We laten de boel de boel

Posted on by

Let’s leave things as they are [Dutch phrase of the week] Iconspeaker_3

Afwas_2You
can use the expression "de boel de boel laten" when you make the deliberate choice not to do anything about what you should be doing something about. Then you go and do something else (fun) instead!

This phrase is commonly used when you don’t want to do the housekeeping… 🙂

The word "boel" is derived from "boedel" ("big
quantity") or "inboedel" ("home contents"). The common translation of
"boel" is "things (to be done)", "matters", "stuff" etc.

Examples:
– "Kom, we laten de boel de boel en we gaan dit weekend naar Rome!" 
("Come on, let’s leave things as they are and go to Rome this weekend!")

– "Soms zou ik gewoon de boel de boel willen laten, maar ja, ik voel me altijd zo verantwoordelijk voor de dingen!" 
("Sometimes I would really like to leave things as they are, but you see, I always feel so responsible for things/everything!")

– "Het is zulk lekker weer! Laten we de boel de boel laten en lekker een fles wijn opentrekken!" 
("It is such great weather! Let’s leave things as they are and open a bottle of wine instead!" Note twice the use of "laten": first to say "let us" and then to say "leave the things". The verb "opentrekken" means "to pull open" and here it refers to the "uncorking" of the bottle.)

Related words:
– Boel: things, matters, stuff [noun] [de boel, no plural].
– Huishouden: housekeeping or household [noun] [het huishouden, de huishoudens].

Verneukeratief

Posted on by

deceptive, tricky [adjective] Iconspeaker_3

“Verneukeratief” is truly a brilliant Dutch word and very much suited for the informal Friday 🙂 You may think it is a vulgar word, because it contains “neuk”, from “neuken”, which translates to “to f*ck”… “Verneukeratief” is not vulgar though, although its use is quite informal.

But be careful!…The related verb “verneuken” is pretty vulgar, since it translates to “to f*ck up”…

Examples:
– “Dit contract is erg verneukeratief. Lees de kleine lettertjes maar…” 
(“This contract is very deceptive. Just read the disclaimer…” Lit.: “Just read the little letters…” see Extra)Verneukeratief

– “Het verneukeratieve van het internet is dat je nooit zeker weet of informatie echt waar is.”
(“The tricky thing about the internet is that you never know for sure whether information is actually true.”)

– “Advertentiefoto’s zijn vaak verneukeratief: het product op de foto is altijd prachtig, maar in het echt valt het tegen.”
(“Advertising pictures are often deceptive: the product in the picture is always beautiful, but the real thing is disappointing.”)

Expressions:
– “Iemand ergens in laten lopen”: to play a trick on somebody.

Related words:
– Bedrieglijk: deceptive [adjective].
– Tricky: tricky [adjective].
– Verneuken: to f*ck up [verb] [verneukte, verneukt].

Example:
– “Frank heeft de hele presentatie verneukt.”
(“Frank has f*cked up the entire presentation.”)

– Misleidend: misleading [adjective].
– Vals: fake, fraudulent [adjective].

Extra:
“De kleine lettertjes” (lit.: the little letters) is commonly used as a metaphor for the disclaimer(s) in a contract, which are often printed in a smaller font than then the font of the contract’s actual text. “De kleine lettertjes” are often associated with a sense of fraud….

Prachtig

Posted on by

beautiful, gorgeous, splendid, exquisite [adjective, adverb]  Speaker

"Prachtig" means "beautiful" and can apply to almost everything:
people, an event or experience, feelings, and things (but not, for
instance, to food which is " lekker" or "heerlijk").Prachtig_3
Please note that "mooi" also means beautiful. "Prachtig" however is
even better than mooi and has no comparative or superlative.

Examples:
-"Wat een prachtige zonsondergang!" 
("What a beautiful sunset!")

-"Ik heb prachtige schoenen gekocht bij Massimo Dutti!" 
("I bought beautiful shoes at Massimo Dutti.")

– "Heb je ooit zo’n prachtige vrouw gezien? Ik ben tot over mijn oren verliefd op haar!" 
("Have you ever seen such a beautiful woman? I’m head over heels in love with her!")

– "Uitverkoop? Nederlanders vinden het prachtig! Kijk maar naar de ‘Drie Dwaze Dagen’ in de Bijenkorf…die zijn vandaag weer begonnen…" 
("Bargain
sale? The Dutch just love it! Just take a look at the ‘Drie Dwaze
Dagen’ at Bijenkorf…they’ve started again today…")

– "Ik vind Rio de Janeiro een prachtige stad."  – "Vind je? Ik vind Buenos Aires mooier." 
("I find Rio de Janeiro a beautiful city." – "Do you think so? I think Buenos Aires is more beautiful.")

– "Ik zag ‘Adam’ van Barnett Newman laatst in het Tate museum; wat een prachtig schilderij!" 
("I saw ‘Adam’ by Barnett Newman in the Tate museum the other day; what an exquisite painting!")

