Author Archives: Dutch Gurus

304. Vals

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1. fake, false, fraudulent, off key [adjective/adverb] [‘vals‘]

The Dutch "vals" is different from the English "false", although part of its meaning coincides.

In case "false" is meant as the opposite of "true", the Dutch will say "onwaar", or "niet waar", as opposed to "waar" ("true"). Alternatively we say "goed/juist" ("correct") or "fout/onjuist" ("incorrect").

Examples:
– "Rustig maar mensen, het was vals alarm!"
("Quiet now / take it easy people, it was false alarm!")

– "U krijgt van mij een boete voor het opgeven van een valse naam!"
("I’m giving you a ticket for stating a false name!" Lit. "You are given a ticket by me…")

– "De hardloper werd gediskwalificeerd na de tweede valse start."
("The runner was disqualified after the second false start.")

– "Direct vanaf de introductie werden er valse Eurobiljetten gesignaleerd."
("Straight after the introduction, counterfeit Euro bills were spotted.")

– "Jeetje zeg, wat zingt zij vals!"
("Oh my, how she sings off key / out of tune!" The word "jeetje" is derived from the name "Jezus" and was introduced as an "acceptable" alternative. You will also encounter "jee" or "jeeminee".)

Related words:
– "Valsspelen": to cheat (in a game).

Example:
– "Zeker, ik wil graag winnen, maar valsspelen, dat doe ik niet!"
("Sure, I’m eager to win, but cheating, that I won’t do!")

– "Fout": wrong, incorrect.
– "Onjuist": incorrect.
– "Kopie": copy [noun].

2. vicious, mean, nasty [adjective/adverb] [‘vals‘]

This translation is commonly used for animals, but can also be used for humans.

Example:
– "Je moet de kat van de buren niet proberen te aaien, het is echt een vals beest."
("You must not try to pet the neighbour’s cat, it is really a vicious animal.")

303. Drop

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liquorice/licorice [noun] [de drop, <no plural>] [‘drop‘]

"Drop" is very popular in the Netherlands. Children as well as adults eat a lot of it. In nearly every Dutch home, or car for that matter, there’s a bag of "drop" somewhere. You can buy it almost everywhere: in the supermarket, at the drugstore, at petrol/gas stations etc. Outside the Netherlands – especially in the more southern European countries –  "drop" is not very common, because the people expect candy to be sweet, with nice colors. Black and salty is not really appreciated, although sweet Dutch "drop" also exists. "Drop" is therefore mainly produced in the Netherlands.

Examples:
– "Hou je van zoete drop, of meer van zoute drop?"
("Do you like sweet liquorice, or do you like salty liquorice more?")

– "Er zijn te veel soorten drop te koop; het is om gek van te worden!"
("Too many kinds of "drop" are for sale; this drives one crazy!" Lit. "… it is to become crazy of!")

– "Wil je een mintje?" – "Nee, doe maar een dropje."
("Would you like a mint?" – "No, I’ll have a piece of liquorice." Note the informal usage of "doe maar", it translates to something like "I’ll have" in this case, but can also mean "(just) do it" or "give it a go" etc. It was also the name of a very popular Dutch eighties band.)

– "Pas op, want drop eten kan verslavend zijn!!"
("Be careful, because eating "drop" can be addictive!")

Extra:
Sometimes you will see a commercial by Venco on Dutch television. Everytime the joke is that some kind of foreigner is amazed by the Dutch craving for – obviously – Venco drop. Here is an example of such a commercial.

302. Bomvol

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chock-full, cram-full, packed, stuffed [adjective] [‘bom-vol’]

"Bomvol" is composed of "bom" and "vol", which translate to "bomb" and "full" respectively. It may be quite obvious that "bomvol" is used to indicate that something is very crowded, packed or filled.

Examples:
– "Tijdens de Drie Dwaze Dagen is de Bijenkorf van ‘s ochtends vroeg tot ‘s avonds laat bomvol."
("During the "Drie Dwaze Dagen", the Bijenkorf is packed from early morning to late in the evening.")

– "U2 heeft gisteravond opgetreden in een bomvolle Amsterdam Arena."
("Yesterday night, U2 played in a chock-full Amsterdam Arena.")

– "Ik hou helemaal niet van bomvolle kroegen, waar je helemaal niet kunt bewegen."
("I really don’t like packed bars, where you cannot move at all.")

Related words:
– "Bommetjevol": a variation on "bomvol" by using the diminutive of "bom": "bommetje". Translation is the same though: chock-full.
– "Vol": full.
– "Bom": bomb.
– "Druk": busy, crowded.

301. Van heb ik jou daar

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of formidable size, huge, very big/large [Dutch Phrase Of The Week]

"Van heb ik jou daar" literally translates to "from I’ve got you there", which does not make any sense really…:-) You could say that "van heb ik jou daar" – as a whole – has the function of an adjective, used behind the noun. Its use is mostly informal.

Examples:
– "Ik stond vanochtend in een file van heb ik jou daar! Minstens 10 km…"
("This morning I was in a huge traffic-jam! At least 10 km…" Lit. "I was standing in…")

– "Leuk feestje zaterdag! Ik had zondag een kater van heb ik jou daar…"
("Nice party Saturday! I had a very big hangover on Sunday…")

– "Ach man, het was een gedoe van heb ik jou daar!"
("Man, it was a huge fuss!")

300. Blijkbaar

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apparently, evidently [adverb] [‘blijk-baar’]

Examples:
– "Het is een chaos op het kruispunt, blijkbaar doen de verkeerslichten het niet."
("It’s a chaos at the intersection, apparently the traffic lights are out of order." Many Dutch people will also say "stoplichten", but "verkeerslichten" is the official name for traffic lights.)

– "Meestal schrijven Marc en Sander langere DWOTD’s, blijkbaar hebben ze weinig tijd vandaag."
("Usually Marc and Sander write longer DWOTDs, apparently they don’t have much time today." Lit. "… they have little time today.")

Related word:
– "Klaarblijkelijk": a synonym for "blijkbaar".