Het moet maar

(oh well alright,) I guess it just has to be done [Dutch phrase of the week]  Iconspeaker_klein

The translation above is just one of many possibilities, depending on context. We’ll cover a few in the Examples.

Examples:
– "Ik heb helemaal geen zin om vandaag weer naar het werk te gaan…het moet maar…"
("I really don’t feel like going to work again today…I guess I’ll just have to do it…")Het_moet_maar_2

– "Ga jij ook naar de afscheidsborrel van Frank?" – "Het moet maar…"
("Are you going to the Frank’s farewell drink too?" – "I guess I have no choice…")

– "Spring, spring!" – "Het moet maar…"
("Jump, jump!" – "Here goes nothing…")

– "Sander, weet jij een andere vertaling voor ‘het moet maar’ ?" – "Nee makker, het moet maar zo…bij gebrek aan betere alternatieven…"
("Sander, do you know another translation for ‘het moet maar’ ?"- "No dude, I guess we’ll have to do this one…for lack of better alternatives…")

Related words:
– "Moeten": [verb] to must, to have to.
– "Maar": [adverb] but, only, just.

Hartstikke

really, awfully, terribly,
fantastically
 [adverb] [‘hart-sti-ku’]  Iconspeaker_3

Truelove
"Hartstikke"
is one of those words that start to sound really strange when you
repeat it a few times. But it is in fact a strange word that has
nothing to do with its usage today. Around 1600 the expression
"hartstikke dood" was used when somebody had died as a result of a stab
in the heart. "Hartstikke" was derived from "hertsteken": to pierce the
heart with iron.
At one point, when the origin of the expression was not well-known
anymore, one started to use "hartstikke" as an adverb to intensify.
This lead to the current usage of "hartstikke".

Note that, probably due to its origin, you can only use "hartstikke"
as an adverb and not as an adjective, contrary to the suggested
translations above.

"Hartstikke" is a very common adverb, try to use it!

Examples:
– "Hoe was je vakantie?" – "Heel erg ontspannend, maar het was hartstikke warm!"
("How were your holidays?" – "Very relaxing, but it was terribly warm!")

– "Is jouw baan niet enorm saai?" – "Nee, juist niet, mijn baan is hartstikke leuk!"
("Isn’t your job terribly boring?" – "No, on the contrary, my job is absolutely wonderful!")

– "We hebben hartstikke lekker gegeten bij restaurant Rozemarijn, maar de bediening was vrij slecht."
("The
food at restaurant Rozemarijn was really very tasty, but the service
was pretty bad." Literally: "We have eaten very tastefully…")

– "Mag ik jou complimenteren met het resultaat? Hartstikke goed gedaan!" – "Nou, hartstikke bedankt dat je dat zegt!"
("May I compliment you on the results? Very well done!" – "Well, thank you very much indeed for telling me this!")

Related words:
– "Enorm": enormous(ly).
– "Verschrikkelijk": terrible/y.
– "Fantastisch": fantastic.
– "Uitermate": very.

Voordeel

advantage, benefit, profit [noun] [het voordeel, de voordelen] [‘voor-deel’] Iconspeaker_klein

As a special request, today’s DWOTD is "voordeel". "Voordeel" always has a positive meaning, either having an advantage or buying something for a good price. In the latter case, the adjective/adverb "voordelig" is used (see Examples). "Voordeel" can also be combined with several verbs, either "zijn" (to be) or "hebben" (to have). The Examples will show you how to use them. The opposite of "voordeel" is "nadeel".

Examples:
– "Hij deed zijn voordeel met de lage huizenprijzen in de jaren tachtig en is nu miljonair."
("He took advantage of the low house prices in the eigthies and is a millionaire now.")

– "Heb je de voor- en nadelen goed bekeken voordat je die belangrijke beslissing nam?"
("Did you take a proper look at the pros and cons before you took that important decision?")

– "Je zou denken dat Hillary’s situatie in haar voordeel werkt omdat zij meer ervaring heeft, maar dat blijkt niet waar te zijn."
("You would think that Hillary’s situation would be to her advantage since she is more experienced but that doesn’t seem to be true.")

– "Wat is de stand?" -"3-0 in het voordeel van Nederland/3-0 voor Nederland!".
("What’s the score? – "3-0 for Holland!")

– "Deze auto is voordelig (in het gebruik) omdat hij op gas rijdt."
("This car is economical (in use) since it drives on gas.")

Expressions:
World famous soccer player and coach Johan Cruijff is known for his selfinvented hands-on expressions Voordeel to guide his followers through everyday life. One of his most well-known expressions is: "Elk nadeel heb zijn voordeel" (note the conjugation of the verb "hebben" in Amsterdam spelling) or, in proper Dutch: "Elk nadeel heeft zijn voordeel", translated as "Every disadvantage has its advantage". Johan looks at the bright side of life 😉

Other expressions include:

– "Ik kwam haar na jaren weer tegen en we hebben uren op het terras zitten kletsen; ze is echt in haar voordeel veranderd!"
("I bumped into her after years not having seen her and we spent hours chatting in an outdoor café; she’s really changed for the better!")

– "Ondanks zijn slechte prestaties heb ik hem het voordeel van de twijfel gegeven en zijn contract met nog een jaar verlengd."
("In spite of his lousy performance I gave him the benefit of the doubt and prolonged his contract with another year.")

