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DUTCH PRONUNCIATION AND SPELLING

(De) uitspraak

('pronunciation')

To The Words and Letters (below)
A - AA - AU - B - -B - C - CH - D - -D - E - EE - 'voiceless, unstressed E (schwa)' - EI - EU - F - G - H - I - IE - 'Consonant I' - IJ - -IG - -ISCH - J - K - KN - L - -LIJK - M - N - NG - O - OO - OE - OU - P - Q - R - S - SCH - SCHR - T - -TIE - U - UU - UI - UW - V - W - WR - X - Y - Z - apostrophes - diaeresis (äëïöü) - stress
Names and Old Spelling

This is a reference page for looking up the pronunciation of Dutch words and names, or just to hear the simple beauty of Dutch. For learning the sounds and spelling of Dutch go to: Pronunciation Overview.

I started a new series of pronunciation pages where you can hear hundreds of words with the letter organized around the combination with other letters:
Hear the Dutch Letters in Hundreds of Words:
AU/OU EI/IJ EU G H L OE U UI W X Y

Hear the Dutchman say his alphabet: A B C D E F G H I J K L M N O P Q R S T U V W X Y Z - KLM

The words in bold are more common ('Basic Dutch.')
The translations are short and may be incomplete - just meant to give you a rough idea of what the words mean.
An alphabetic list of almost all Dutch words on this page with English translation.
- Master Lists of Common Dutch Words - with pronunciation and links to explanation, examples of usage, pictures and/or related words: Dutch to English - English to Dutch

Introduction: Dutch 'Long' and 'Short' Vowels

Hear:

('drawer')

laat

('late')

lat

('slat')

laten

('to allow')

latten

('slats')

('aha!')

haak

('hook')

hak

('heel')
(shoe)

haken

('hooks')

hakken

('heels')

Dutch vowels can be 'long' or 'short.' It's a traditional name - the difference is actually more a matter of tone than of length.
Double vowels are always long: maan

('moon') - slaap

('sleep')
But single vowels can be long or short: hel

('hell') - hele

('whole')
Diphthongs (AU EI EU IJ OE OU UI) are always long.
Usually, a single vowel is short when followed by more than one consonant, or by a single consonant that's the end of a word:

man

('a male')

mannen

('men')

hart

('heart')

harten

('hearts')

slap

('weak')

slappe

('weak' ->>)

slapte

('weakness')

A single vowel is usually long when followed by one consonant and another vowel (somewhat like English 'silent E') and a single vowel at the end of a word (except E) is also long:

manen

('moons')

slapen

('to sleep')

("Mom")

sla

('lettuce')

But 'voiceless E' is a problematic exception to this rule (see under E - below.)
Double consonants are pronounced just like a single consonant; they're double just to show that a single vowel before them is short. At regular speaking speed, the single and double N's in manen

('moons') and mannen

('men, males') sound exactly alike. Griepprik

('flu shot')

grote

('big, tall
large, great')

grootte

('size,
dimensions')

grotten

('caves')

als

('if; when')

alles

('all, everything')

Babel

('Babylon')

babbel

('chat')

lade

('drawer')

ik laadde

('I loaded')

Compound words: in combinations of words, vowels usually keep their original pronunciation: slablaadje

(sla-blaadje - 'a lettuce leaf')
When breaking up words in syllables, a single consonant usually goes to the second syllable: bloem

2 ('flower; white flour') / bloemist

(bloe-mist - 'florist') ->>
Knowing Dutch vocabulary will help you recognize the parts of compound words.
It's of course not possible to list all foreign words used in Dutch that don't follow our spelling rules.

First Spelling Words at School - Traditional

[the old-style image used in the schools
with pictures explaining the words]

(het) leesplankje

('reading board')

aap noot Mies Wim zus Jet 2
Teun vuur Gijs lam Kees bok
weide Does hok duif schapen 2
(translation see below)

aap

2 ('monkey') - noot

2 ('nut; note' - music) - Mies

2 (girls' name) - Wim

(boys' name) - zus

('sister,' "Sis") - Jet

(girls' name) - Teun

2 (boys' name) - vuur

2 ('fire') - Gijs

2 (boys' name) - lam

('lamb; paralyzed') - Kees

2 (boys' name) - bok

2 ('he-goat') - weide

2 ('meadow' - old-fashioned) - Does

(dogs' name) - hok

2 ('shed, closet; pen, cage') - duif

2 ('pigeon, dove') - schapen

2 ('sheep' - plural)

Spelling Words Modern

ik maan roos vis
sok pen teen buik neus
oog aap doos poes eet

(translation below)

koek ijs zeep huis hek
weg bos tak hut reus
jas riem bijl hout vuur
geit uil pauw duif ei

('I' - "me") - maan

2 ('moon') - roos

2 ('rose') - vis

('fish') - sok

('sock, stocking') - pen

('pen' - writing) - teen

('toe') - buik

('belly, stomach') - neus

('nose') - oog

('eye') - aap

2 ('monkey') - doos

('small to medium box') - poes

('cat') - eet

2 ('(I) eat') - koek

2 ('a kind of cake') - ijs

('ice') - zeep

('soap') - huis

2 ('house') - hek

('fence') - weg

('road, way') - bos

('forest, wood') - tak

('branch') - hut

('cabin') - reus

('giant') - jas

('coat') - riem

('belt') - bijl

('axe') - hout

('wood' - material) - vuur

2 ('fire') - geit

2 ('goat') - uil

2 ('owl') - pauw

2 ('peacock') - duif

2 ('pigeon, dove') - ei

2 ('egg')

