

Exercises

(words: de studenten, de leraars, werken met, naar België, was, het)

  1. All students go to Belgium.
  2. The students all go to Belgium.
  3. All go to Belgium.
  4. All teachers work with all the students.
  5. Was it all, students?

Solutions

  1. Alle studenten gaan naar België.
  2. De studenten gaan allemaal naar België.
  3. Allen gaan naar België.
  4. Alle leraars werken met al de studenten.
  5. Was het alles, studenten?
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Busy in Dutch: druk or bezig

Learn the Dutch language from Belgium, also called Flemish

During one of my online Dutch lessons, a student said this:

  • Het was een bezige week (= it was a busy week).

It’s a literal translation from English into Dutch. Due to the close relationship between the two languages, it’s a good tactic. However, in this case, it isn’t.

So I corrected my student:

  • Het was een drukke week.

But I couldn’t tell why. Yes, language teachers do not know everything. So I did some research and found interesting forum conversations on an amazing website. And here’s how it is:

Bezige bij or drukke bij?

Bezig is used for living things doing an activity. The result is that the living thing can’t do something else:

  • Jan, kan je me helpen? (= Jan, can you help me?)
  • Nee, ik ben bezig. (= No, I’m busy.)

So a week can’t be ‘bezig’. Because it’s not a living thing. Also, it’s not doing an activity. And that is why it’s a drukke week. Let’s do some exercises:

Fill in: druk/bezig (solution below)

  • Ben je met de afwas … ?
  • Het plein is … .
  • Jan is altijd zo’n … mens.
  • Op het werk is het altijd … .
  • Hij is … . Dus vraag het aan Sara.

(afwas = dishes, zo’n = such a)

Mind as well that you can use ‘druk bezig‘ as in very busy. Again, this is only for living things doing an activity.

Druk can also mean pressure. For example luchtdruk (= air pressure) and in stressful situations. And ‘bezet‘ means occupied. As in what you have to reply when you’re in the bathroom.

Fun fact: a busy bee is an expression also used in Dutch: een bezige bij. It’s a living thing and doing an activity.

Solutions:

Bezig – druk – drukke – druk – bezig.

 

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Niet or geen? Differences between Dutch not’s and no’s

As you’re learning your first Dutch words, you’ll come across an important topic: to say a sentence in the negative. For example: I don’t live in Germany:

  • Ik woon niet in Duitsland.

So, not is niet, right? Yes. And no. Because as you’re translating the next sentence: ‘I am not a German’, you won’t see a niet in:

  • Ik ben geen Duitser.

But you do see a geen appearing. So when do you use geen, and when niet? Well, it’s simple: if you can replace the not in English by a no, it’s geen. In the other cases, it’s niet. Let’s see our two examples:

  • I don’t live in Germany. I do no live in Germany = wrong, so it’s… Ik woon niet in Duitsland.
  • I am not a German. I am no German = right, so it’s… Ik ben geen Duitser.

That’s it. Also mind that a simple ‘no’ as in not a yes is translated as nee or neen.

Check out more Dutch here!