Author Archives: Marc

Een goed begin is het halve werk

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well begun is half done Iconspeaker_3 Duim
[Dutch phrase of the week]

We’re back! And we’ll start off with a somewhat old-fashioned expression. But as they say: well begun is half done 🙂

Examples:
– "Ik heb de stofzuiger al klaar gezet." – "Uitstekend! Een goed begin is het halve werk!"
("I’ve already taken out the vacuum cleaner." – "Excellent! Well begun is half done!")

– "Marc, wees eens niet zo lui, een goed begin is het halve werk!" 
("Marc, don’t be lazy like that, well begun is half done!")

– "Even goed luisteren lui, een goed begin is het halve werk!" 
("Just listen up people, well begin is half done!")

Expressions:
– "Goed bezig!": nice job!.

Related words:
– Goed: good [adjective].
– Begin: beginning, start [noun] [het begin, <no plural>].

Example:
– "Dit is het begin van het einde…"
("The end is near…" Lit.: "This is the beginning of the end…")

– Half: half [adjective].
– Werk: work [noun] [het werk, de werken].

Te gek om los te lopen

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too ridiculous/absurd for words  Iconspeaker_3
[Dutch phrase of the week]Tbs

Because it’s the DWOTD Summer Schedule, here’s a Dutch Phrase of the Week on Friday 🙂

"Te gek om los te lopen" literally translates to "too crazy to walk loose". You may also see the more literal equivalent "te gek voor woorden" or "te zot voor woorden".

Examples:
– "Gisteren is een vrouw op klaarlichte dag neergestoken. Dat is toch te gek om los te lopen??" 
("Yesterday, a woman was stabbed in broad daylight. That’s too absurd for words, isn’t it??" Note that "toch" is translated with "…, isn’t it??")

– "Frank heeft afgelopen maand met vier vrouwen tegelijkertijd gedate."  – "Dat is te gek om los te lopen!"
("Frank has dated four women at the same time last month." – "That’s too ridiculous for words!")

Expressions:
– "Te gek/zot voor woorden": too absurd for words.

Related words:
– Gek/Zot: crazy [adjective].
– Lopen: to walk [verb] [liep, gelopen].
– Los: loose [adjective].
– Ontoerekeningsvatbaarheid: insanity defence [noun] [de ontoerekeningsvatbaarheid, <no plural>]. See Extra

Extra:
"Ontoerekeningsvatbaarheid" (tongue breaker alert 🙂 ) is a Dutch juridical term, which more or less translates to "insanity defence" in English. It means that when a person commits a crime which can be related to a mental disorder or illness, this person receives a declaration of insanity, which may lead to a less severe sentence, or no sentence at all. A person is then "ter beschikking gesteld aan de regering" (lit.: placed at the disposal of the government). This procedure is called "T.B.S." Someone who is subjected to T.B.S. is called a "T.B.S.-er". T.B.S.-ers are treated under coercion in a "T.B.S. kliniek" (a penitentiary clinic).

In 2008, the Dutch movie "TBS" was released, in which a T.B.S.-er, convicted for killing his own father and sister, escapes from a T.B.S. clinic and tracks down his mother in order to prove his innocence.

Lui

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1. lazy, idle Iconspeaker_3
[adjective]Luiaard

“Lui” commonly translates to “lazy”.

Examples:
– “Frank is echt lui: hij haalt nooit koffie voor andere collega’s…” 
(“Frank is really lazy: he never gets coffee for other colleagues…”)

– “Er gaat niks boven een luie zondagmiddag!”
(“There’s nothing like a lazy Sunday afternoon!” Lit.: “There goes nothing above…”)

– “Ik ben zo lui vandaag, niet te filmen!”
(“I’m (feeling) so lazy today, unbelievable!”)

Expressions:
– “Een lui leventje”: easy living.
– “Een luie stoel”: an easy chair.
– “Hij is liever lui dan moe”: he was born tired.

Related words:
– Luiaard: 1. lazy-bones, lazy person [noun] [de luiaard, de luiaards]. 2. sloth [noun] [de luiaard, de luiaards].
– Luieren: to be lazy, to (be) idle [verb] [luierde, geluierd].

Example:
– “Wat ben je aan het doen?” – “Helemaal niks, ik ben lekker aan het luieren…”
(“What are you doing?” – “Absolutely nothing, I’m just being lazy…”)

– Loungen: to lounge [verb] [loungede, gelounged].

2. people, folk Iconspeaker_3
[noun]People
[<no singular>, de lui]

“Lui” has no specific singular form. Of course you can use the singular “mens” (human, person) or “persoon” (person).

