Blauwtje

Posted on by

rejection (in love) [noun] [het blauwtje, de blauwtjes]

"Blauwtje" is the diminutive form of "blauw", which translates to
"blue" (the colour). Hence, "blauwtje" literally translates to "little
blue one" and is in fact only used in the expression "een blauwtje
lopen". This expression is the informal equivalent of "to be turned
down/to be rejected" in the romantic sense. It literally translates to
"to walk a little blue one" (which does not make any sense, we admit).

Examples:
– "Toen Frank de Valentijnskaart op de bus deed, wist hij nog niet dat hij een blauwtje zou lopen."
("When Frank posted the card for Valentine, he did not know yet that he would be turned down.")

"Op de bus doen" is an expression for posting/mailing a letter (in
this context, "bus" is short for "brievenbus": postbox/mailbox.)

– "Sommige mannen vinden het niet erg om een blauwtje te lopen, en spreken op een avond tien vrouwen aan."
("Some
guys don’t mind to be turned down, and hit on ten women a night." The
verb "aanspreken" is used for approaching and talking to the person.)

– "De hemel is vandaag strak blauw."
("There’s not a cloud in the
sky today." The word "strak" literally means "tight" but in the
figurative sense it can also mean "flawless" or "immaculate".)

Related words:
– "Afwijzing": rejection.
–
"Liefdesverdriet hebben": to be disappointed in love (to feel
sad/depressed after a break-up) (literally: to have love’s sorrow).

Aanbidder

Posted on by

admirer, worshipper [noun] [de aanbidder, de aanbidders]

"Aanbidder" is derived from the verb "aanbidden": to admire, or to worship. Literally "aanbidden" means "to pray at/to" derived from praying to a statue while kneeling.
It is however also commonly used when you adore somebody. In the context of the latter, "aanbidder" translates to "admirer", which of course is the translation of choice for this week 🙂 However, it is not romantic by definition!

Examples:
– "Het lijkt mij leuk om een stille aanbidder te hebben! Hé, misschien heb ik er wel een…"
("I think it would be nice to have a secret admirer! Hey, perhaps I have one…" Literally: "It seems nice to me to have…")

– "Morgen is het Valentijnsdag. Ik zal wel geen kaartjes van stille aanbidders ontvangen… :-("
("Tomorrow it’s Valentine’s day. I will probably receive no cards from secret admirers… :-(" The use of "wel geen" is a bit confusing, since "wel" is the opposite of "geen". However, "wel" can also mean "probably" which is the case in this construction.)

Expressions:
Quite a few expressions related to "aanbidden" exist. Here are a few:

– "Iemand op handen dragen": to like someone very much. Literally "to carry someone on hands" as in liking somebody so much that you lift him/her with your hands (like what sometimes happens in sports).

– "Weglopen met iemand": to like someone very much. Literally: "to walk away with someone", as in liking somebody so much that you just want to walk away with that person!

– "Iemand op een voetstuk plaatsen": to put somebody on a pedestal.

Related words:
– "Adoreren": to adore.
– "Vereren": to worship, adore. Also used in relation to God.
– "Verafgoden": idolize.

Verliefd

Posted on by

in love, amorous, loving [adjective / adverb]

Examples:
– "Ik ben stiekum verliefd op mijn overbuurvrouw/man… Tegen niemand zeggen hè?!"
("I am secretly in love with my opposite neighbour… Don’t tell anyone ok?!" In Dutch there is a male and female version of "neighbour", see also DWOTD 9. Buurt.)

– "Mijn vader is na 30 jaar nog altijd erg verliefd op mijn moeder."
("After 30 years, my father is still very much in love with my mother.")

– "Frank is verliefd op zijn auto: een zwarte Porsche 924S."
("Frank is in love with his car: a black Porsche 924S.")

– "De tieners wisselden verliefde blikken uit in het klaslokaal."
("The teen-agers exchanged amorous looks in the classroom.")

– "Romeo keek Julia verliefd aan."
("Romeo gave Juliette a loving look." Literally: "…looked at Juliette amorously.")

Related words:
– "Liefde": love (noun).
– "Vlinders in de buik": butterflies in one’s stomach.

Expression:
– "Tot over je oren verliefd zijn": to be very much in love. Literally: to be in love till over one’s ears.

