"Zat" is a word that can be used in several –
very different – meanings. Before you know it, you’re telling your boss
that you are drunk when you really want to say that you’re fed up with
your job 😉 See examples below to clarify things. And don’t get
confused: ‘zat’ is also the singular past tense of ‘zitten’ ("to sit"),
e.g. ‘ik zat, jij zat, hij/zij zat’ ("I sat, you sat, he/she sat"). 

1. drunk [adjective] [‘zat‘] 

"Zat" can be informally used as the word for "drunk" (or "drunken").

Examples:
– "Hij was niet gewoon zat, hij was ladderzat."
("He wasn’t just drunk, he was smashed.")

– "Zij kan niet tegen drank; na vier biertjes is ze al compleet zat."
("She doesn’t take alcohol (lit: booze) very well; she is completely drunk after four beers.")

Expression:
– "Zo zat zijn als een aap/kanon.": lit. to be as drunk as a monkey/cannon, this says you are
very drunk (‘drunk as a lord’).

Example:
– "Marc is zo zat als een aap!"

Related words:
– "Zatlap": a boozer, soak. A "lap" is like a piece of cloth.
– "Ladderzat": smashed, zonked.
– "Aangeschoten": tipsy.
– "Bezopen": drunk (informal).

2. fed up [adjective] [‘zat‘]

Examples:
– "Houd nou eens even je mond, ik ben je gezeur helemaal zat!"
("Please shut up for a moment, I’m totally fed up with your moaning!")

– "Ik stop ermee, ik ben het zat!"
("I quit, I’ve had enough (of it)!" Note it’s all in the word ‘het’
("it"). When you omit ‘het’ in this sentence, its meaning turns into
"I’m drunk".)

– "Fokke en Sukke zijn het zat: ‘Eén dag vrijzijn van meningsuiting, da’s toch
godverdomme niet te veel gevraagd!!!’ "
"Fokke en Sukke have had enough. ‘One day without (lit. ‘being free
of’) expression of opinion, that can’t be asking too bloody much!!!’"
(Fokke and Sukke – the two most famous (and infamous) Dutch ducks that appear in a
cartoon every day on the back page of Dutch national newspaper NRC
Handelsblad – are referring to the current Dutch debate on where
freedom of speech ends and irresponsible insults start.)

3. plenty, to spare [adverb] [‘zat‘]

Examples:
– "Je hoeft je niet te haasten, je hebt nog tijd zat."
("No need to rush, you have plenty of time left.")

– "Waarom zou je gaan werken? Dankzij die erfenis heb je toch geld zat!"
("Why would you work? After all, you have lots of money (to spare) thanks to that inheritance!")

This DWOTD was provided by guest author Laura.

annoying, bothersome, irritating [adjective] [
‘ie-rie-tant‘] 

“Irritant” is most often used to describe an annoying event, person or situation. It can also be used as an exclamation (see the examples). The word is similar to the English “irritant” but cannot be used in the same context everywhere. For example, the Dutch “irritant” cannot be used when describing allergic reactions or inflammation to flu ids or other substances. In these cases, you would use a construction with the Dutch verb “irriteren” (see Related words).

Less often you will hear “irritant” being used as an adverb. You can for example say “irritant goed” about somebody who annoys you by always excelling.

Examples:
– “Het is heel erg irritant dat ik iedere dag in de file sta…”
(“It’s really very annoying to be in a traffic jam every day…” Lit.: “…that I stand in a traffic jam…”.)

– “Hij weet altijd alles beter; hij is echt een irritant mannetje.”
(“He always knows things best; the guy is a real pain in the neck.” Lit: “He always knows everything better; he really is an annoying little man.”)

– “Door die stomme muis ben elke keer mijn cursor kwijt. Irritant!”
(<office language> “This stupid mouse makes me loose my cursor all the time. Annoying!”)

Related words:
– “Irriteren”: to irritate.

Examples:
– “De harde muziek irriteert me, ik kan niemand meer verstaan”.
(“The loud music is annoying me, I can’t hear anyone anymore”.)

– “Sanex irriteert je huid niet.”
(“Sanex does not irritate your skin.”)

– “Irritatie”: [noun] irritation, vexation.

Example:
“Haar continue klagen was de voornaamste bron van zijn irritatie.”
(“Her constant complaints were the main source of his vexation.”)

– “Irritatiegrens”: [noun] irritation threshold.

Example:
– “Ik luister niet meer naar je stomme opmerkingen, mijn irritatiegrens is bereikt.”
(“I won’t listen to your stupid remarks anymore, my irritation threshold has been reached.”)

Extra:
A mistake often made when using the verb “irriteren” in an active mode, is “ik irriteer me aan hem” (Lit: “I annoy me on him”). The correct way of saying this is: “hij irriteert mij” (“he annoys me”), since the verb “irriteren” always needs a direct object. A verb with a similar meaning as ‘irriteren’ is ‘ergeren’. This verb can be used in both ways, e.g. “hij ergert mij” and “ik erger me aan hem”, both translated as “he annoys me”.

This DWOTD was provided by guest author Laura.