Pronouncing The Dutch Letters

A-short

the tone of A in English STAR but shorter - hear Dutch: star

('rigid, inflexible')
af

('~off, ~out; ready') - al

('already' >>) - acht

('8') - akker

('acre, field') - hart

('heart') - man

2 ('a man, a male') - pak

('package // formal suit for men') - slap

('weak') - strak

2 ('tight, rigid, fixed') - tak

('branch') - van

2 ('of') - vlam

'flame') - wat

('what? // some, a little') >> - want

2 ('for, because; a mitt') - zak

('bag') - Mars

('Mars') - stal

2 ('stable, animal housing') - harnas

('a knight's armor') - asbak

('ash tray') - gasvlam

('gas flame') - afwas

('dishes etc. to be cleaned') - grashark

('grass rake') - grapjas

2 ('a joker') - van de hand in de tand leven

('barely getting by, living with very little money - hand to mouth?') - bepakt en bezakt

('fully packed, ready to travel')

A-long

like A in CHICAGO - hear: Robert Johnson - Paul Butterfield - Barry Goldberg
- hear Dutch: ka

2 ('an aggressive woman') - Kaag

('a lakes area near Leyden')
aan

('~at, to') - ja

('yes') - na

('after') - maan

2 ('moon') - paar

2 ('a pair, a couple, a few') - zaag

2 ('a saw') - laag

('low') - lager

('lower') - graan

2 3 ('grain, cereal') - slaap

2 ('sleep' ->>) - staan

('to stand') - water

2 ('water') - maart

('March') - Maas

('Meuse (a river)') - ma

("Mom") - vaan

('small flag') - vaarwater

('water course,' "territory") - aardstraal

2 ("earth ray") - raar maar waar

2 ('strange but true') - water naar de zee dragen

2 ('carrying water to the sea, coals to Newcastle') - een aardje naar z'n vaartje

2 ('a character like his Dad') - maart roert z'n staart

2 ('March wags its tail, bad weather at the end of March')
exception: 'aa' in sinaasappel

('an orange') is often said as short A: "sinAsappel"

('an orange') - originally it was something like 'China-apple,' but over the centuries the long A wore down. sinaasappels

('oranges') - sinaasappelschillen

('orange peels') - sinaasappelpers

('orange juicer') - een glas sinaasappelsap

('a glass of orange juice')

Com-
pare

Compare short and long A: al

('already') / aal

('eel')
- tal

('~number') / taal

2 ('language')
- lat

('slat') / laat

('late')
- as

2 ('ashes; axis') / aas

('ace; bait')
- wal

('city wall') / Waal

('a river in Holland')
- nar

('jester, fool') / naar

('~to; upset, sick')
- padden

('toads') / paden

('paths')

short A
- un-
ex-
pected

Rather often, you'll find a short A at the beginning of a word where it should be long according to the general spelling rules (followed by one consonant and another vowel.) In these cases, the stress of the word is usually on the other vowel:
fabriek *

2 ('factory, plant') - familie

('family, relatives') - kanon

('cannon, big gun') - katoen

('cotton') - kwaliteit

2 ('quality') - manier

('manner, way of doing') - papier

2 ('paper (material)') - paraplu

('umbrella') - azijn

('vinegar') - Arabier

('an Arab') - fazant

('pheasant') - lawaai

2 ('noise') - kabaal

2 ('noise') - kanaal

('channel, canal') - kapot

('broken, not working') - tapijt

('carpet, tapestry') - april

('April') - balans

2 ('balance, equilibrium') - acuut

('acute') kapel

('chapel')
Compare with 'regular,' long A: / kabel

('cable') - adem

('breath') - kamer

('a room,' ('chamber') - avond

('evening') - averij

('damage to a ship') - alimentatie

('alimony, child support')
more 'Unexpectedly short A'

English A's

baby

('baby, very small child') - tank

('tank') - manager

('manager') (English G) - tram

('streetcar, tram') - flat

('apartment; high-rise apartments building') - flatje

(apartment') - flats

('high-rise apartment buildings')
- (het) frame

2 ('frame')

In a few words of Latin origin AE is said as Dutch long E, English A as in FACE: Caesar

2 praeses / quaestor

('president; treasurer') - laesie

2 ('lesion (medical jargon)')
but in old Dutch names AE is said as long A: Kersemaeker

(see also Old Spelling in Names below)

aai, ai

after A and AA, I is pronounced as consonant Y:
maïs

('(Indian) corn, maize') - Thai

('a Thai person') - Thais

('Thai') - Thailand

- pais en vree

("'very peaceful'") (to me, Dutch AI sounds very similar to English I)
saai

('boring') - taai

('tough') - kraai

2 ('crow') - haai

('shark') - baai

('bay') - zaaien

('to sow') - maaien

('to mow') - draai

('turn,' "spin") - vlaai

('fruit pie on bread dough')

French
aie

As in the original French: portemonnaie

('purse')

French
ail

As in the original French: detail

('detail') - failliet

2 ('bankrupt; bankruptcy') - medaille

2 ('a medal') - braille

('Braille') - taille

2 ('waist') - wespentaille

('a wasp's waist')

'French'
aine

As in the original French or Italian: migraine

2 ('migraine') - (de) quarantaine

2 (quarantine)

French
air

As in the original French: militair

('a soldier; military') - ordinair

2 ("common," 'vulgar') - vulgair

2 ('vulgar, cheap') - populair

2 ('popular, generally liked') - documentaire

('documentary')

A and O cannot be connected. There is a short vocal stop between them: aorta

('aorta') - chaotisch

('chaotic') - Laos

but: cacao

AU (=OU)

the
AU/OU
page

like OU in LOUD, OW in NOW - hear Dutch: nauw

('narrow, tight')
blauw

('blue') - au!

