Monthly Archives: February 2013

Eind

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end, distance
[noun]
[het eind, de ein-des/ein-den] 

rails-253140_640There are three words for ‘end’ in Dutch: ‘eind’, ‘einde’ and ‘end’. Both ‘eind’ and ‘end’ can also be used in the meaning of ‘(a) distance’, see the Examples below.

Note that ‘end’ is mostly used informally. When not sure, it’s better to use ‘eind’ instead.

Examples:
– “Ik vond het een goede film maar het eind viel erg tegen, vond je ook niet?” 
(“I thought it was a good movie, however the end was very disappointing, didn’t you think so too?”)

– “Pardon, weet u de weg naar de Lomanstraat?” – “Jazeker, u gaat hier rechts de straat in en dan aan het eind links afslaan. Daarna is het de tweede rechts.” – “Ok, dankuwel!”  
(“Excuse me, do you know the way to the Lomanstraat?” – “Absolutely, (you) enter the street here to the right and then turn left at the end. Then it is the second (street) on the right.” – “Okay, thank you!”)

– “Kunnen we niet beter de fiets nemen? Het is vanaf hier echt nog een heel eind lopen naar de Noordermarkt. En daarna moeten we ook weer terug!” 
(“Had we not better take the bicycle? From here it is still a very long walk to the Noordermarkt. And after that we also have to go back again!”)

– “Een eind lopen? Het is een klein eindje lopen! Wacht ik kijk op GoogleMaps. Nou ja, moet je zien, het is zelfs een kippeneindje! Kom we gaan, we treuzelen langer dan het lopen zelf zal duren!” 
(“A long walk? It is but a short walk! Wait, let me check GoogleMaps. Here, look at this, it is even a marginal distance! Come on let’s go, we linger longer than the duration of the walk itself!”)

Expressions:
– “Het bij het rechte eind hebben”: to be right (after doubt or dispute). E.g. ‘Sander heeft het niet altijd bij het rechte eind.’
– “Een eind breien aan iets”: to end an activity [colloquial]. The verb ‘breien’ translates as ‘to knit’.

Example:
– “Jongens, we breien er zo een eind aan; willen jullie alvast beginnen met opruimen?”
(“Guys, we are about to stop; would you please start putting things away?”)

– “Eind goed, al goed”: all’s well that ends well.

Related words:
– Einde: end [noun] [het einde, de eindes/einden].
– Eindje: (a) distance [noun] [het eindje, de eindjes]. Although ‘eindje’ is a diminutive, it does not necessarily meant it is a short distance 🙂 E.g.: ‘Het is nog best een eindje wandelen.’
– Kippeneindje: very short distance [noun] [het kippeneindje, de kippeneindjes]. Literally: ‘a chicken’s distance’.
– End: (a) distance. Colloquially and in certain dialects also ‘end’ [noun] [het end, de enden]. E.g.: ‘Het is een end fietsen.’
– Uiteinde: the very end (of a street, a piece of rope etc.) [noun] [het uiteinde, de uiteindes/uiteinden].
– Uiteindelijk: eventually [adverb].
– Beëindigen: to end (a certain activity) [verb] [beëindigde, beëindigd].
– Eindigen: to end [verb] [eindigde, geëindigd]. E.g.: ‘Het eindigt hier en nu; ik wil je nooit meer zien!’

Things to remember from this DWOTD
– How to use ‘eind’, ‘einde’ and ‘end’;
– What is a ‘kippeneindje’;
– An ‘eindje’ is not necessarily a short distance, despite the use of the diminutive;
– The Dutch word for ‘eventually’ is ‘uiteindelijk’.

Je zal ze de kost moeten geven!

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(a lot) more people than you may think
[phrase]
[je zal ze de kost moe-ten ge-ven] 

college-football-183266_640The noun ‘kost’ is the singular form of ‘kosten’: costs, expenses. In this meaning, the plural form is most common. The singular form ‘kost’ however is more commonly used in the meaning of ‘food’ (that you need on a daily basis). One may ask you for example (informally): ‘Wat doe jij voor de kost?’ (‘What do you do for a living?’).

The expression ‘Je zal ze de kost moeten geven’ translates as: ‘Imagine (/what if) you would have to feed them (on a daily basis)!’, and is used to say that one must not underestimate the number of people who (would) do a particular thing. In other words: ‘A lot more people than you may think!’.

You may also encounter this expression in the form ‘Ik zou ze niet graag de kost willen geven.’ Both examples are often followed by a sentence of the form: ‘…die […]’, see the Examples below.

Examples:
– “Je zal ze de kost moeten geven die vergeten uit te checken bij het verlaten van de tram!” 
(“A lot more people than you may think forget to check out when exiting the tram.” This example refers to the use of the ‘OV-chipcard’ in Dutch public transport.)