– "Zie ik er mooi uit?" – "Je ziet er prachtig uit!" 
("Do I look beautiful?" – "You look gorgeous")

– "Wat vond u van de dansvoorstelling?" – "Prachtig, prachtig! Ik heb nog nooit zo’n prachtige choreografie gezien!"
("What did you think of the ballet performance?" – "Marvellous, marvellous!! I’ve never seen such a magnificent choreography")

Related words:
– Mooi: beautiful [adjective, adverb] [comparative: mooier, superlative: mooist].

Straks

Posted on by

in a while/moment, soon, later [adverb] Iconspeaker_3

Straks
You will often hear "straks" in the expression "tot straks": see you soon/later/in a while. There are subtle differences between "tot ziens", "tot straks", "tot zo" etc. and these can be difficult to grasp at first. See the Extra for an explanation. Don’t mistake "straks" for "strak" which means "tight".

An informal variation of straks is "strakjes" or (even more informal): "strakkies".

Examples:
– "En nu je troep opruimen!" – "Jahaa, straks…" – "Nee, niet straks, nu!!" 
("And now you are going to clean up your mess!" – "Yeah yeah, in a while…" – "No, not in a while, now!!")

– "We gaan straks in de stad koffie drinken. Heb je zin om mee te gaan?" 
("We are going downtown to drink coffee in a while. Do you feel like coming along?")

– "Ik denk dat het straks gaat regenen, dus ik neem alvast mijn paraplu mee."
("I think it will rain later, so I will bring my umbrella just now.")

Related words:
– Dadelijk: like "straks" but usually a little ‘sooner than’ "straks" [adverb]. You will also hear "dalijk".
– Zo: in a bit, in a short while [adverb].

Example:
– "Ik ga zo naar huis, kan ik je nog ergens mee helpen?"
("I’m going home in a bit, is there something I can help you with before I go?" Here the "nog" is translated with "before I go".)

Extra:
If you plan on meeting somebody the same day and it will not be too long from the moment of departing, you can say "tot straks". If you know it will be a different part of the day (as in afternoon, evening etc.) you can be more specific by saying "tot vanavond/vanmiddag" etc. If you know you are going to see eachother again really soon (as in within a few minutes) you can say "tot zo". If you want to express the (polite) wish to meet again, you can say "tot ziens", this is also the normal polite way to say goodbye.

You might also hear "tot dadelijk" (somewhere inbetween "zo" and "straks"), "tot zometeen" (same as "tot zo"), "tot binnenkort" ("see you soon" when you know you will meet again soon), "tot snel" (same as "binnenkort" but can also be used to express the wish of meeting soon again), and finally "tot gauw" (like "tot snel"). But probably this list is not complete! 🙂

Zetten

Posted on by

to put, to place, to set [verb] [zette, gezet] Iconspeaker_3

"Zetten" is a versatile word. We’ve given three possible translations. There are more translations that you can use though, depending on context. A variety is covered in the Examples. The related noun is "zet", which translates to "move", see the Related words.

Don’t confuse "zetten" with "zitten", which translates to "to sit".Bloemen_op_tafel

Examples:
-"Liefie, kun je de bloemen op tafel zetten?" 
("Sweetie, can you put the flowers on the table?")

– "Waar heb je mijn fiets gezet?" – "Daar…tegen die boom."
("Where did you put my bike?" – "There…against that tree.")

– "U kunt hier uw handtekening zetten.")
("You can place your signature here.")

– "Zet de wekker maar op half acht, dan kunnen we relaxed ontbijten."
("Just set the alarm clock for seven thirty, then we’ll be able to have a relaxed breakfast.")

– "Zal ik koffie zetten? Of heb je liever thee?"
("Shall I make coffee? Or would you rather have tea?")

– "Zoveel honger in de wereld… dat zet je aan het denken, toch?"
("So much starvation in the world…it makes you think, right?" Lit.: "…it puts you to think…")

– "Heb je het al gehoord? Franks vriendin heeft een aarsgewei laten zetten!!" 
("Have you heard already?? Frank’s girlfriend has gotten an ass cap!!" Lit.: …has let (the tattooguy [impl.]) put an ass cap (on her [impl.])…")

Expressions:
– "Iemand een hak zetten": to put a spoke in someone’s wheel. Lit.: to place someone a cut.

Example:
– "Kabelbedrijven zetten KPN een hak met snel internet."
("Cable companies put a spoke in KPN’s wheel with fast internet." Note: KPN is the former national incumbent Dutch telecommunication company. It used to be owned by the state, privatized since 1989.)

– "De/Je hakken in het zand zetten": to put up (a) resistance. Lit.: to put the/your heels in the sand. See also Schoen.
– "De bloemetjes buiten zetten": to party, to go wild. Lit.: to put the flowers outside.
– "Te kakken zetten": (informal) to ridicule, to mock. Lit.: to set to poop.

Related words:
– Zitten: to sit [verb] [zat, gezeten].
– Zet: move [noun] [de zet, de zetten].

Example:
– "Dat was een meesterlijke zet van zwart…wit staat schaakmat."
("That was a masterly move by black…white stands checkmate.")

– Gezet: corpulent, stout [adjective].
– "Ontzet": aghast, dismayed at/by [adjective]. Lit. displaced.