Extra:
In DWOTD 104. Misschien, the Dutch song genre "levenslied" was already mentioned and a famous Dutch singer in that genre: André Hazes. One of his greatest hits is called "Een beetje verliefd" ("A bit in love"). This song is particularly suited for wailing along together in a bar after taking in a significant amount of alcoholic units 😉
Another Dutch classic is the song "Sinds een dag of 2 (32 jaar)" by "Doe Maar", a popular 80s ska band with punk and reggae influences. The guy sings about being 32 years old and in love again. Check out their cool video at youtube. The first line he sings contains the expression "vlinders in mijn hoofd" ("butterflies in my head"), which is weird since usually they are in your stomach! Their music is still often played at Dutch home parties or during popular music club nights.

Drempel

Posted on by

1. threshold, barrier, doorstep [noun] [de drempel, de drempels]

Examples:
– "We bevinden ons op de drempel van een nieuw tijdperk: het tijdperk van de mensen zal eindigen, de orks zullen heersen…"
("We find ourselves at the threshold of a new era: the era of man will end, the orcs will rule…")

– "Frank voelde een grote mentale drempel om op de mooie dame aan de bar af te stappen."
("Frank felt a great mental barrier to approach the beautiful lady at the bar." Literally: "… to step to the beautiful lady…")

– "Ik zet daar geen voet meer over de drempel!"
("I shall never set foot in that house again!" Literally: "…set foot across the doorstep there.")

2. speed bump/ramp [noun] [de drempel, de drempels]

Letopdrempels
In
this context, "drempel" is also referred to as "verkeersdrempel", which
literally translates to "traffic barrier". Speed bumps are abundant in
the Netherlands, especially in small streets in residential areas. They
can be quite nasty!

Example:
– "Ik ben te hard over een drempel gegaan. Nu ligt de uitlaat van m’n auto eraf!"
("I went over a speed ramp too fast. Now the exhaustion (pipe) of my car has come off!" Literally: "…lies off!")

Related word:
– "30 kilometer zone": 30 kilometer zone, a
zone in which a speedlimit of 30 km/h applies. These zones often have a lot
of "verkeersdrempels"….

Extra:
Dip_1Once
in the United States Sander encountered the opposite of a speed bump, the
"dip". "What the hell does D-I-P mean?" his co-worker asked after
spotting the big
D I P sign. Not much later they understood! At least you
can see a speed bump coming!

Verkeersbord

Posted on by

road/traffic sign
[noun]
[het ver-keers-bord, de ver-keers-bor-den]

Traffic in the Netherlands is a bit overregulated. You can’t really go wrong 😉
However, while trying to interpret all these traffic signs, of which the density in the Netherlands is very high, one almost forgets to actually pay attention to traffic!

The Dutch word for traffic is "verkeer". A "bord" in general is some kind of flat shape for display. Most common usages are a "plate" for food, a "sign" of some sort, or a "black/white board" (the latter translating to "schoolbord" at school or just "white board" in the office).

Examples:
– "Neemt u mij niet kwalijk; dat verkeersbord heb ik niet gezien!"
(<to a police officer:>"I beg your pardon; I did not see that traffic sign!")

– "De dichtheid van verkeersborden in Nederland is zeer hoog."
("The density of traffic signs in the Netherlands is very high.")

– "Dit verkeersbord vind ik echt extreem onduidelijk!"
("I find this traffic sign really extremely unclear!")

– "Als de stoplichten buiten werking zijn, moet je goed op de verkeersborden letten."
("When traffic lights are out of order, one has to pay good attention to the traffic signs.")

– "Verkeersbord? Welk verkeersbord??"
("Traffic sign? What traffic sign??")

Related words:
– "Stoplicht": traffic light.
– "Voorrang": right of way.

Extra:
In the Netherlands traffic coming from the right has right of way. This is implicit unless otherwise indicated. The fact that you have to give way can be indicated by the common "upside down triangle" sign or by certain marks on the road. These marks are the same upside down triangles, facing you as you look down on the road. In Dutch these are called "haaientanden" ("shark teeth"). To be on the safe side the Dutch authorities usually include the "haaientanden" in addition to the traffic sign.