Category Archives: Dutch word of the day

Verkoudheid

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cold [noun] [de verkoudheid, de verkoudheden]

The word "verkoudheid" is used for a person’s state of being ill due to the inflammation of the nasal membrane, as in "having a cold". The noun "cold" as the opposite of "heat", translates to "kou" while the adjective "cold" is translated with the adjective "koud".

The state of having a "verkoudheid" is also indicated with the adjective "verkouden", however in Dutch one uses the verb "zijn" ("to be"), see ‘Examples’.

Mark the plural form of "verkoudheid": words ending with "-heid" have their plural form ending with "-heden".

Examples:
– "Ik heb vannacht nauwelijks geslapen door een zware verkoudheid."
("I barely slept last night due to a severe cold.")

– "Veel mensen zijn deze tijd verkouden."
("A lot of people have a cold these days.")

– "Heeft Frank de griep of gewoon een zware verkoudheid?"
("Does Frank have the flu or just a severe cold?")

Related words:
– "Ziek": ill, sick.
– "Griep": (the) flu.
– "Snotteren": to snivel, to sniff(le).
– "Snot": mucus, snot.
– "Niezen": to sneeze.

Schade

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damage [noun] [de schade, de schades/schaden]

Examples:
– "De storm van gisteren heeft in Nederland veel schade aangericht."
("Yesterday’s storm has caused a lot of damage in the Netherlands.")

– "De verzekeringsmaatschappijen schatten dat het totaal aantal schadeclaims in de miljoenen euro’s zal lopen."
("The insurance companies estimate that the total amount of insurance claims will rise to millions (of euros)." Literally: "…will walk into the millions.")

– "Ik ben met mijn auto tegen een boom aangebotst, maar de schade valt gelukkig mee!"
("I bumped my car into a tree, but luckily the damage is limited!" The verb "meevallen" is used to indicate that something is not that bad, or that it is not as bad as was initially expected.)

Expression:
– "Door schade en schande wordt men wijs."
("Once bitten, twice shy." Literally: "Through damage and shame one becomes wise.")

Related words:
– "Verzekering": insurance.
– "Beschadiging": damage (but smaller than "schade", e.g. "Aan de zijkant van dit tafelblad zit een lichte beschadiging." (The side of this tabletop is slightly damaged.")).
– "Beschadigen": to damage.
– "Schade aanrichten": to cause damage.
– "Wond": wound, injury.

Rukwind

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squall, gust [noun] [de rukwind, de rukwinden]

The past week two storms have passed over the Netherlands, leading to very strong winds primarily at the coast. In general, storms in the Netherlands are not very serious, but cyclists and motorists can definitely get in trouble due to "rukwinden": sudden sharp increases in wind speed.
The word "rukwind" consists of "ruk" and "wind". The noun "ruk" comes from the verb "rukken" which translates to "to jerk/tug/pull"; quick consecutive strong pulls. And yes, it can be used in a sexual context (see ‘Related words’).

Examples:
– "Door hevige rukwinden kwamen diverse automobilisten in de problemen op de A4 in de richting van Amsterdam."
("Due to strong squalls/gusts several motorists got into trouble on the A4 in the direction of Amsterdam.")

– "Het Koninklijk Nederlands Meteorologisch Instituut (KNMI) waarschuwt fietsers morgen niet de weg op te gaan in verband met mogelijke rukwinden."
("The Royal Dutch Meteorological Institute for Meteorology warns cyclists not to go on the roads tomorrow because of possible squalls/gusts.")

Related words:
1. "Windstoot": synonym for "rukwind".
2. "Storm": storm.
3. "Wind": wind.
4. "Waaien": to blow (by the wind, see DWOTD "72. Waaien").
5. "Rukken": to jerk/tug/pull.
6. "(Af)rukken": (informal) to jerk off, to masturbate (by a man).

Winter

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winter [de winter, de winters]

Winters in the Netherlands are not what they used to be. Biking to work during winter poses no difficulties anymore: the joys of fingers freezing off, sore lips and the slipping away due to snowy and icy roads are gone…
Of course this is not regretted by everyone, but what is remarkable is that we are entering an era in which typical Dutch "winter words" are not used anymore, hence disappearing from, or even never entering, the vocabulary of today’s youth (see ‘Extra’).

Examples:
1. "Alhoewel je het niet zou zeggen, is het toch echt winter!"
("Even though you wouldn’t say so, it is really winter!")

2. "Het huidige Nederlandse winterweer stelt niets meer voor!"
("The current Dutch winter weather is nothing like it anymore!")

3. "Vroeger konden we in de winter nog schaatsen, maar nu sneeuwt het zelfs niet eens meer!"
("In the past we were able to skate in the winter, but now it does not even snow anymore!")

Related words:
1. "Sneeuw": snow.
2. "IJs": ice.
3. "Erwtensoep met worst": peasoup with saucage (traditionally served in winter time, or at food stalls near the ice).
4. "Wak": hole in the ice.
5. "IJsje piepen": the act of walking on the ice while it is not safe enough yet.
6. "Sleeën": to sled(ge).

Extra:
A Dutch columnist recently wrote a column about how he foresees typical winter related words to disappear from common Dutch vocabulary. Although words like "schaatsen" ("to skate" or "skates") and "sneeuw" ("snow") will obviously never disappear, a word like "wak" ("hole in the ice") might. Generations of Dutch mothers have warned their children for "wakken" when the children went skating, or not to go on the ice at all if it hadn’t been freezing enough. Of course "ijsje piepen" was strictly forbidden! Since there seems to be no reason anymore to include these words in daily conversation, they might as well just disappear…

The word "winter" appeared earlier in DWOTD "106. Kort".

Tandarts

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dentist [noun] [de <tand><arts>, de tandartsen]

The Dutch word "arts" translates to "doctor" or "physician" hence "tandarts" literally translates to "tooth doctor".

Examples:
– "Ik moet vrijdag naar de tandarts, maar ik heb helemaal geen zin."
("I have to go to the dentist on Friday, but I really don’t feel like going." See also DWOTD "80. Zin".)

– "Heeft de tandarts je voor het boren een lokale verdoving gegeven?"
("Has the dentist given you a local anaesthetic before drilling?")

– "Ik moet de tandarts nog bellen voor een afspraak."
("I still have to call the dentist for an appointment.")

– "Het is altijd lente in de ogen van de tandartsassistente."
("It is always spring in the eyes of the dental nurse." See ‘Extra’.)

Related words:
– "Gaatje": cavity, literally "little hole" (diminutive of "gat").
– "Vulling": filling, inlay.

The word "tandarts" appeared earlier in DWOTD "24. Tandpasta" and "4. Afspraakje".

Extra:
There’s a well known Dutch song called: " ‘t Is altijd lente" which contains the oneliner " ‘t Is altijd lente in de ogen van de tandartsassistente". The song is about a guy who fancies this dental nurse, and to get an appointment fast, he stops brushing his teeth and starts eating lots of candy… Ask any random Dutch person to complete the sentence " ‘t Is altijd lente…" and he or she will say: "…in de ogen van de tandartsassistente!" 🙂
See http://www.lyricsvault.net/songs/13993.html for the complete lyrics.