Synonymous to “lui” is the more informal diminutive “luitjes” and the more formal “lieden”.

Examples:
– “Zeg, lui! Even opletten alsjeblieft!” 
(“Say, folks! Just pay attention for a moment, please!”)

– “De vrienden van Frank…altijd oppassen met die lui…”
(“Frank’s friends…you always have to be careful with those people…”)

– “Lieve luitjes…mag ik even jullie aandacht?”
(“Dear people, can I have your attention just now?”)

Related words:
– Luitjes: people, folks [noun] [<no singular>, de luitjes].
– Lieden: people, folks [noun] [<no singular>, de lieden].
– Mens: human (being) [noun] [de mens, de mensen].
– Mensen: people, humans [noun] [de mens, de mensen].
– Persoon: person [noun] [de persoon, de personen].

In de steek laten

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to fail someone, to let someone down, to leave (someone behind), to desert someone, to abandon Iconspeaker_3
[Dutch phrase of the week]In_de_steek_gelaten

"Steek" literally translates to "sting" or "stab". "In de steek laten" however describes a situation when someone or something fails to help you in a critical situation, often fleeing the scene.

Examples:
– "Mijn auto laat me om de haverklap in de steek." 
("My car lets me down continually.")

– "Heeft Jan Yolanthe in de steek gelaten, of andersom?"  – "Lekker belangrijk…"
("Did Jan leave Yolanthe behind, or was it the other way around?" – "As if I care…")

– "Het voelt alsof ik door Frank in de steek ben gelaten." 
("It feels as if I’ve been let down by Frank.")

Expressions:
– "Met de noorderzon vertrekken": to leave without notice to an unknown destination.

Related words:
– Vlucht: flight, escape [noun] [de vlucht, de vluchten].
– Vluchten: to flee/to escape/to fly/to run (away) [verb] [vluchten, vluchtte, gevlucht].
– Ontvluchten: to flee/to escape (from) [verb] [ontvluchten, ontvluchtte, ontvlucht].
– Dumpen: to dump [verb] [dumpen, dumpte, gedumpt].
– Pech: breakdown, trouble [noun] [de pech, <no plural>].

Example:
– "Marc heeft pech met zijn auto: de lamp rechtsvoor doet het niet meer."
("Marc has trouble with his car: the headlight on the right has broken down.")

Voorgevel

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1. façade, face, front Iconspeaker_3
[noun]
[de voor-ge-vel, de voor-ge-vels]

De "voorgevel" is the front side of a house or building. One
typically uses the general "gevel" (façade) unless you want to
distinguish from the "achtergevel" (rear façade) or potential
"zijgevels" (side façades).

Examples:
– "Dat oude huis heeft een prachtige voorgevel."  Gevel2

("That old house has a beautiful façade.")

– "Langs de Amsterdamse grachten staan huizen met voorgevels die dateren uit de 17e, 18e en 19e eeuw." 
("Along the Amsterdam canals, there are houses with façades that date from the 17th, 18th and 19th century.")

– "Nieuwsflits: vrachtwagen ramt voorgevel huis in Rotterdam." 
("Newsflash: truck rams front of house in Rotterdam.")

Related words:
– Voor: before, in front of [preposition].
– Voorkant: front [noun] [de voorkant, de voorkanten].
– Gevel: façade [noun] [de gevel, de gevels].
– Huis: house [noun] [het huis, de huizen].
– Dak: roof [noun] [het dak, de daken].

Extra:
Some of the older houses in the Netherlands have a tilted façade. To
the untrained eye this may look like subsidence, but in most cases it
was a deliberate choice. A plausible explanation is that a tilted
façade made it easier to hoist up goods. (Other explanations are that
the (originally wooden) façade was less affected by rain, or that one
tried to increase the surface area of the higher floors whilst only
paying tax based on the surface area of the ground floor.)

2. bosom Iconspeaker_3
[noun]
[de voor-ge-vel, de voor-ge-vels]

Voorgevel_2

"Voorgevel" can be used colloquially to refer to a woman’s bosom,
much like "knockers", "boobs" etc. It is very informal and can come
across a bit sexist.

Examples:
– "Debbie heeft een flinke voorgevel, zeker in dat strakke shirt…" 
("Debbie is very bosomy, especially in that tight shirt…")

– "Pamela’s voorgevel is indrukwekkend, maar het is natuurlijk allemaal nep." 
("Pamela’s boobs are impressive, but it’s of course all fake.")

Related words:
– Borst: chest, breast [noun] [de borst, de borsten].
– Boezem: bosom [noun] [de boezem, de boezems].