– “Wordt er echt zo veel gestolen op het werk?” – “Wat dacht je! Je zal ze de kost moeten geven die pennen of een pak papier mee naar huis nemen!” 
(“Is stealing at the work floor really common practice?”- “You bet! Don’t underestimate the number of people who take pens or (a pack of) paper home!” Literally: “Is there really that much stealing at work?”)

– “Ik zou ze niet graag de kost willen geven die hun goede voornemens voor het nieuwe jaar al na een week op de lange baan schuiven.” 
(“There are really a lot of people who, already after one week (into the new year), postpone (and potentially cancel) their New Year’s resolutions.” Note the expression ‘Iets op de lange baan schuiven’: to postpone (for an implied longer period of time), often leading to cancellation of the plans.)

– “Ik vind het ongelofelijk hoeveel mensen links blijven rijden op de snelweg.” – “Nou, je zal ze de kost moeten geven!” 
(“I think it’s incredible how many people keep left on the highway/motorway.” – “Exactly, a lot of people…” In the Netherlands the rule is that one should keep right so that others can overtake; overtaking on the right is not allowed.)

Related words:
– Kost: cost/expense, or ‘daily portion of food’ [noun] [de kost, plural ‘kosten’ only for ‘cost’].
– Eten: common noun for ‘food’ in daily and social context [noun] [het eten, <no plural>].
– Voedsel: synonym for ‘eten’, however used for ‘anything edible in general’ [noun] [het voedsel, <no plural>].
– Mensen: people [noun] [de mensen]. Dutch noun for ‘a people’ is ‘volk’.
– Veel: many/much [adjective].

Things to remember from this DWOTD
– ‘Kost’ in the meaning of ‘cost/expense’ is mostly used in the plural form ‘kosten’. There are many expressions in which ‘kost’ means ‘(daily portion of) food’;
– Difference between ‘eten’ and ‘voedsel’;
– Meaning of the phrase ‘Wat doe jij voor de kost?’.
– Meaning of the expression ‘Iets op de lange baan schuiven’.

Huilebalk

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crybaby, whiner
[noun]
[de hui-le-balk, de hui-le-bal-ken] 

football-619243_640A ‘huilebalk’ is an annoying child that cries or whines at the drop of a hat. The word is also used to describe adults who are known to whine quickly, or otherwise easily get emotionally upset. When talking about a baby that cries most of the time (including the night), we use the word ‘huilbaby’.

‘Huilebalk’ is composed of the stems of the verbs ‘huilen’ and ‘balken’. The latter used to mean ‘scream/cry’ however it is not used in that meaning anymore in the Netherlands (see Related words below). The verb ‘huilen’ was originally only used for dogs and wolves (compare ‘to howl’), however it is now the common verb for ‘to cry (tears)’.

Examples:
– “De buren zeggen dat Sam hun zoontje geslagen heeft.” – “Ach, daar geloof ik niks van; dat kind van hen is zo’n verschrikkelijke huilebalk!” 
(“The neighbours say that Sam hit their son.” – “Oh well, I don’t believe a word of that; their son is such a terrible crybaby.” Literally “.., there I believe nothing of…”)

– “Ik heb een collega die bij het minste of geringste emotioneel wordt. Onvoorstelbaar, dat je op volwassen leeftijd nog zo’n huilebalk kan zijn!” 
(“I have a colleague who gets emotional at the least little thing. Incredible, how one can be such a crybaby at an adult age.” Literally ‘onvoorstelbaar’ translates as ‘unimaginable’.)

– “Als zij verliest, verandert ze in een enorme huilebalk. Vraag het maar aan Aisling, want die speelt altijd squash met haar.” 
(“When she loses, she turns into an enormous crybaby. (Go and) ask Aisling, she always plays squash with her.” The use of ‘met’ in ‘speelt altijd squash met haar’ emphasizes more the social aspect of sports. In order to emphasize the match element, one would use ‘tegen’ instead.)

Related words:
– Aanstellen: to behave like a child, to act childishly [verb] [stelde aan, aangesteld].
– Huilen: to cry (tears) [verb] [huilde, gehuild].
– Wenen: more formal but less used synonym of ‘huilen’ [verb] [weende, geweend].
– Huilerig: tearful, weepy [adjective].
– Dreinen: to whine persistently, snivel (of babies, toddlers) [verb] [dreinde, gedreind].
– Balken: to bray (donkey) [verb] [balkte, gebalkt]. Despite the explanation in the introduction, the verb ‘balken’ is encountered mostly in this translation.

Things to remember from this DWOTD
– The difference between a ‘huilebalk’ and a ‘huilbaby’;
– The use of ‘bij het minste of geringste’;
– The difference between ‘spelen met’ and ‘spelen tegen’;
– The common root of ‘huilen’ and ‘to howl’.

Rooskleurig

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rosy, bright, rose-coloured
[adjective]
[roos-kleu-rig] 

rose-776966_640The literal translation of ‘rooskleurig’ is ‘rose-coloured’. Perhaps because there is no unique colour for roses, one encounters ‘rooskleurig’ more often in the figurative meaning of ‘reflecting optimism’, e.g. ‘een rooskleurige toekomst’: a bright future.