('ouch!') - dauw

('dew') - gauw

('quick, quickly') - rauw

('raw') - grauw

('grey, dun, ashen') - klauw

2 ('claw') - pauw

('peacock') - flauw

('not enough salt; not funny') - paus

('(the) pope') - nauwelijks

2 ('barely, almost not') - nauwkeurig

('precise') - wenkbrauw

('eyebrow') - pauken

('kettledrums' - music) - augustus

('August') - Aukje

('girls' name') - Paulus

('boys' name') - kenau

('a fierce woman') - Maurits

2 ('boys' name') - blauwe houweel

("blue pickaxe") - see & hear also OU below

French
au

Like Dutch long O: auto

('car') - automatisch

('automatic, automatically') - restaurant

2 ('restaurant') - aubergine

2 ('eggplant')
Some people say words like these with a Dutch AU: auto

but to me that doesn't sound nice (some of my relatives say automaat

('something "automatic"') and autochtoon

('original inhabitant') but I don't like it) - the already ugly automatiek

2 ('fast-food vending machine') is acceptable

bel

('bell' - door, signal) - been

2 ('leg') - berg

('mountain') - bus

('bus; type of jar') - boos

('angry') - bloed

('blood') - bord

('plate; board; sign') - brood

('bread') - bas

('bass (music)') - baars

2 ('bass (fish)') - baan

('job; lane') - boon

('bean') - laboratorium

('lab, laboratory') - Babel

('Babel, Babylon') - babbel

('chat, informal presentation') - dobbelen

('rolling dice') - dubbel

('double') - bibberen

('to shake, tremble, shiver') - ambitie

('ambtion') - bolleboos

2 ([slang] 'clever person') - bullebak

('bully') - bubbelbad

('jacuzzi') - binnenstebuiten

2 ('inside-out') - bar en boos

2 3 ('pretty bad (weather)') - bont en blauw

('[multicolored] black and blue') - blauwe boon

2 ('bullet' - crime fiction slang) - zonder blikken of blozen

2 (['without a second look or a blush'] - 'shameless and without hesitation') - geen boe of bah

2 (['neither boo nor yuck'] - 'without a word'') - buiten z'n boekje

2 ('outside of his [book] jurisdiction') - baas boven baas

(['boss over boss'] - 'there's always something or someone superior')
MBT: B is dropped between M and T: ambtenaar

('civil servant, government worker') - beambte

('an official') - ambt

(''office,' job title of official') - ambtelijk

2 ('official, 'bureaucratic')

end-of-word B

end-of-word B is pronounced as P - also in parts of compound words
Compare: lab

('lab, laboratory') / lap

('a piece of cloth or land')
- eb

2 ('ebbtide') / step

2 ('children's scooter')
- Job

('Biblical and boys' name') / Bob

('boys' name') / stop

2 ('stop')
- hebben

('to have') / ik heb

('I have')
- hebzucht

('greed') - ebstroom

('ebbtide current') - labjas

('lab coat') / lapjes

('patches, pieces of fabric')
B before T is also pronounced as P: jij hebt

('you have') / jij mept

('you slap, you hit') / jij klopt

('you knock') / jij hapt

('you take a bite; you take the bait')

Com-
pare

Compare B and P: - baard

2 ('beard') / paard

2 ('horse')
- brak

2 3 ('brackish; (I) broke') - prak

('mashed & mixed food')
- slab/slabben

('bib/bibs')
- slap

('weak') / slappe

('weak')
- rib/ribben

2 ('rib/ribs') / lip/lippen

('lip/lips')
- dubbel doppen

2 ("double shelling" fava beans ->>)

C is pronounced either as K or as S, like in similar English words.
- K: before A, O, U and consonants:
bioscoop

('cinema') - camera

('(movie) camera') - commissie

('commission, subgroup') - compleet

('complete') - concurrentie

('competition') - contact

('contact,' "touch") - contract

('contract') - correct

('correct, right') - democratie

('democracy') - respect

('respect') - seconde

2 ('second, 1/60 minute') - structuur

('structure') - conflict

('conflict, struggle') - acteur

2 ('actor') - code

('code') - collega

('colleague') - combinatie

2 ('combination') - cultuur

('culture')
- S: before E, I, IJ and Y:
cijfer

('number, figure') - cirkel

('circle') - precies

('precisely, exactly') - proces

('lawsuit, court case') - centrum

('center') - centraal

('central') - recept

2 ('recipe; prescription') - cynisch

2 ('cynical') - cyanide

('cyanide') - narcissen

('daffodils') - cel

2 ('cell') - citroenen

('lemons') - fascinerend

('fascinating') - centimeter

('centimeter') - decimeter

('decimeter') - decibel

('decibel') - discipline

2 ('code or regimen of behavior')
K/S, S/K: succes

2 ('success') - accent

2 3 ('accent') - accijns

2 ('excise' (tax)) - gecompliceerd

('complicated') - concert

('concert') - actrice

('actress') - cyclus

('cycle') - circulatie

2 (circulation)
Notice the pronunciation change in these Latin-like plurals: politicus/politici

2 ('politician/politicians') - criticus/critici

2 ('critic, reviewer/plural')
Some rebellious Dutchmen write K's or S's instead of C's: aksent sukses

('accent succes') ('succes' - French U)

CH (=G)

the
CH
page

"A sound like you clear your throat." There is no sound like it in English, but it is like J in European Spanish, and a similar sound is found in Hebrew.
chaos

('chaos') - cholera

('cholera') - chroom

('chrome') - chrysanten

('chrysanthemums') - lach

('a laugh') - toch

2 ('yet, still') - nacht

('night') - dicht

('closed') - lucht

('air') - rechts

('right (not left)') - rechter

('judge; on the right') - lichaam

('body') - zacht

('soft') - echt

2 ('real') - zicht

('visibility, view') - zucht

2 ('sigh') - bocht

2 3 ('turn (in road)') - tocht

2 ('journey; draft' - air movement) - ochtend

('morning') - huichelaar

('a hypocrite') - huichelachtig

('hypocritical') - lichtgewicht

2 ('lightweight') - tachtig

('80') - "achtentachtig prachtige grachten"

2 ('88 wonderful canals')
A single vowel followed by CH is always short:
echo

2 3 / ego

2 3
Dutch CH and G do not sound exactly the same, but the difference is very small and foreign students shouldn't worry about it.
lachen

2 ('to laugh') / vlaggen

2 ('flags')
Regional variation in G and CH pronunciation (See also under G.)

