Pitten

Posted on by

1. to sleep Iconspeaker_3
[verb]
[pit-ten, pit-te, heb ge-pit]Pitten

"Pitten" is informal Dutch for "to sleep". It has a few formal meanings too, which are explained below.

Examples:
– "Kan ik na dat etentje vanavond bij jou pitten?" 
("Can I sleep at your place after that dinner tonight?")

– "Ik heb echt geen zin meer om helemaal naar huis te rijden; kan ik bij jou blijven pitten?" 
("I really don't feel like driving all the way home; can I crash at your place?")

– "Ik heb echt heerlijk liggen pitten! Ik voel me weer helemaal uitgerust." 
("I slept really well! I feel all energetic again.")

– "Wil je nu gaan of wil je nog even pitten vantevoren?" 
("Do you want to go now of do you want to take a nap first?")

– "Ik kan mijn ogen niet openhouden vandaag; ik moet echt meer pitten!" 
("I can't keep my eyes open today; I really should sleep more!")

Related words:
– Tukken: to doze, snooze [verb] [tukte, heb getukt].
– Tukje: catnap [noun] [het tukje, de tukjes].
– Dutten: to doze, to snooze [verb] [het dutje, de dutjes].
– Dutje: nap [noun] [het dutje, de dutjes].
– Ingedut: dull [adjective/adverb]. 

2. seeds, stones Iconspeaker_3
[noun]
[de pit, de pit-ten]

"Pitten" is also the plural of "pit". It is also the verb "to stone", but in the latter sense, it is only used when referring to cherries. "Ontpitten" is more regularly used when referring to "to stone".

Examples:
– "Als we vroeger kersen gingen (ont)pitten in de tuin, zagen we er daarna helemaal rood uit." 
("When we used to stone cherries in the garden, we would look red all over afterwards.")

– "Heb je de pitten uit de pompoen gehaald?" 
("Did you remove the seeds from the pumpkin?")

Geef mijn portie maar aan Fikkie!

Posted on by

count me out, I'm out, I don't want any part of it Iconspeaker_3
[Dutch phrase of the week]
[Geef mijn portie maar aan Fik-kie]

Achtbaan In this phrase "Fikkie" is a dog and it seems to be the name of choice when referring to a random dog 🙂 A "portie" is a "portion/dose/serving", so when you no longer want to participate or be a part of it, you give your share to… the dog.

Usually you use this phrase when talking to somebody else about whatever it is you quit.

Examples:
– "Ja dag! Mooi niet, geef mijn portie maar aan Fikkie!" 
("Forget it! No way, you can count me out!" In this case "dag" is pronounced with a prolonged "a".)

– "Ik heb echt alles geprobeerd, maar niets wat ik doe is goed. In haar ogen blijf ik een hufter. Nou weet je, als het zo moet, geef mijn portie dan maar aan Fikkie." 
("Really, I have tried everything, but everything I do is wrong. In her eyes I remain a bastard. Well you know, if this is the way it's going to be, then I don't want any part of it!" Lit.: "…, but nothing I do is good".)

– "…En nu doet hij alsof het allemaal zijn idee was! Nou ik kap er mee, geef mijn portie maar aan Fikkie!" 
("…And now he pretends it was all his idea! Well, I quit, he can count me out!")

– "Als jij in de achtbaan wil, prima, maar mij niet gezien; geef mijn portie maar aan Fikkie!" 
("If you want go for a roller coaster ride, fine, but rather you than me; you can definitely count me out!" Lit.: "If you want to go in the roller coaster…" "Achtbaan" ('eight track') is the general word used for roller coasters and the name refers to the "eight shape".)

Expressions:
– "Mij niet gezien": literally "not seen me" you can say this when you don't dare to do something and/or when you rather leave it to somebody else.

Related words:
– Portie: portion/serving/dose/share [noun] [de portie, de porties].
– Hond: dog [noun] [de hond, de honden].
– Geven: to give [verb] [gaf, gegeven].

For those of you who already understand some Dutch…

Posted on by

WereldOmroepLogo … it may be interesting to check out the interview with Sander in the Dutch language radio programme “Klare Taal” (broadcast by the Dutch Radio World Service (Radio Wereldomroep Nederland)). A bit of background on how we started, Sanders view on the Dutch language, more insight in the DWOTD philosophy and of course why we want you to learn Dutch 😉

Listen to the “Klare Taal” episode as a whole or go straight to the interview (in Dutch), which lasts about 10 minutes.

