moustache/mustache [noun] [de snor, de snorren] [‘snor‘]

This morning in the popular Dutch radio show “Evers staat op” (Evers rises/gets up) hosted by the DJ Edwin Evers, one joked about the Dutch football/soccer team not being very convincing and that maybe they should start growing moustaches. Why? Well, in 1988 the Dutch won the European football/soccer championship and obviously this was because 8 out of the 11 players had a moustache!

Examples:
– “Persoonlijk vind ik een snor geen gezicht. Ik ben blij dat mijn vriend er geen heeft!”
(“Personally I think that a moustache is hideous. I’m happy that my boyfriend doesn’t have one!” Literally: “… think a moustache is no sight.”)

– “Moet je niet eens tegen je vader zeggen dat een snor echt niet meer kan in deze tijd?”
(“Shouldn’t you tell your father that a moustache is really old-fashioned?” Literally: “… that a moustache really is not possible anymore in this age?”)

Expressions:
– “Dat zit wel snor!”: That’s fine / all right. You can use this for example when you want to say that things will be all right or that you will be fine.

Example:
– “Sander, zal je dit jaar alle deadlines halen?” – “O, dat zit wel snor, maak je geen zorgen!”
(“Sander, will you meet all deadlines this year?” – “Oh, that will be fine, don’t worry!”)

– “Zijn snor drukken”: to shirk/make oneself scarce, to weasel out.

Example:
– “Er was vanochtend een belangrijke vergadering, maar wederom had Frank zijn snor gedrukt.”
(“There was an important meeting this morning, but once again Frank weaseled out.”)

Related words:
– “Baard“: beard.
– “Snorharen”: whiskers.
– “Hitlersnorretje”: used to describe the typical small moustache, like the one Adolf Hitler used to have.
– “Bromsnor”: synonym for a policeman. See Extra below.

– “Snorfiets“: this looks like a “bromfiets” (moped) but its maximum speed is lower (30 km/h), a helmet is not required and one has to stay on the bike path. An orange marking on the front wheel mud guard is mandatory and is used by the police for recognition, as opposed to a yellow marking for a “bromfiets”. Here, “snor” is derived from the verb “snorren”: to whirr/buzz/zoom, making less sound than “brommen”: to drone/hum.

While we are on the topic, another version is the motorized bicycle, aimed at senior people who might need some help at times. This is usually referred to as a “spartamet“, similar to a popular brand name. A “spartamet”, too, has to show the orange marking.

Extra:
“Swiebertje” is the name of a classic Dutch tv-series that ran from the end of the 50s till mid-70s. It showed the adventures of a tramp called “Swiebertje”. One of the main characters was the rural policeman/constable called “Bromsnor”. He had a moustache and the verb “brommen” is an informal synonym for “to grumble”. Due to the popularity of the series the word “bromsnor” became an informal synonym for a policeman. It is not used a lot though, but you might hear it!

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.

1. appetite, hunger [noun] [de honger, <no plural>] [‘ho-ngur’]

When Dutch people want to express that they are hungry, they do not say they they "are hungry", but that they "have hunger". It is not incorrect to say "ik ben hongerig" instead of "ik heb honger" but it it would be very strange :-).

Examples:
– "Ik heb honger, ik ga een boterham eten."
("I’m hungry, I’m going to eat a sandwich.")

– "Mamma, ik heb honger!" – "Nee, jij hebt geen honger, jij hebt trek. De kindertjes in Afrika hebben honger!"
("Mommy, I am hungry!" – "No, you are not hungry, you have an appetite/you feel peckish. The children in Africa are hungry!" The Dutch version is a classical statement made by parents to counter the whining of their child. Note the diminutive of "kinderen": these are even smaller children 🙂 ).

Expression:
– "Honger hebben als een paard": to be hungry like a wolf. Literally: to have hunger like a horse.

Related words:
– "Trek": appetite.
– "Dorst": thirst.

2. lust, greed [noun] [de honger, <no plural>] [‘ho-ngur’]

We do have a specific word for lust and greed, see the Related words, but sometimes "honger" can be translated in the same way.

Examples:
– "De sultan had een onverzadigbare honger naar materiële zaken."
("The sultan had an insatiable lust for material things.")

Related words:
– "Lust": lust.
– "Hebzucht": greed.
– "Hunkering": yearning.

3. famine, hunger, starvation [noun] [de honger, <no plural>] [‘ho-ngur’]

Examples:
– "Het kan toch niet zo zijn dat vandaag de dag nog mensen sterven van de honger!"
("It can’t possibly be the case that these days people are still dying of starvation!" The expression "vandaag de dag" is an expression for "current times/today/these days", as opposed to a certain period of time in the past.)

Related word:
– "Hongersnood": famine. (Lit.: hunger emergency)

writer, author [noun] [de schrijver, de schrijvers] [‘sgrij-vur’]

"Schrijver" is the noun derived from the verb "schrijven": to write. However, "schrijver" is only used for the author of a book, novel, play etc. The more general "auteur" can also be used for documents, manifests etc.