CH in -ISCH ending

CH in the -ISCH ending is not pronounced (and the I is a long Dutch I, pronounced as English EE): as English EES, Dutch IES:
logisch

('logical') - chronisch

('chronic, chronical') - main examples under -ISCH

CH in SCHR

CH in SCHR is not pronounced:
schraal

2 ('meager, dry, scant') - schrijver

('writer, author') - schreien

('to weep, cry tears' - old-fashioned) - main examples under SCHR-

French
CH

Several words from French have kept the French CH (like English SH):
charme

('charm') - charmant

('charming') - cheque

('check (money)') - chirurg

('surgeon') - chocola

('chocolate') - machine

2 ('machine') - manchet

('cuff') - manchetknopen

('cufflinks') - broche

('brooch') - douche

('shower') (also French OU)

Christus

Most Dutchmen say a K for the CH in Christus

('Christ') and related names and words:
christelijk

("christian") - Christien

('girls' name') - Chris

('boys' name')
But there is a small group of very orthodox protestants who say these words and names with Dutch CH: christelijk

("christian")

2 ('the' ->>) - dat

('that' ->>) - door

('by, through') - dom

('dumb, not intelligent') - dus

('so, therefore, thus') - donder

('thunder') - bedden

('beds') - gedrag

('behavior') - woorden

('words') - kelder

2 ('cellar') - handel

2 ('trade, commerce') - Daan

('boys' name') - dan

('then (future); than') - adder

('adder (snake)') - dubbeldekker

2 ('[double-decker] biplane') - middagdutje

2 ('afternoon nap') - dadendrang

2 ('urge for action') - door dik en dun

('through thick and thin') - doordouwer

(['through-pusher'] - 'tenacious person') - voor dag en dauw

(['before day and dew'] - 'very early') - dubbel en dwars

2 (['double and diagonal'] - 'deservedly much') - dertien in een dozijn

2 (['13 in a dozen'] - 'nothing special')

end-of-word D

D at the end of a word is pronounced as T: draad

('thread, string') - paard

2 ('horse') - naald

('needle') - dood

('death; dead') - strand

('beach') - zand

2 ('sand')
compare: bad

('bath') / gat

('hole')
- bed

2 ('bed') / pet

('cap')
- lood

2 ('lead' - metal) / boot

2 ('boat, ship')
- luid

('loud') / luit

2 ('lute')
- vod

('rag') / slot

('lock')
Final D is pronounced as D when a word gets an ending with a vowel, like -e, -el, -er, -en, -ig or the -in and -ing endings:
oud oude

('old')
- daad

('action,' "deed") / daden

('actions,' "deeds")
- tijd

('time') / tijden

->> ('times')
- goud

('gold') / gouden

('golden')
- brand

('fire') / branden

('fires; to burn')
- tand

('tooth') / tanden

('teeth')
- geld

('money') / geldig

2 ('valid')
- mond

('mouth') / mondig

('having a say (in)')
- ik leid

('I am leading, I'm in charge') / leiding

('leadership; pipe - water, gas etc.')
- wond

('wound, injury') / verwonding

('injury')
- eind

2 ('end') / einde

2 ('end') / oneindig

('endless, infinite')
- ik bid, wij bidden

('I pray, we pray') - vriend

('friend') / vrienden

('friends') / vriendin

('female friend')
- hard

('hard' - not soft) / hart

('heart')
/ "harde harten"

("hard hearts")
- pet bed petten bedden

('cap bed caps beds')
- lid

('member') / wit

('white')
/ midden

2 3 ('middle') / witte

('white')
- noord

/ het noorden

2 ('North/the North') - oost

/ het oosten

2 ('East/the East') - zuid

/ het zuiden

2 ('South/the South') - west

/ het westen

2 3 (West/the West) - oost west, thuis best

2 ('Home sweet home')
Irregular plurals: - stad / steden

('town, city / towns, cities') - smid / smeden

('blacksmith / blacksmiths') - kind / kinderen

('child / children') ‑>>
But final D's keep the T-pronunciation in compound words: kindje

2 ('little child') - hondje

('little dog') - brandhaard

('source of a fire') - tandsteen

->> ('tartar, tooth-stain') - bladzijde

('book page') - goedkeuring

('approval') - goedkoop

2 3 ('cheap, inexpensive') - handschoenen

2 ('[hand-shoes] gloves') - landbouw

('agriculture') - badkamer

('bathroom with shower or bath') - badhuis

('public bath-house') - windhandel

('fishy trading deals')
exception: aardappel

('potato') - aardappels

('potatoes') - aardappelpuree

('mashed potatoes') - it should sound like aarT-appel, but in pronouncing there is an (irregular) syllable split shift to aar-dappel; also in a word like: tandarts

2 tan-darts ('dentist') but it does not happen in similar words like: aardolie

('crude oil') or aardas

('the earth's axis')
Do note that geweld

('violence') ends in a T-sound, but in words like gewelddadig

('violent') that T-sound is dropped in favor of the second D, or you could say that double D always has the D-sound: monddood