DWOTDinKlareTaal

Zedendelict

Posted on by

sexual offence Iconspeaker_3
[noun]
[het ze-den-de-lict, de ze-den-de-lic-ten] Zeden

Lots of sexual offences, especially against kids, have made the news recently. Criminal offences of a sexual nature are usually referred to as a "zedendelict" or "zedenmisdrijf", but a "zedendelict" can in principle comprise all offences against morals or social mores. "Zeden" is an old Dutch word for morals, customs, or social mores, which is hardly used in another context than that of sexual harrassment, sexual abuse, incest or rape. "Delict" is an offence, often a criminal one. 

Examples:
– "Het kindermisbruikschandaal op een Amsterdams kinderdagverblijf is een van de grootste zedendelicten van de afgelopen jaren." 
("The child abuse scandal at a day-care centre in Amsterdam is one of the largest sexual offences in the past years.")

– "Zijn ongewenste intimiteiten ook zedenmisdrijf?" 
("Is sexual harassment also a sexual offence?")

– "De zedendelinquent werd veroordeeld tot 4 jaar gevangenisstraf." 
("The sex offender was sentenced to four years in jail.")

– "De Katholieke Kerk is betrokken bij een omvangrijk zedenmisdrijfschandaal." 
("The Catholic Church is involved in a large-scale sexual offence scandal.")

– "Zedenleer is de leer van de zeden, of de ethiek." 
("Moral philosophy is the philosophy of moral, or ethics.")

Related words:
– Ongewenste intimiteiten: sexual harassment [literally: unwished-for intimacies][noun] [<no singular>, de intimiteiten].
– Aanranding: assault [noun] [de aanranding, de aanrandingen].
– Verkrachting: rape [noun] [de verkrachting, de verkrachtingen].
– Incest: incest [noun] [de incest, <no plural>].
– Zedendelinquent: sex offender [noun] [de zedendelinquent, de zedendelinquenten].

Extra:
As mentioned in previous posts, "een meisje van lichte zeden" is "a girl of easy virtue". This is one of the few times when "zeden" is used in Dutch language in a meaning other than "zedendelict".

Rechtbank

Posted on by

court of law/justice Iconspeaker_3
[noun]
[de recht-bank, de recht-ban-ken] Rechtbank

You'd better stay away from them – unless you're in the audience to see Wilders from up close ;-) A "rechtbank" is a court of law. "Recht" is Dutch for "law" or "justice" and you will see this word appear in all forms: the judge is a "rechter", to become a judge he studied law ("rechten" or "rechtsgeleerdheid"), and it's his duty to deliver judgement ("rechtspreken") for the sake of justice ("gerechtigheid"). Literally, "recht" is "straight". 

Examples:
– "De rechtszaak wordt morgen behandeld door de rechtbank." 
("The lawsuit will be addressed by the court tomorrow.")

– "Als een juridische zaak spoedeisend is, wordt een kort geding aangespannen bij de rechtbank." 
("If a legal matter is urgent, it is discussed in summary proceedings at the court.")

– "Ga je de zaak (in der minne) schikken of ga je hem voor de rechtbank brengen?" 
("Are you going to settle the matter (amicably) or will you take it to court?")

– "Omdat een van de getuigen onwel werd, werd de zitting verdaagd." 
("Because one of the witnesses became unwell, the court was adjourned.")

– "Het Internationaal Joegoslavië Tribunaal in Den Haag klaagde Milosevic in 1999 aan; in 2002 verscheen hij voor de rechtbank." 
("The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia in The Hague charged Milosevic in 1999; he appeared before the court in 2002.")

– "<Plaatje:> Politicus Wilders werd verdedigd door een van de bekendste advocaten van Nederland, Moszkowicz, en vrijgesproken." 
("<Picture:> Politician Wilders was defended by one of Netherlands' best best-known lawyers, Moszkowicz, and was acquitted of all charges.")

Expressions:
– "Recht doen (aan iets)": to do justice (to something).
– "Voor het gerecht dagen": to summon.
– "Een zaak aanhangig maken": To bring a case before the court.

Related words:
– Recht: the justice, the law [noun] [het recht, <no plural>].
– Wet: the law [noun] [de wet, de wetten].
– Tribunaal: the tribunal [noun] [het tribunaal, de tribunalen].
– Rechter: the judge [noun] [de rechter, de rechters].
– Advocaat: the lawyer [noun] [de advocaat, de advocaten].
– Gedaagde: the defendant [noun] [de gedaagde, de gedaagden].
– Gerechtshof: the court of law/justice [noun] [het gerechtshof, de gerechtshoven].
– Wetboek van Strafrecht: the penal/criminal code [noun] [het Wetboek van Strafrecht, <no plural>].
– Openbaar Ministerie: the Public Prosecutor [noun] [het Openbaar Ministerie, <no plural>].

Extra:
The difference between "rechtbank" and "gerechtshof" is that the former is the District Court and the latter the Court of Appeal.