pill [noun] [de pil, de pillen]

"Pil" is used for medicine, anti-conception and drugs. The diminutive is "pilletje"; in general diminutives of nouns with base "-il" end in "-illetje".

Examples:
– "Wat wordt het? De rode of de blauwe pil?"
("What is it going to be? The red or the blue pill?")

– "Ik heb wat pillen gekregen van de dokter."
("The doctor provided me with some pills.")

– "Neem tweemaal daags een pil na de maaltijd."
("Take a pill two times a day after a meal.")

– "Volgens mij is daar wel een pilletje voor."
(Literally: "According to me there is a pill for that" this is like informally saying "I believe there exists medicine for that.")

– "Slik jij de pil?"
("Are you on the pill?" Lit.: "Do you swallow the pill?" In this context the diminutive "pilletje" is never used.)

– "Ik ben gestopt met de pil."
("I have stopped taking the pill.")

– "Sommige mensen slikken wel eens een pilletje bij het uitgaan."
("Some people take a pill once in a while when they go out." In this context it is common to use the diminutive "pilletje".)

Expression:
– "Het is een bittere pil.": it is a bitter pill to swallow.

Example:
– "Zijn verlies te erkennen, was een bittere pil voor hem."
("Acknowledging his defeat was a bitter pill for him to swallow.")

– "Een dikke pil.": this is used to say that a book is very thick.

Example:
– "Jeetje, wat een dikke pil zeg! En die moet jij uit je hoofd leren??"
("My, what a thick book! And you have to memorize that??" The word "jeetje" (or "jee", "jeeminee") is derived from "Jezus", as a more acceptable substitute.)

to look for, to find, to search (for), to seek [verb] [zocht, gezocht]

Inspired by the search function that we have added, today’s word is "zoeken". It translates to quite a few different verbs in English, that are in a way all related, but we are only covering the most common ones. Quite often Dutch people use the incorrect translation of the verb "zoeken" since they are used to having only one such verb. Quite often "zoeken" is used in combination with "naar" ("for"), see ‘Examples’.

Examples:
– "Mijn neef zoekt een nieuwe baan, weet jij iets?"
("My cousin is looking for a new job, do you have a suggestion?" Lit.: "…, do you know something?" In Dutch "neef" is used for both "cousin" and "nephew". )

– "Ik zoek al maanden naar dit boek, maar ik heb het nog steeds niet gevonden."
("I have been looking for this book for months, but I still have not found it.")

– "<winkelpersoneel:> Zoekt u iets speciaals?"
("<shop assistant>: Are you looking for something special?")

– "Het is traditie om met Pasen eieren te zoeken."
("It is tradion to gather eggs with Easter." Lit.: "…to search for eggs…")

– "Een vriendin van mij zoekt een 3-kamer appartement met balkon."
("A friend of mine is looking for a 3-room appartment with a balcony." Here "vriendin" is a female friend.)

– "Ik kan mijn sleutels niet vinden!" – "Heb je wel goed gezocht?"
("I can’t find my keys!" – "Have you looked properly?")

– "Wegwezen! Jij hebt hier niets te zoeken!"
("Get out! You don’t have any business here!" Lit.:" You have nothing to find here!")

– "We moeten een oplossing zoeken voor dit probleem."
("We have to find a solution for this problem.")

– "De politie zoekt naar een voortvluchtige."
("The police are searching for a fugitive.")

– "Waarom ben jij hier?" – "Ik zoek naar de zin van het leven, jij ook?"
("Why are you here?" – "I’m seeking the meaning of life, you too?")

Expressions:
– "Op zoek zijn naar": looking for.

Example:
– "Ik ben op zoek naar een spijkerbroek met wijde pijpen."
("I’m looking for a pair of bootcut jeans." Lit.: "…with wide legs.")

– "Het avontuur zoeken": being out for adventure.

– "Iets ergens achter zoeken": to be suspicous, not trusting something.

Example:
– "Jouw moeder zoekt altijd ergens iets achter!"
("Your mother is always suspicious!")

Related words:
– "Doorzoeken": searching/going through.

Example:
– "Ik heb al mijn zakken doorzocht maar kan het geld niet meer vinden."
("I have gone through all my pockets, but can’t find the money anymore.")

– "Zoektocht": search [noun].

Example:
– "De zoektocht naar de vermiste personen is gestopt."
("The search for the missing persons has stopped.")

– "Zoekmachine": search engine.
– "Zoekfunctie": search function.

Example:
– "De DWOTD web log heeft nu ook een zoekfunctie."
("The DWOTD web log now also has a search function.")

1. back in the days, back then, in the past [adverb]

In this context "vroeger" is not always literally translated as an adverb. In English, there's often the possibility to use a construction with "used to", as you can see from the examples.

Examples:
– "Vroeger was alles beter."
("Back in the days, everything was better." Check this funny commercial)

– "Ze maken ze niet meer zoals vroeger."
("They don't make 'em like they used to.")

