Author Archives: Dutch Gurus

319. Taakstraf

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community service [noun] [de taakstraf, de taakstraffen] [‘taak-straf’]

Dutch law allows a judge to impose punishment in the form of community service. The word "taakstraf" consists of "taak" and "straf". In general "straf" means "punishment", "penalty" or any other "disciplinary action". A "taak" is a "task", "duty" or "job". So basically a "taakstraf" is punishment in the form of some kind of duty.

Examples:
– "De rechter legde de veroordeelde een taakstraf op."
("The judge imposed community service on the convicted person.")

– "Meneer, u kunt kiezen: of u betaalt de boete, of u gaat een week de cel in, of u krijgt een taakstraf van 240 uur. Zegt u het maar!"
("Sir, these are the options: either you pay the fine, or you will go to prison/jail for a week, or you will get community service for 240 hours. What will it be?!" Literally: "Sir, you can choose: …, or you will go into the cell for a week, … Please say it!")

Related words:
– "Taak": task, duty, (small) job.
– "Straf": punishment, penalty, disciplinary action.
– "Boete": fine, penalty.
– "Veroordeling": sentence, conviction.
– "Rechtbank": court of law/justice.

Smoking

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dinner jacket, tuxedo, black tie [noun] [de smoking, de smokings] [‘smoo-king’]

Smoking of tuxedo?“Smoking” is one of those rare Dutch words that seem to originate from the English language but don’t… 🙂 The Dutch “smoking” has nothing to do with the English verb “smoking / to smoke”, which is “roken” in Dutch.

Examples:
– “Ik heb morgen een galadiner…smoking verplicht…”
(“I’m have a state banquet tomorrow…dinner jacket required…”)

– “Frank, jij gaat toch ook naar die bruiloft? Ga jij in smoking?”
(“Frank, you’re going to that wedding too, right? Will you wear a tuxedo?” Lit.: “…Are you going in (a) smoking?”)

– “Het kledingadvies voor de heren op het feest van vanavond is smoking of rokkostuum.”
(“The clothing advice for the gentlemen at tonight’s party is black tie or white tie.”)

Related words:
– “Strikje”: bow tie. Lit.: “little bow”.
– “Pak”: suit.
– “Rokkostuum”: white tie. Lit. “skirt costume”.
– “Jacquet”: morning coat, tails.

Baas

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boss, manager, employer [noun] [de baas, de bazen] [‘baas‘]

In recent years the word “baas” has been mostly replaced by the more fashionable “manager”, but you can still hear it in small businesses and in the more production like environments. There are also a number of frequently used expressions with “baas”, some of which we listed below.

Sinterklaas_is_de_baas
In the days leading up to the Dutch tradition of “Sinterklaas” on December 5th, the Albert Heijn supermarket is using the slogan “Sinterklaas is de baas”: “Sinterklaas is in charge / is the boss”, as part of the Sinterklaas theme and activities in the supermarket (such as “de schoen zetten” for children). Read last year’s DWOTD on “Pakjesavond” for more background information.

Examples:
– “Reeds na twee dagen werd de stagair door zijn baas weggebonjourd.”
(“Already after two days, the intern was sent packing by his boss.”)

– “Sinterklaas is de baas bij Albert Heijn!”
(“Sinterklaas is in charge at Albert Heijn!”)

– “Sinds ik een eigen zaak ben begonnen, ben ik blij eindelijk mijn eigen baas te zijn.”
(“Since I started my own business, I’m glad to finally be my own boss.”)

Expressions:
– “De baas spelen”: to act the boss, to boss someone.
– “De baas in huis zijn”: to be in charge at home, to be the boss at home.
– “Iemand de baas blijven”: to keep someone under control.
– “De baas zijn over”: to be in charge of.
– “De situatie de baas zijn”: to have the situation under control.

Related words:
– “Chef”: boss, manager, usually in production environments.
– “Leidinggevende”: line management, supervisor. Literally “lead/guidance giver”.
– “Bazig”: bossy.
– “Baasje”: little man/fellow, youngster, laddie. Used informally for very young boys.

316. Als het gaat om

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When it comes to / regarding / concerning [Dutch Phrase Of The Week]

This phrase is a very popular way among politicians to introduce a subject. It’s also a good manipulative technique that allows you to give an answer while implicitly changing the question. Especially Dutch prime minister Balkenende seems very fond of this phrase…

Examples:
– "Als het gaat om veiligheid en comfort, dan is deze auto de juiste keuze voor u."
("When it comes to safety and comfort, this car is the right choice for you.")

– "Als het gaat om normen en waarden, zal deze regering haar steentje bijdragen."
("Regarding moral values, this government will do its bit." Lit.: "Regarding norms and values, this government will contribute its little stone." See Extra for more on "normen en waarden".)

– "Meneer Balkenende, wat vindt u van de verhoging van het collegeld?"
– "Als het gaat om verbetering van de economische positie van ons land,
is verhoging van de kwaliteit van het onderwijs noodzakelijk."
("Mister Balkenende, what do you think of the increase of college
tuition fees?" – "If we consider the economical position of our
country, increasing the quality of education is necessary.")

– "Als het gaat om lekker dineren in een vriendelijke sfeer, dan zit u goed bij restaurant Tartufo."
("When it comes to pleasant dining in a friendly atmosphere, then Tartufo’s is the right place." Note: "goed zitten" literally translates to "to sit well/comfortably", but it also used as an expression meaning "to be right".)

– "Als het gaat om alles wat je lief hebt
, wie kun je dan vertrouwen?"
("When it comes to all that you love, who can you trust?" Line from the classic Dutch pop song "Vriendschap" by the Dutch 80s band "Het goede doel".)

Extra:
"Normen en waarden" is frequently used in Dutch politics and media as one single concept. In general "normen en waarden" stands for manners and moral principles that should be used in public, social, inter-human traffic. The concept of "normen en waarden" was first introduced in Dutch politics in July 2002 by the first government led by prime minister Jan-Peter Balkenende, in that time often mockingly called "Harry Potter". Since then, a public debate has started (and is still going on), and "normen en waarden" is seen as an important political subject.

On a personal Guru note: the whole "normen and waarden" debate has a bit of a patronizing feel to it…

315. Pico bello

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splendid, outstanding [adjective] [‘pie-koo-bel-loo’]

And who said the Dutch language doesn’t have frivolities? Even Italian frivolities… 😉

"Pico bello" is used to express some state of excellence. It’s very positive and its use is mostly in speech. Sometimes you may also see "picobello."

Examples:
– "Antoinette ziet er iedere dag picobello uit, vind je ook niet?"
("Antoinette looks sharp every day, don’t you think (too)?" Note that "ziet er…uit" comes from "eruit zien", a typical Dutch construction using (the infamous) "er" in combination with the preposition "uit" and the verb "zien".)

– "Hoe zie ik eruit? – Pico bello, schat."
("How do I look? – Very sharp, dear.")

– "De catering op het feestje gisteren was pico bello verzorgd."
("The catering at yesterday’s party was outstanding." Lit.: "…outstandingly taken care off.")

– "Jouw presentatie voor de raad van bestuur was pico bello, niemand had vragen na afloop."
("Your presentation for the board of directors was splendid, nobody had questions afterwards.")