‘Rooskleurig’ is composed of the noun ‘roos’ and the adjective ‘kleurig’. The latter is not used often; in case of ‘many colours’ one rather uses ‘kleurrijk’, see the Related words below.

Examples:
– “Hoe gaat het met je?” – “Goed, heel erg goed kan ik wel zeggen; de toekomst ziet er rooskleurig uit!” 
(“How are you doing/feeling?” – “Fine/good, very good I may (even) say; the future is looking bright!”)

– “De vooruitzichten voor economisch herstel zijn allesbehalve rooskleurig te noemen.” 
(“The prospects for economic recovery can be described as all but bright/rosy.”)

– “We hebben veel tegenslagen moeten verwerken, maar we zien de doorstart van ons bedrijf rooskleurig tegemoet.” 
(“We have had to deal with many setbacks, but we await the new startup of our company in good spirits.” Note the use of the word ‘doorstart’; when a company goes bankrupt, however somehow manages to start over again shortly after bankruptcy (often in a different form), in Dutch this is called a ‘doorstart’. It’s derived from a plane aborting the landing just before it has reached the runway.)

Related words:
– Roos: rose [noun] [de roos, de rozen].
– Kleur: colour [noun] [de kleur, de kleuren].
– Kleurig: colourful, full-coloured [adjective].
– Kleurrijk: colourful [adjective]. Contrary to ‘kleurig’, the adjective ‘kleurrijk’ can also be used figuratively, e.g. to describe a person’s character.
– Florissant: blooming, thriving [adjective]. One often encounters the negation: ‘Het ziet er niet florissant uit.’
– Fleurig: blooming, colourful [adjective]. Also figuratively in the meaning of ‘cheerful’.

Things to remember from this DWOTD
– The usage of ‘kleurig’ vs. ‘kleurrijk’;
– The meaning of ‘allesbehalve’;
– In which circumstances do the Dutch use the word ‘doorstart’.

Ternauwernood

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barely, scarcely
[adverb]
[ter-nau-wer-nood] 

The adverb ‘ternauwernood’ originated in the form ‘ter nauwer nood’. The adjective ‘nauw’ here has the meaning of ‘leaving very little space’, so that ‘ter nauwer nood’ is a situation of distress (‘nood’) you can hardly get out of (or avoid). (The adjective ‘nauw’ commonly translates as ‘narrow’. ‘Ter’ means ‘in the’ in this case). Later the three words were combined into one, and the meaning is now a more general ‘barely/scarcely’ or ‘just’ (as in ‘just made it’). However, one mostly uses ‘ternauwernood’ when there are somewhat serious consequences involved.

Note that ‘ter nauwer nood’ is an example of the use of the dative case in Dutch; the use of cases nowadays is rare and one mostly encounters its usage in fixed expressions/compounds.

Examples:
– “De impala wist ternauwernood aan de leeuw te ontkomen.” 
(“The impala barely escaped the lion.” Lit. “managed to barely escape the lion”. Note the verb ‘ontkomen aan’: to escape, to evade. In general one can translate ‘ternauwernood ontkomen’ as ‘it is/was a narrow escape’.)

– “Ik heb ternauwernood de trein gehaald; als ik hem gemist had, dan was ik te laat gekomen op mijn sollicitatiegesprek.” – “Ja jongen, je had ook gewoon wat eerder van huis kunnen gaan hè; hoe vaak heeft mamma het nu al tegen je gezegd…” 
(“I barely caught the train; had I missed it I would have been late for my job interview.” – “Well my boy / son, or you could have (just as easily) left home a little bit earlier, well (am I right)? How many times has your mother told you this…”)

– “Het echtpaar heeft de frontale botsing ternauwernood overleefd. Volgens de politie is het een wonder dat er niet meer slachtoffers zijn gevallen.” 
(“The married couple barely survived the head-on collision. The policy say it is a miracle that there are no further casualties.” Note that although somewhat redundant, it is common to use the verb ‘vallen’ when talking about victims or casualties as a result of some action.)

Expressions:
– “In het nauw zitten(/komen)”: to be(/end up) in a tight spot.

Related words:
– Nauw: narrow [adjective].
– Nauw: distress, tight spot/corner [noun] [het nauw, <no plural>].
– Nauwelijks: barely, hardly [adverb].

Example:
– “Hoe durf je zo te klagen; er zijn kinderen op deze wereld die nauwelijks genoeg te eten hebben!”
(“How dare you complain like this; there are children in this world who hardly have enough to eat!”)

– Nood: distress [noun] [de nood, de noden].
– Net: just, barely [adverb].

Things to remember from this DWOTD
– The meaning of ‘a frontale botsing’;
– The use of the verb ‘vallen’  in ‘er zijn slachtoffers gevallen’;
– The meaning of the adjective ‘nauw’ versus the noun ‘nauw’.