stain, spot, smudge [noun] [de vlek, de vlekken] [‘vlek‘]

Examples:
– "Er zit een vlekje op je shirt, net onder je hals."
("There is (small) spot on your shirt, right below your neck." In Dutch, the front part of the neck is called "hals" and the back part "nek".)

– "Ik baal als een stekker; net een nieuwe spijkerbroek gekocht, en nu alweer een vlek!"
("I’m really upset; just bought a new pair of jeans, and it is immediately stained!" Literally: "…, and now already a stain again!")

– "Sander was onaangenaam verrast toen er – na afloop van de InterAgencyEvents Pure White Beach Party – rode wijnvlekken zaten op de achterkant van zijn witte t-shirt."
("Sander was unpleasantly surprised when – at the end of the InterAgencyEvents Pure White Beach Party – his white t-shirt had red wine stains on the back.")

– "Die vlek gaat er in de was wel uit!"
("That stain will come out in the wash!")

– "Ik schrijf liever niet met een vulpen, want ik maak altijd inktvlekken."
("I prefer not to write with a fountain pen, because I always make inkstains.")

– "Sommige mensen hebben een blinde vlek in het oog."
("Some people have a blind spot (in the eye).")

Related words:
– "Moedervlek": birthmark, mole. Literally "mother stain".
– "Was": laundry.
– "Vuile was": dirty laundry.
– "Onbevlekt": immaculate, literally "unstained".
– "Onbevlekte ontvangenis": the Immaculate Conception. The Duch term is sometimes misinterpreted by (adolescent) laymen (as the lack of sperm implies "unstained"; we know… it is far fetched!).

top, peak, tip [noun] [de top, de toppen; ‘top‘]

"Top" can be used as a separate noun, but also in combination with another noun, see the examples.

Examples:
– "Velen zijn gestorven op weg naar de top van de Mount Everest."
("Many have died on the way to the top of the Mount Everest.")

– "De weg naar de top is lang."
("The road to the top is long.")

– "EU-top bereikt akkoord over een nieuw verdrag."
("EU-top reaches agreement on a new treaty.")

– "Mijn vingertoppen doen pijn, omdat ik lang gitaar gespeeld heb."
("My fingertips hurt, because I played the guitar for a long time.")

– "Er is in Nederland veel discussie over het salaris van de topmannen in de semi-publieke sector."
("In The Netherlands, there is a lot of discussion on the salary of the top men / senior executives in the semi-public sector.")

– "Met een topconditie kun je een topprestatie leveren…of je neemt doping…"
("With a top condition you can achieve a top performance…or you take drugs…")

– "De topsnelheid van een bromfiets hoort 40 km per uur te zijn."
("The maximum speed of a moped should be 40 km per hour." A "bromfiets" literally means a "humming" bike. You will also see the verb "brommen" in this context.)

Expressions:
– "Top!": "Great!" / "Agreed!" / "Deal!"
– "(Helemaal) toppie!": <informal:> "(Absolutely) great/fantastic!"

Related words:
– "Topper": cracker, informal word for someone who is very good at something.

– "Toppertje": like topper, but more informal. Also the name of a 2006 summer hit called "Toppertje" by "Guillermo & Tropical Danny" in which "toppertje" is a drink. Check out their classic first live performance on video on YouTube. This song also illustrates the use of the pet names "schat" and "moppie".

– "Piek": peak.

Extra:
In The Netherlands we have an ensemble of three singers who call themselves "De Toppers". They’re quite popular. All three have (had) solo careers, but now and then they team up, and for some reason they are able to fill up entire football stadiums with party people…

1. sweetie, doll [noun] [de mop, de moppen]

The informal diminutive of "mop" is "moppie". Both can be used. Mind that it is a bit old-fashioned and associated with lower class social environments. Also, it can only be used to address females.

Examples:
– "<bouwvakker:> Hé moppie! Wat zie jij er goed uit!!"
("<construction worker:> "Hey sweetie! You’re lookin’ good!!)

– "<in een Amsterdams bruin café:> Luister eens moppie, het is dat je vent staat te kijken, want anders had ik het wel geweten!"
("<in a brown pub/bar in Amsterdam:> Listen sweetie, if it weren’t for your man looking at us, I would have taken my chance!" Literally: "…, it is that your man is looking, because otherwise I would have known!" Here, the use of the verb "staan" is to indicate that the man is in the activity of looking.)