Last week a well-known Dutch writer died at age 81 (and he is cremated today): Jan Wolkers. He is considered one of the great authors of post World War II Dutch literature. Amongst many other books he wrote "Turks Fruit" ("Turkish Delight") in 1969, based on which a film with the same title appeared in 1973 directed by Paul Verhoeven who later went on to Hollywood to direct movies such as "Robocop", "Basic Instinct" and "Starship Troopers". The film "Turks Fruit" is infamous for its explicit sexual content (like the book) and was the breakthrough of Dutch actors Rutger Hauer and Monique van de Ven.

Examples:
– "Ik wil later schrijver worden. Of acteur. Als het maar creatief is!"
("Later I want to become a writer. Or an actor. As long as it is creative!" Note that when talking about professions in this way we use no article.)

– "Bekende Nederlandse schrijvers zijn: Jan Wolkers, Gerard Reve, Willem-Frederik Hermans en Harry Mulisch."
("Well-known Dutch authors are: Jan Wolkers, Gerard Reve, Willem-Frederik Hermans and Harry Mulisch.")

Expressions:
– "Dit is niet om over naar huis te schrijven": this is nothing special, this is not great. Literally: this is not to write home about.
– "Dat kan je op je buik schrijven": you can forget about that, that is not going to happen. Literally: you can write that on your belly.

Related words:
– "Auteur": author.
– "Dichter": poet.
– "Schrift": writing, script or notebook (cahier).
– "Pen": pen.

please, gladly, with pleasure, eager, willingly [adverb] [‘graag‘]

"Graag" is a very common word but notoriously difficult to pronounce due to the double ‘g’. Clean your throat with the examples below 🙂

"Graag" has a few translations, all related, and it’s best to study the examples.

Examples:
– "Zullen we een bakkie koffie doen?" – "Ja graag!"
("Shall we have some coffee?" – "Yes, please!" Note that the example is very informal. A "bak" is a like a bin or a container and "bakkie" the informal diminutive.)

– "Hé, nog bedankt voor het meehelpen verhuizen hè!" – "Tuurlijk makker, graag gedaan!"
("Hey, thanks again for helping me move (, eh)!") – "Sure mate/dude, you’re welcome!" Here, "tuurlijk" is the informal abbreviation of "natuurlijk": of course, sure.)

– "Ik ga graag naar de film, het liefst in het filmhuis."
("I enjoy going to the cinema/movies, preferably the art cinema.")

– "Goedemiddag meneer, ik zou graag willen informeren hoe laat de trein naar Amsterdam vertrekt."
("Good afternoon sir, I would like to enquire at what time the train for Amsterdam departs.")

– "Sander en Marc willen heel erg graag dat alle expats Nederlands leren."
("Sander and Marc would really like all expats to learn Dutch.")

– "Kun je deze brief van commentaar voorzien? Graag voor het einde van de middag."
("Can you comment on this letter? Before the end of the day please.")

– "Je moet mijn moeder maar niet al te serieus nemen, ze overdrijft graag!"
("You shouldn’t take my mother too seriously, she likes to exaggerate!")

– "Begrijp me niet verkeerd, ik wil je graag helpen met je huiswerk, maar vanavond kan ik echt niet!"
("Don’t get me wrong, I would like to help you with your homework, but tonight I really can’t make it!" Literally: "Don’t understand me incorrectly…")

– "Kan ik uw bestelling opnemen?" – "Ja, twee bier graag."
("Can I take your order?" – "Yes, two beers please.")

– "Mevrouw, kan ik u helpen oversteken?" – "Graag, dankuwel!"
("Madam, can I help you cross the street?" – "Yes, please, thank you!")

Expressions:
– "Dat geloof ik graag! / Dat wil ik graag geloven!": "I am not surprised" or "I’m willing to believe that".
– "Een graag geziene gast": a popular guest, a welcome guest. Literally a ‘seen with pleasure’ guest. You can replace guest with another applicable noun.
– "Graag of niet (hoor)!": this is said when you offer somebody an opportunity or a good deal and the other has doubts accepting it or defers too much. Usually it expresses some annoyance. It is a bit like the phrase "take it or leave it".

Example:
"Zeg, wil je nou nog dat ik je help met je computer? Graag of niet hoor!"
("So, do you still want me to help you with your computer? Take it or leave it you know!")

Related words:
– "Gaarne": this is a common more formal alternative for "graag" in a request.
– "Volgaarne": with great pleasure, most willingly.
– "Alstublieft/alsjeblieft": please.

Extra:
The Dutch rap formation "Opgezwolle" wrote a song called "Gekke Gerrit" in which there is a fun line with the word "graag".
It goes like this:

"Gekke Gerrit, je wilt te graag, gekke Gerrit het is beter als je chillt vandaag."

This translates to:

"Crazy Gerrit, you are too eager, crazy Gerrit, you had better chill today."

Note that Gerrit is a bit of an old-fashioned name and probably chosen for the alliteration. Then, there is the word "chillt", a Dutch conjugation of the English "to chill". This is quite common in Dutch speech: foreign verbs, especially English, are incorporated by adding the required ‘en’ at the end, and then conjugate the Dutch way.

There is a bit more to say about "Opgezwolle". The advanced learners might think that there is an ‘n’ missing since it should be "opgezwollen" ("swollen"), but this is a deliberate pun since the group is from the town of "Zwolle".