(['mouth-dead'] -'silenced, not having a say (in)')
ouwe dooie rooie goeie ik hou

- there is a tendency to soften certain D's, but students shouldn't worry about it. (You'll hear it from Dutchmen, but it's perfectly all right to voice the full D's.) - oude ouwe

('old') - rode rooie

('red') - dode dooie

2 ('dead') - goede goeie

2 ('good') - ik houd / ik hou

("I hold") >>

At normal speaking speed, mid-word DT is pronounced as T. Only in deliberately slow speech are the letters pronounced separately: breedte

('width') - handtekening

('signature') - handtasje

2 ('ladies' handbag') - windtunnel

2 ('wind tunnel') - windtunnel badtas wind-tunnel bad-tas

('wind tunnel / bag for swimming stuff')
DT at the end of a word is always said as T. Compare: hij wordt

2 ("he becomes ...") - ik word

("I become ...") ('wordt' and 'word' sound exactly the same) - see also: The Passive Voice
- overdaad schaadt

2 ('excess is harmful')

E-short

the E
page

like E in TEST - hear Dutch: test

('test') or like A in HAT or FAT - hear Dutch: het

2 3 ('the; it' ->>) - vet

('grease, fat') - en

2 ('and') - er

('~there; ~it' ->>) - men

('~they') - net

('net; barely') - ver

('far') - zet

('a move - in a game') - spel

('play, game') - stem

('voice; vote') - ster

('star') - step

2 ('children's scooter') - lef

('courage,' "guts") - bes

('berry') - cel

2 ('cell') - merk

('brand') - vest

('fleece or wool jacket') - Let

2 ('a Latvian') - pech

2 ('bad luck; car trouble')

The -ES ending 2 (indicating female) has short E: priester ('priest') / priesteres ('priestess')
- onderwijzer / onderwijzeres ('elementary school teacher, male/female')
- leraar / lerares ('secondary, 'high' school teacher, male/ female')
- leraren / leraressen ('secondary, 'high' school teachers, male/female')
but: 'dames' ('ladies') is with voiceless E - it's the plural of 'dame' ('lady') - the plural ES-ending is a voiceless E.
The -ET ending 2 has short E: opgelet! ('attention!') - loket ('office window, counter') - ballet ('ballet') - banket ('pastry; banquet') - bezet 2 ('occupied') - verzet ('resistance')
The prefixes HER- (her- meaning: 're-') and TER- (ter- ) have short E:
herinnering 2 ('a memory') - herhaling ('repetition') - herkennen ('to recognize') - herdenking ('remembrance ceremony') - heroverwegen 2 ('to reconsider') - herverdelen ('to (re-divide) reproportion') - herstel ('reparation, rebuilding') - herstellen ('to repair') - hernemen ('to re-take') - hersenen ('the brain') - hersens ("brains") - terwijl 2 ('while') - terdege 2 ('thoroughly, properly, solid') - terloops ('in passing, casually') - terzijde ('on the side, aside') - ternauwernood ('barely, almost not') - tergend ('annoyingly') - terrein 2 ('terrain') - terreur ('terror') - terrorisme ('terrorism') - hervorming 2 ('reformation') - hervormd ('reformed' - a main branch of Dutch Protestantism)

E-long

the E
page

like A in MALE, TAKE and CASE - hear Dutch: meel

('flour') - teek

('tick') - Kees

2 ('boys' name')
nee

('no') - keel

('throat') - veel

2 3 ('many, much') - zeep

('soap') - meer

2 ('more; a lake') - weer

2 ('again; weather') - geen

('no, zero quanitity' ->>) - geest

('mind; spirit; ghost') - greep

('grip') - vreemd

('strange') - steek

('jab; stitch') - steen

2 ('stone') - neer

('down') - peet

('godparent') - neef

('nephew; male cousin') - mees

('titmouse' - a bird) - weer of geen weer

2 (['weather or no weather'] - 'rain or shine') - het leed is geleden

2 ("the suffering is over") - deze en gene

("'this or that person")
exception: the indefinite article: een

('a') is pronounced with voiceless E. It can also be written as " 'n " which shows the pronunciation correctly. The number 1 is usually written with accents: één

2 ('one, 1')

Com-
pare

Compare short and long E:
ten

('~at') / teen

('toe')
- ter

('~at') / teer

('tender, fragile; tar')
- ver

('far') / veer

('feather; ferry; spring')
- ven

('small lake') / veen

('peat')
- les

('lesson') / lees

('read!')
- er

('~there; ~it') / eer

2 ('honor')
- Gert

/ Geert

('boys' names')

E-voice-
less

the E
page

UH, like A in ALIVE or AGO ('voiceless E' is also called 'unstressed E' or 'schwa')
de

('the') ->> - te

('at; too') - me

('me') ->> - je

('you') - ge

(Flemish 'you') - we

('we') - ze

('she; they') - 'n

('a') - 't

('the; it') - m'n

('my') - z'n

('his') - 'r

('her; ~there') - d'r

('her; ~there')
The one-syllable words above are unique in having the stress (klemtoon

2) of the word on a voiceless E, and there are no words of two or more syllables that have voiceless E as their only vowels.
The single E's may be the biggest problem in Dutch pronunciation. Hear all three E's in each of these words:

spelregel

2
short/long/voiceless
('a game rule')

veldleger

short/long/voiceless
('army in the field')

berenvel

long/voiceless/short
('a bear skin')

medemens

long/voiceless/short
('a fellow human')

reservedeken

voiceless/short/voiceless/long/voiceless
('a spare blanket')

Spelling rules clearly indicate long and short vowels, but they do not apply to voiceless E.
There are a few simple rules for voiceless E, but they do not cover every possibility.
One thing you could say is that the stress of a word is rarely on the voiceless E - hear: regering

('government') - rekening

('bill, invoice; account')
- try to memorize the sound patterns as you learn the words.

