Tag: learn Dutch

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Best Dutch language learning podcasts

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Podcasts are an excellent way to learn languages by listening. Wherever you are, improve your Dutch skills with these podcasts.

Hear news fragments read slowly and head over to the ‘Say it in Dutch‘ podcast. Ideal for advanced beginners to intermediate students. In each episode of around 30 minutes, someone reads a news story in Dutch, but very slowly. To get the PDFs with the transcripts you’ll have to pay though.
Duration: 30 minutes, level: A2-B1, transcripts: paid

In een beetje Nederlands – a bit of Dutch – you’ll learn in each episode about Dutch culture and many other topics in slow Dutch. The website is entirely for free.
Duration 10-20 minutes, level: A2-B1, transcripts: free.

DutchPod101.com is a Dutch learning platform. Except over 1000 podcasts for all levels, there are video lessons, exercises, transcripts and vocabulary lists. Making an account is necessary, and some of the features are paid.
Duration: variable, level: A1-B2, transcripts: account/paid

Learn basic phrases with LinguaBoost, you can listen to the podcast here. However, you’ll have to pay to get the transcripts.
Duration 5-10 minutes, level: A1-A2, transcripts: paid via this link.

Interested in simple, everyday stories of about 5 minutes? That’s what Dutch teacher Caroline makes with her podcast 5 minuten Nederlands. It’s intended for intermediate students, transcripts can be asked via her email address in the link.
Duration: 5 minutes, level: B1+, transcripts: on demand

Yes, you can learn by listening, even in the bus! ©

The Dutch Online Academy features podcasts for advanced beginners and intermediate learners. A simple text is read about a specific topic is read slowly. Occasionally it focuses on a grammar topic, but no explanations are given in the Podcast. Transcripts are available for free.
Duration: 3-10 minutes, level: mostly A2-B1, transcripts: free

One of the few podcasts also using English are the ones from Dutch Grammar. They focus on a topic per podcast, with useful phrases. It’s one of the older podcasts, but you can find the transcripts and their translations via the link.
Duration: 1-6 minutes, level: A2-B1, transcripts: free

However, there are many other podcasts unrelated to language learning. There is a huge selection of podcasts from Belgium you can find on Vlaamsepodcasts.be. If you prefer podcasts from the Netherlands, go to Podcast Luisteren. Need some help to choose one? Read my other article.

Spotted another one? Let me know in the comments!

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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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Free Dutch course online

Interested in learning the Dutch language? Here’s your way to do it for free.

In over 40 lectures, you’ll learn the basic grammar and over 300 Dutch words!

Start with the introduction to the course so you can start learning Dutch in 7 different sections:

  • Section 1: how to introduce yourself
  • Section 2: how to talk about jobs, countries and names
  • Section 3: the Dutch verbs
  • Section 4: the possessive, the family and the negative
  • Section 5: how to ask questions, how to use diminutive and when to write capitals
  • Section 6: the numbers and pronouns
  • Section 7: extra resources

    Get my book!

Enjoy the course and let me know what you liked and liked less!

Here’s the full description of the course:

Learn Dutch – this is the place to start learning Flemish online!

This is your opportunity! In this course, we start from zero. Indeed, zero. No previous knowledge needed. No expensive study books. We build on our way to learn Dutch, step by step. Learn at your own pace to translate Dutch, you can review the videos and redo the exercises any time, as much as you want! Learn Dutch online!
What can you expect?
Learning Dutch is difficult. Yes. So no unnecessary, 10-minute long Dutch grammar lessons with all the rules. Only what you need to know. Tips where you can find more Dutch language. Over 300 Dutch words to use in your everyday life. An interactive quiz at the end of each section, also about the Dutch vocabulary. Culture to understand Dutch better.
For who is this course?
You don’t understand Dutch, or barely. And you want to know how to speak Dutch. And it’s taught for you. Ready to start?
The level is Dutch A1 to Dutch A2.