– "Laten we er nog eentje drinken, als herinnering aan vroeger."
("Let's have another one, for old time's sake." (We left the 'drink' out of the translation.))

– "Vroeger dachten mensen dat heksen echt bestonden."
("In the past, people thought that witches really existed." / "People used to think that witches really existed.")

2. former, past, previous, prior [adverb/adjective]

Examples:
– "Franks vroegere functie was operationeel productmanager."
("Frank's previous position was operational productmanager.")

– "Franks vroegere vrienden lachten hem altijd uit."
("Frank's former friends always made fun of him.")

3. earlier [adverb/adjective]

This is the comparative degree ('vergrotende trap') of "vroeg".

Example:
– "Ik ben wat vroeger omdat de gebruikelijke file er vandaag niet stond."
("I am a bit earlier because the usual traffic jam wasn't there today.")

early [adjective/adverb]

Not to be confused with "vroeger" ("back in the days"), which will be tomorrow’s DWOTD 🙂

Examples:
– "Marc begint altijd vroeg op zijn werk."
("Marc always starts early at work.")

– "Sommige mensen hebben moeite om vroeg op te staan."
("Some people have trouble getting up early.")

– "Ik moet morgen om 5 uur op." – "Wat! Zo vroeg?!"
("Tomorrow I have to get up at 5." – "What! That early?!" Here only "op" is used, instead of the complete verb "opstaan" like in the previous example.)

– "Sara is een vroege vogel, ze staat ‘s ochtends altijd om zes uur op."
("Sara is an early bird, she always gets up at six in the morning.")

Expressions:
– "Dat meisje/die jongen is er vroeg bij."
("That girl/boy is quite mature for his age." Literally: "That girl/boy is at it quite early." Sometimes used in the context of being sexually active.)

– "Vroeg of laat zal de waarheid boven tafel komen."
("Sooner or later, the truth will come out." Literally: "…the truth will come above the table." Mark that in Dutch the comparative degree (‘vergrotende trap’) is not used here: literally "Soon or late…")

Related words:
– "Vroeger": earlier, back in the days, back then.
– "Laat": late.
– "Later": later.

letter [noun] [de brief, de brieven]

This is about the letter that you can write and mail 🙂 A letter from the alphabet is also called a ‘letter’ in Dutch.
With the increase of electronic mail, the Dutch mail delivery sector is having more and more trouble to stay profitable. However, in the Christmas holidays there is still an increase of mail, and special discount Christmas stamps (‘Kerstzegels’) are issued. Currently there is discussion on liberalizing the mail delivery sector in the Netherlands. Postmen (and women) fear to lose their job or to earn less.

The diminutive ‘briefje’ is commonly used in the translation of a ‘small written note’, see ‘Examples’.

Examples:
– “Kun jij voor mij deze brief posten?”
(“Can you mail this letter for me?” You will also hear “bussen” and “op de bus doen” as synonyms for “posten”.)

– “<op het postkantoor:> Kunt u voor mij deze brief frankeren?”
(“<at the post office:> Can you frank/stamp this letter for me?”)

– “Hoeveel postzegels moeten er op deze brief?”
(“How many stamps need to go on this letter?”)

– “Deze brief kon niet bezorgd worden, want hij is incorrect geaddresseerd.”
(“This letter could not be delivered, because it is addressed incorrectly.”)

– “Ik heb hier een brief voor m’n moeder…”
(“Here I have a letter for my mother…” Starting line of the chorus of the well-known song “De Vlieger” (“The Kite”) by André Hazes. In speech or informal writing it is common to use “m’n” instead of “mijn”.)

– “Ik heb een briefje met instructies voor je achtergelaten.”
(“I have left you a note with instructions.” The verb ‘achterlaten’ translates to ‘to leave behind’.)

Related words:
– “Briefpapier”: writing paper, stationery.
– “Brandbrief”: a pressing letter that urges the receiver to pay the bill, help out or report (somewhere). The use of “brand” (“fire”) indicates its urgency.
– “Brievenbus”: mail box.
– “Aangetekende brief”: registered letter.
– “Pakje/pakketje/pakket”: parcel.
– “Post”: mail.

Example:
“Is er nog post voor mij?”
(“Is there any mail for me?”)

– “Posten”: to mail a letter. You will also hear “bussen” and “op de bus doen”.
– “Postbode”: mail man/woman.
– “Postzegel”: stamp.
– “Postkantoor”: post office.

Extra:

Many expats experience difficulties when trying to go to the post office. It cannot be found, or it is always closed. How do Dutch people deal with this? Answer: they don’t really. And how do we know how many stamps to put on a letter? We don’t really. Luckily there are a few good web sites that can help us out:
– If you want to know where the nearest post office is and what its opening hours are, follow the link and fill in your postcode.
– If you need to know the tariff for mailing your letter, go here (you do have to figure out the weight yourself 🙂 and you might as well just go to the post office (like we do 🙂 )).