Extra:
In commercials or in stores you might come across words such as "Megavoordeel!" which is translated to something like "huge sale!"

Related words:
– "Nadeel": disadvantage.
– "Nadelig": adverse, detrimental.
– "Voordelig": advantageous, economical, favourable.

Toedeledoki

toodle-oo, bye(-bye), cheers, cheerio [interjection] [‘toe-du-lu-doo-kie’] Iconspeaker_klein_2

“Toedeledoki” is a very informal way to say (good)bye.

The use of “toedeledoki” in the Dutch language was strongly boosted by the comedy series Jiskefet, which aired from from 1990 to 2005 on Dutch
television. It was a show with various humorous and absurdist
sketches. One of the recurring sketches had three men in it with a southern Dutch accent (from the province of Brabant), sitting in the office, talking about various trivial everyday topics. One of these characters would always dump his sandwiches – made by his wife – in the trash bin while exclaiming “Toedeledoki!”

Sometimes, Dutch ‘goodbye words’ – such as “dag”, “doei” or “toedeledoki” – are used to express one’s disapproval of a certain activity or situation. See the last example.Achterzwaai

Examples:
– “Ik ga naar huis, toedeledoki!”
(“I’m going home, bye-bye!”)

– “Mensen, het was erg gezellig, maar nu moet ik echt gaan…Toedeledoki!”
(“People, I had a great time, but I really have to go now…Cheerio!”)

– “Schat, kun jij de afwas doen?” – “Toedeledoki, daar heb ik nu echt geen zin in!”
(“Honey, can you do the dishes?” – “Forget it, I really don’t feel like doing that now!”)

Related words:
– “Doei“: bye bye, so long, ta ta, see you.
– “Tot ziens”: goodbye, bye.
– “Afscheid”: [noun] parting, leaving.
– “Iemand gedag zwaaien”: to wave hello/goodbye to someone.
– “Vaarwel”: farewell.

Extra:
Another brilliant joke from the same Jiskefet episode (at 2min09sec): “Wat is de verleden tijd van komkommersla?” – “Kwamkwammersloeg!” 😀 Ask you local Dutch Guru for an explanation…

Extra 2:
Let’s do some alternatives for “toedeledoki. Here are a few ways to say goodbye in (spoken) Dutch:

Informal
– “Groetjes!”: bye-bye!
– “(De) groeten”: bye.
– “Doei/doedoei/doeidoei/doeg”: bye, cheers.
– “(De) mazzel”: see you.
– “Toedels/toedeloe”: toodle-oo, cheerio, bye-bye.
– “Later/lator/laters”: (see you) later.
– “De ballen!”: cheers! bye!
– “(Ik) zie je”: see you.
– “Tot sinas”: (a pun for “tot ziens”) (good)bye.
– “Hoihe”: [used in the province of Limburg] bye-bye.
– “Houdoe”: [used in the province of Brabant] bye-bye.
– “Tabee”: so long.

(Semi-)formal
– “Tot ziens”: goodbye.
– “Tot horens”: [on the phone] bye (lit.: until we hear each other again).
– “Dag”: bye.
– “Tot de volgende keer”: until next time.
– “Tot snel”: see you soon (lit.: till soon).
– “Tot binnenkort”: see you shortly (lit.: till shortly).
– “Vaarwel”: farewell.

Spook

ghost, phantom [noun] [het spook, de spoken] [‘spook‘]  Iconspeaker_3

Spookje
A
common Dutch expression is "spoken bestaan niet": ghosts do not exist.
It is used when there should really be a rational explanation for a strange phenomenon. Other than in this expression, you may come across a "spook" or "spoken" in fairy tales, cartoons or the Dutch translation of Harry Potter. However, if you
are driving on Dutch motor/highways and there is a warning for a
"spookrijder" on the radio, then pay attention as somebody might be driving on the
wrong side of the road (and hopefully it’s not you).

Examples:
-"Mamma, ik zie een spook voor het raam!" – "Nee joh gekkie, spoken bestaan niet!" 
("Mom, I see a ghost in front of the window!" – "No you silly goose / dummy, ghosts do not exist!" Note that "gekkie" is the informal diminutive of "gek". It is friendlier than "gek" – the noun for madman or lunatic or fool etc. – and usually used in the meaning of "dummy".)

– "Wat is eigenlijk het verschil tussen een spook en een geest?"
("Now what is actually the difference between a ghost and a spirit?")

– "Ik keek vroeger naar Scooby-Doo, maar het spook bleek dan
altijd nep te zijn. Meestal was het gewoon de burgemeester ofzo!"

("I used to watch Scooby-Doo, but the ghost always appeared to be fake. Usually it was just the mayor or something!")

Expressions:
– "Overal spoken zien": to see ghosts everywhere, to be paranoid.
– "Spoken bestaan niet": ghosts do not exist; used when there should really be a rational explanation for a strange phenomenon.
– "Door het huis spoken": to prowl about in the house late at night.

Related words:
– "Spoken": to haunt (by ghosts).
– "Spookhuis": haunted house.
– "Spookverhaal": ghost story.
– "Spookrijder": motorist driving against the traffic on motor/highways.
– "Spookachtig": ghostly, spooky.
– "Geest": spirit.