Single E after a consonant at the end of a word is almost always pronounced as voiceless E:
aarde ('the earth; soil, dirt') - alle ('all') - benzine ('gas, gasoline') - deze ('this, these' ->>) - dezelfde ('the same') - hetzelfde ('the same') - eerste 2 ('first') - laatste 2 ('last') - einde 2 ('end') - groente ('vegetable, vegetables') - grootte ('size, dimensions') - hele ('whole') - kaartje 2 ('ticket' for event) - kopje ('cup, small cup') - liedje 2 ('song') - liefde ('love') - lieve ('dear') - lente ('Spring') - pakje ('small package') - ruimte ('space') - schade ('damage') - schande ('shame') - seconde 2 ('second, 1/60 of a minute') - sommige ('some') - welke 2 ('which') - woede ('anger') - ziekte ('sickness, disease' ->>) - zijde ('side; silk') - zulke ('such') - zusje ('sister') - krukje 2 ('small stool') - Jantje (boys' name - 'Johnny') - koelte ('coolth') - wedde ('soldier's pay')
exception: The single E at the end of the city name Enschede is a long E.

BE-, GE-, TE- and VER- prefixes (word beginnings: be-, ge-, te- and ver- ) have voiceless E:
begroot gekort tekort vergroot - belet gered terecht verlet - bericht ('message') - gerecht ('dish, meal item') - terecht ('found; justified') - verricht ("done") - bedoeling 2 ('intention, goal') - bedrijf 2 ('company') - bedroefd ('sad, saddened') - bedrog ('fraud, deception') - belasting ('tax, burden') - beleg ('sandwich filling; siege') - besluit ('decision') - bestaan 2 ('existence') - bestelling ('order' - trading') - betaling 2 ('payment') - bevrijding ('liberation') - beweging 2 ('movement') - bewust ('conscious') - bezetting ('occupation') - gebeurtenis ('event') - gebied 2 ('area') - gebruik 2 ('use') - gedicht ('poem') - gedrag ('behavior') - geheel ('whole, complete') - geheim 2 ('secret') - gehoor ('hearing' - sense; 'audience') - geluid ('sound') - gemak ('ease, convenience') - gereedschap ('tools') - gescheurd ('torn, ripped') - geschiedenis ('history') - geslacht ('gender, sex; butchered') - gesneden 2 ('cut, carved') - getrouwd ('married') - gevaar ('danger') - geval ('a case') - gevangenis ('prison') - gevecht ('fight, battle') - gevoel ('a feeling') - gevolg ('result, consequence') - geweer 2 ('rifle') - gezicht 2 ('face; view') - gezond ('healthy') - gebed ('a prayer') - terug ('back' - return) - tegoed ('credit, positive balance') - tevreden ('content, satisfied') - tehuis ('a home') - teleurstellend ('disappointing') - teleurstelling ('disappointment') - teveel 2 ('surplus, too much') - verandering ('change') - verbinding 2 ('connection') - verdampen ('to evaporate') - verdediging ('defense') - verdieping ('floor, storey') - vergadering ('meeting, conference') - vergif 2 ('poison') - vergissing ("an honest mistake") - verhuur ('the renting out') - verklaring ('declaration') - verlies ('loss') - vermaak ('amusement, entertainment') - vernietiging ('destruction') - verrassing ('surprise') - versiering ('decoration, embellishment') - verslag ('report') - verspreiding ('spread, dissemination') - verzekering ('insurance; assurance') - verzameling ('collection, set') - verzoek 2 ('request') - vertaling 2 ('translation')

-EN, -ER and -EL suffixes (word endings -en, -er and -el ) have voiceless E:
wekken wekker wikkel 2 - planten winter wortel - benen 2 ('legs') - boven 2 ('up, upstairs; over') - buiten 2 ('outside') - binnen 2 ('inside') - even 2 ('for a moment' ->>) - heden ('at present, today') - jongen ('boy') - kussen 2 ('pillow; to kiss') - mensen ('people, men, human beings') - negen ('9') - open ('open') - oven ('oven') - samen ('together') - tussen ('among, between') - varken 2 ('pig') - zelden ('seldom, rarely') - zeven ('7') - wedden ('to bet') - achter ('behind') - akker ('acre, agriculture field') - ander ('other') - boter ('butter') - emmer ('bucket') - hamer ('hammer') - helder ('bright, clear') - ieder ('every') - leger ('army' ->>) - lekker 2 ('tasting good, enjoyable, pleasant') - mager ('skinny, thin') - moeder ('mother') - vader ('father') - dochter ('daughter') - minder ('less') - onder ('under, below') - onderzoek 2 ('investigation, research') - over 2 ('~in, over; leftover') - overeenkomst ('agreement') - overhemd ('dress shirt') - wakker ('awake') - zeker 2 ('certainly, sure') - zolder ('attic') - zonder ('without') - zomer ('Summer') ->> - winter ('Winter') - september ('September') - oktober ('October') - november ('November') - december ('December') - appel ('apple') - borstel ('brush') - deksel ('top of pan, jar, box') - enkel ('only; ankle') - fluitketel ('water kettle') - handel 2 ('trade, commerce') - hemel ('heaven; sky') - lepel ('spoon') - lepels ('spoons') - nagel ('nail'- human, animal) - regel 2 ('rule; line, sentence') - maatregel ('measure, action taken') - sleutel ('key') - tafel 2 3 4 ('table') - vogel 2 ('bird') - winkel 2 ('shop' ->>) - wortel ('root; carrot') - rommel ('garbage, a mess') - troffel 2 ('trowel') - Nederland 2 ("Holland," 'The Netherlands' ->>)