– "Ik weet het mop, ik had het beloofd, maar ik moet vanavond weer overwerken!"
("I know sweetie, I promised, but tonight I have to work overtime again!")

2. joke, jest [noun] [de mop, de moppen]

Examples:
– "Weet jij een leuke mop?"
("Do you know a good joke?")

– "Mijn oom is erg goed in het vertellen van moppen."
("My uncle is really good at telling jokes.")

Related words:
– "Moppentappen": to tell jokes. Literally "to draft jokes".
– "Grap": joke.
– "Grappenmaker": one who makes jokes.

3. mop [noun] [de mop, de mops]

Example:
– "Heb jij de mop gezien? Ik wil de keukenvloer dweilen."
("Have you seen the mop? I want to mop the kitchen floor.")

Related words:
– "Zwabber": mop. This word is actually more common than "mop".
– "Dweil": floor-cloth, rag, mop (if on a stick).

1. hon, honey, baby, darling [noun] [de schat, de schatten] [‘sgat‘]

Literally, “schat” means “treasure”, see 2. When used as a pet word, “schat” would be best translated with “hon” or “honey” in English, sometimes “darling”.
The diminutive form “schatje” is also often used, which would also be best translated with “honey” or “baby”.

Examples:
– “Schat, ik ben thuis!”
(“Honey, I’m home!”)

– “Wat ben je toch een schat!”
(“You’re such a darling!”)

– “Hee schatje, heb je zin om met me te dansen?”
(“Hey baby, do you wanna dance with me?”)

– “Schat, wil je alsjeblieft opschieten? We zijn al een half uur te laat.”
(“Hon, will you please hurry, we’re already half an hour late.” Lit.: “…do you want to hurry please?…”)

Related words:
– “Schattebout”: sweetie pie. Lit.: treasure bolt.
– “Schattig”: sweet, lovely. Lit.: treasure-like.
– “Skatje”: baby. (Phonetic form of “schatje” pronounced with a French/Italian accent 😉 Street slang, no official spelling…)

2. treasure [noun] [de schat, de schatten] [‘sgat‘]

Examples:
– “De piraten hadden de schat op een klein eiland verborgen”.
(“The pirates had hidden the treasure on a small island.”

– “Die man heeft een schat aan technische kennis, maar hij blijft contactgestoord.”
(“That man has a wealth of technical knowledhe, but he still is socially handicapped.” Lit.: “That man has a treasure on technical knowledge, but he still remains contact-disturbed.”)

Extra:
There’s also a Dutch verb “schatten”, which is surprisingly not translated with “to treasure” but with “to estimate”.

“To treasure” is translated with “als een schat bewaren” (to keep like a treasure) or with “koesteren” (to cherish).

immediate, at once [adjective / adverb] [‘on-mi-du-luk’]

"Onmiddellijk" was rammed into our heads at primary school: "Onmiddellijk? Dubbele ‘d’, dubbele ‘l’ !!!": "double ‘d’, double ‘l’ !!!"

Examples:
– "Kom onmiddellijk hier!"
("Come here at once!")

– "Toen ik het verschrikkelijke nieuws hoorde, ben ik onmiddellijk omgedraaid."
("When I heard the awful news, I turned around immediately.")

– "Deze regel gaat onmiddelijk in."
("This rule applies immediately." Lit.: "This rule goes in immediately.")

– "Het roken van een joint heeft niet altijd een onmiddellijk effect."
("Smoking a joint does not always have an immediate effect.")

– "Wilt u een miljoen euro winnen? Bel onmiddellijk met het volgende nummer!"
("Do you want to win a million euros? Call the following number at once!")

Expressions:
– "God straft onmiddellijk.": <ironic:> God punishes at once (when someone has done something wrong/stupid, and is negatively affected by his own actions).

Related words:
– "Dadelijk": immediate, direct.
– "Direct": direct.
– "Gelijk": right.
– "Meteen": immediately, straight away.
– "Ogenblikkelijk": instantly.
– "Geleidelijk": gradual.