sky scraper [noun] [de wolkenkrabber, de wolkenkrabbers] [‘wol-kun-kra-bur’]

This is one of those words that if you keep repeating it, it sounds really strange. But to you probably each Dutch word sounds strange! 😉

A more direct translation of "wolkenkrabber" would be "cloud scratcher" but it’s the same principle. There are no real sky scrapers in the Netherlands, although Rotterdam has a few relatively high office buildings.

Examples:
– "Zou jij in een wolkenkrabber willen wonen?"
("Would you like to live in a sky scraper?")

– "Tegenwoordig vind je de hoogste wolkenkrabbers in Azië."
("Nowadays one finds the highest sky scrapers in Asia.")

– "Als je in Manhattan op straat loopt, dan ben je je niet echt bewust van de wolkenkrabbers die je omringen."
("When you walk (on) the streets of Manhattan, you are not really aware of all the sky scrapers surrounding you." Mind that "to be aware" is reflexive in Dutch: "zich bewust zijn", hence twice the "je".)

Related words:
– "Gebouw": building.
– "Wolk": cloud.
– "Krabben": to scratch.
– "Jeuk": itch/itching.

to worry, to brood, to ponder [verb] [piekerde, gepiekerd] [‘pie-ku-run’]

The verb "piekeren" has no direct relation to "piek", which appeared not so long ago on DWOTD.nl. "Piekeren" is used for intensive thinking about something without reaching an outcome. Usually a lot of worrying is involved. "Piekeren" is not a direct translation of "to worry" though, see the Related words.

Since "piekeren" is a continuous activity, it is often used with a typical Dutch construction for continuous activities: [subject]  + [conjugation of verbs suchs as "lopen" / "zitten" / "staan" / "hangen"]  + [te] + [infinitive]. See the Examples.

Examples:
– "Ik loop al de hele dag te piekeren over wat Frank me vanochtend vertelde."
("I’ve been worrying all day about what Frank told me this morning.")

– "Waar zit je toch over te piekeren, schat?"
("What’s on you mind now, darling?" Lit.: "What are you worrying about now, darling?")

– "Daar moet ik eens goed over piekeren."
("I’ve got to give it some serious thought." Lit.: "I’ve got to ponder it a while.")

– "Ilsa heeft zich de hele week suf gepiekerd over wat ze in haar bruiloftspeech zal zeggen."
("All week, Ilsa has been worrying herself sick about what she will say in her wedding speech.")

Expression:
– "Ik pieker er niet over!": "I wouldn’t even dream/think of doing it!"

Related words:
– "Zorgen": [noun, plural] worries.
– "Zich zorgen maken": to worry. Lit.: to make oneself worries.
– "Denken": to think.
– "Nadenken": to think, to reflect (on).

New Year(‘s Day) reception [noun] [de nieuwjaarsbijeenkomst, de nieuwjaarsbijeenkomsten] [‘niew-jaars-bij-een-komst’]

Not the usual Dutch Phrase Of The Week to start off the new year, but a word that will be heard in many Dutch offices and workplaces today: "Nieuwjaarsbijeenkomst".

Composed of "nieuwjaar" and "bijeenkomst" – resp. translating to "New Year" and "meeting/gathering" – the translation of "nieuwjaarsbijeenkomst" is quite straightforward.

Examples:
– "Hoe laat is de nieuwjaarsbijeenkomst vandaag?"
("What time is the New Year meeting today?")

– "Ga je ook naar de nieuwjaarsbijeenkomst? – Nee, ik heb echt geen zin om naar die saaie speech van onze directeur te luisteren…")
("Are you going to the New Year meeting too? – No, I really don’t feel like listening to that boring speech of our CEO…")

Expression:
– "Een goed begin is het halve werk": well begun is half done / the first blow is half the battle. Literally: "A good start is half the work".

Related words:
– "Nieuwjaar": New Year(‘s Day).
– "Bijeenkomst": gathering, meeting.

freezing point [noun] [het vriespunt] [‘vries-punt’]

The last word of 2007 is inspired by the weather. “Vriespunt” is composed of “vries” and “punt” that translate to “freeze” and “point” respectively. “Vries” is derived from the verb “vriezen”: “to freeze”. If you tune in to the Dutch weather forecasts the coming days, you might hear this word.

Examples:
– “Vandaag krijgen we temperaturen onder/rond het vriespunt.”
(“Today, we can expect temperatures below/around the freezing (point)”).

– “Als de temperatuur onder het vriespunt blijft, krijgen we misschien een witte kerst!”
(“If temperatures remain below the freezing point, we might be in for a white Christmas!”)

Expressions:
These are actually with the verb “vriezen”, but they are good to know! 🙂

– “Het vriest dat het kraakt”: there’s a sharp frost. Lit.: “It freezes that it cracks”.

– “Het kan vriezen en het kan dooien”: the outcome can be either way, or: everything is possible. Lit.: “It can freeze and it can thaw”.

Related words:
– “Vriezen”: to freeze.

Example:
– “Het gaat vriezen vannacht, pas op voor gladheid op de wegen”.
(“It’s going to freeze/We’re in for a frost tonight, mind icy patches on the roads.”)

– “IJs”: ice.

to use the computer for recreational purposes [verb]
[computerde, gecomputerd] [‘kom-pjoei-tu-run’]

The verb "computeren" is a
typical example of a verb that is derived from an English word. The usage of
such verbs, or English words in general, is prevalent in technical areas. Some
Dutch language purists have tried to replace such English words by Dutch words,
but this was never really picked up. An example of this is the word "rekenaar",
a literal translation of "computer". You do however encounter this word in
South-African.

What is remarkable about the verb "computeren" is that it has taken on the
meaning of recreational usage of a computer, mainly what you do at home (when
not working). The usage of a pc for work purposes is usually described as
"bureauwerk" ("desk work" where the pc is implied), "met een computer/pc werken"
("work with a computer/pc"), "achter een pc werken" ("work behind a pc" (or in
front of, depending how you look at it) ) or "computerarbeid" ("computer
work").

Examples:
– "Mijn vriend zit de hele avond te computeren. Ik kan er
net zo goed niet zijn!"
("My boyfriend is behind his computer all evening. I
might as well not be there!")

– "Tegenwoordig zijn er ook veel senioren die thuis
computeren."
("Nowadays there are also many seniors who use the computer at
home.")

– "De passie van Sanders vader was computeren. Hij deed niets anders dan de
hele dag gamen!"
("The passion of Sander’s father was (to use) his computer.
He did nothing else than gaming all day long!" Here the verb "gamen" is derived
from the English "game" and pronounced similarly.)

Related words:
– "Spelletje": a game. Also "computerspelletje" to
disambiguate.
– "Computerspelletjes spelen": to play computer games.
–
"Muis": mouse.
– "Keyboard": keyboard. You will also hear "toetsenbord".