But unfortunately, be, ge, te, ver, en, er or el are not always prefixes or suffixes. As mentioned above, there is only a small group of one-syllable words with voiceless E, but there are many one-syllable words (and names) beginning with be-, ge-, ter- or ver- or ending in -en, -er or -el that have 'short E,' for example:
en 2 ('and') - er ('~there') - bel ('bell' - not church) - gen ('gene') - tel ('count') - ver ('far') - vers 2 ('fresh') - verf ('paint') - den ('pine tree; old definite article') - ten ('~at') - ter ('~at') - der ('old definite article') - Ben (boys' name) - Ger (boys' name) - bek ('animal mouth') - berg ('mountain') - gek ('crazy, insane; a crazy person') - terp ('hill of refuge in floods') - tent ('tent') - terts ('tierce, third' - music)
You may hear words with two vowels that sound like 'voiceless E' because the Dutch 'short U' has that same sound (for instance: 'bussen' 2 3 ('busses, buses') - see also below) but there are no Dutch words that are combinations of only prefixes and/or suffixes.
beter 2 ('better') - beste ('best') - bende ('gang; mess') - geven 2 ('to give') - gevel ('gable' - house) - gesel ('whip' - old-fashioned) - gezel ('companion' - old-fahioned) - tegen ('against') - teken 2 ('sign') - verte 2 ('distance, in the distance') - bevel ('order, command') - beker 2 ('mug, large cup, beaker')
Carrying over into compound words: - tegenovergesteld ('opposite') - tekening 2 ('drawing' - pencil, ink) - gegeven 2 ('given, fact, information')
More exceptions: verkoop ('sale') - model ('model') - lucifer ('match' - fire) - lucifersdoosje ('matchbox')
Another exception is 'beha' 2 ('bra') but that would more properly be written as 'B.H.'

Words of 3 or more syllables may contain both a voiceless-E prefix and a suffix, or two voiceless-E prefixes or suffixes:
begeleiding 2 ('accompaniment') - afgevaardigde 2 ('delegate, representative') - bedrijfsleider ('manager') - begrijpen ('to understand') - behoefte ('a need') - besteden 2 ('to spend') - besturen ('to govern, to rule') - geboorte ('birth') - gedachte ('a thought') - gebarsten ('broken, cracked, burst') - gebroken ('broken, cracked') - geheugen 2 3 ('memory' - brain function) - gesneden 2 ('cut, carved') - verzinsel ('fiction') - beneden ('down, downstairs') - genoegen ('pleasure, enjoyment') - verlangen 2 ('to long (for); a desire') - verleden 2 ('the past') - verkiezingen ('elections' ->>) - verschillend ('different') - verdampen ('to evaporate') - overmorgen 2 ('the day after tomorrow') - ondernemer ('entrepreneur, businessman') - winkelen 2 ('to shop') - tevergeefs 2 3 ('in vain') - verstandsverbijstering ('brain function shutdown')
Past participles often have a ge-/verb root/-en pattern: ik heb gelachen ('I have laughed')
- ik heb gegeven ('I have given')
- ik heb genomen ('I have taken') - see also: verbs - more on voiceless (unstressed) E

as in French, Dutch long E: hé

('hey!') - één

('one, 1') - café

2 ('cafe, bar')

as in French, Dutch short E: hè

('expression of disappointment') - appèl

('appeal') - première

('festive opening night') - carrière

('career') - kassière

('cashier (female)') - misère

2 ('misery')

a faint consonant-Y sound (Dutch J) is inserted to connect E and A:
reactie

('reaction') - creatie

('creation') - reageerbuis

('test tube') - kreatief, realiteit

('creative, reality') - Bea

(girls' name)
exception: It's only a small difference, but a few not uncommon words pronounce the E before a long A as Dutch long I, English EE: ideaal

2 ('ideal') - idealen

('ideals') - idealist

('idealist')

French
eau

French eau is just like Dutch long O

bureau

('office; office desk') - bureaustoel

('office chair') - politiebureau

2 ('police station') - cadeau

('a present') (also written as 'kado') - eau de Cologne

('inexpensive perfume')

eeuw

Dutch long E

+ Dutch UW

eeuw

('century') - leeuw

('lion') - meeuw

('seagull') - sneeuw

('snow') - 't sneeuwt

('it is snowing') - geeuw

('a yawn') - Zeeuws

2 ('from the province of Zeeland')

EI (=IJ)

the
EI/IJ
page

"between FATE and FIGHT" - hear Dutch: feit

('fact') There is no sound like Dutch EI/IJ in English, but it's very similar to French EI, like in soleil

2 ('sun') or the city of Marseille

- ei

('egg') - geit

2 ('goat') - reis

2 ('journey, trip') - klein

2 3 ('small, little') - trein

('train') - meisje

('girl') - leider

('leader') - scheiding

('separation, divorce') - neiging

('tendency, inclination') - eigenaar

('owner') - eigendom

('property') - waarheid

2 ('truth') - bereidheid

2 ('readiness, willingness') - eis

('demand') - sein

('signal') - gein

('fun' - slang) - teil

('large zinc bowl') - teiltje

('zinc bowl') - zeil

('sail, tarp') - veil

('of no value' - very old-fashioned) - zeis

('scythe') - Hein

(boys' name) - 'n heitje voor 'n karweitje

2 ('a quarter for a little job' - boy scouts fundraising slogan)
Compare EI with Dutch EE and AI:
- mees / meis / maïs

- 2 ('titmouse (a bird) / 'girl' / Indian corn')
Compare EI with Dutch AAI:
- hei / haai / hij

('heath, moor / shark / he')
- mei / maai / mij

('May / (I) mow / me') - mei

('May') - zaaitijd

('sowing time')
Hear me say English 'mile' and 'lime:'
mile

2 ('mile') - meel

('flour') - mijl

('mile')
lime

2 ('lime') - leem

2 ('loam, clay, mud') - lijm

('glue') - see also
EI and IJ sound exactly the same:
- ei hei steil

('egg / moor, heath / steep')
- IJ hij stijl

('body of water near Amsterdam / he / style')
Dutch EI is different from German EI. Hear German (with Dutch accent): Reinheitsgesetz

('German: Law of Purity for beer ingredients') - Daß war einmal

('German: That once was, never coming back') - eigen

2 3 (math term) - Klein

2 ('small' / a name) - to me, German EI sounds like English I
- see & hear also IJ below

eia-, eie‑, eii-

A faint consonant-Y sound (Dutch J) is inserted to connect EI to a following A, E or I:
eieren

('eggs') - beiaard

2 ('church bells player') - heiig (heiïg)

('hazy') - van een leien dakje

(['off a slate roof'] - 'very easy')

a faint consonant-Y sound (Dutch J) is inserted to connect E and O: Theo

(boys' name) - aureool

('halo') - theocratie

('theocracy') - geoloog

('geologist')

the
EU
page

There is no sound like Dutch EU in English, but French has a sound like it in words like deux

(French: '2') and German has a sound like Dutch EU in some words with Ö or OE like Gödel

(a mathematician) - schön

2 3 (German: 'beautiful, good') or Goethe

and you may have heard of the Swedish city of Göteborg

It has also been suggested that Dutch EU is somewhat like ER in English HER - hear Dutch: 'heur'

('her' - slang)
- deur

2 ('door') - geur

('smell') - neus

('nose') - leuk

2 ('nice, entertaining') - breuk

2 ('crack, breach; fraction') - kleur

2 ('color') - steun

('support') - scheur

('a tear, a rip') - keuze

('choice') - leuze

('slogan') - reus

('giant') - beurs

('purse' - old-fashioned) - geus

(Dutch 16th Century revolutionary) - heus

('really' - children's talk) - jeuk

('an itch') - leugen

('a lie') - Teun

2 (boys' name) - Teunis

(boys' name) - deuntje

('a tune') - dreun

('a thud, a whack') - beuk

('beech (a tree)') - sleuf

('a dry ditch') - kleun

('a punch, a hit') - preuts

('prudish') - deugd

2 3 ('virtue') - beul

('hangman, executioner') - geul

('ditch, channel') - sneu

2 3 ('a pity') - spreuk

('a saying, stock expression') - heuvel

('a hill') - veulen

('a foal, young horse') - reuzel

('bacon fat') - deuk

2 ('') - peul

2 ('a pod' - peas, beans) - kreunen

('to moan, to groan') - kreupel

2 ('crippled, lame') - zeurpiet

('a nagging person') - meubels

('furniture') - kleuter

('a small child' - 4-6 yrs) - peuter

2 ('a small child' - 2-3 yrs) - dreumes

('a small child' - affectionately) - treurnis

('sadness, misery' - old-fashioned) - beurt

('turn - oportunity, obligation' - in a game, in a queue) - zeulen

('to carry with difficulty or displeasure') - feut

('new college student to be hazed' - slang) - in geuren en kleuren

2 (3) (['with smells and colors'] - 'a lively, extensive description') - tegen heug en meug

('under protest')
exception: -EUM ending in words from Latin, E and U pronounced separately: museum

('museum') - petroleum

('petroleum') - the everyday cheap fuel / petroleum

('petroleum') - engineers' crude oil - Atheneum

('high-level High School')

Greek eu

as Dutch UI:

Zeus Odysseus Theseus

- eufemisme

2 ('euphemism') - euthanasie

2 ('euthanasia') - (het) neutron

2 3 ('neutron') - therapeut pseudodemocratie

('therapist pseudo-democracy')

French euille

As in the original French: portefeuille

('wallet') - feuilleton

2 3 ('feuilleton, (print) serial')

the F
page

- fiets

2 ('bicycle') - fles

('bottle') - fout

('error') - fruit

('fruits') - hoofd

('head') - zelfs

('even') - staaf

('bar, stick') - straf

('punishment') - brief

2 ('letter') - stof

2 ('dust; fabric') - vijf

('5') - verf

('paint') - twijfel

('doubt') - herfst

('Fall, Autumn') - olifant

('elephant') - telefoon

2 ('telephone') - fat

('a dandy') dof/doffe

('dull, muffled; not shiny') - laf/laffe

2 ('cowardly') - ofschoon

('although') - effen

2 ('in a moment' - slang / 'solid' - color) - liflafjes

2 ('small bites of food, nice but insubstantial') - frank en vrij

(['free and frank'] - 'honest and free')

G (=CH)

the G
page

"A sound like you clear your throat." There is no sound like it in English, but it is like J in European Spanish and it is found in Hebrew and Arabic.
ga

('go!') - gal

2 ('gall') - ge

(Flemish 'you') - eg

('agriculture tool') - geel

2 3 ('yellow') - god

('god') - glad

('smooth, slippery') - grijs

2 ('grey') - graag

2 ('yes, please') - boog

('bow, arch') - genoeg

('enough') - dag

2 ('day; goodbye') - dagen

2 ('days') - weg

('way, road') - wegen

('roads') - brug

('bridge') - bruggen

('bridges') - erg

('very; bad' ->>) - begin

('beginning, start') - gaas

('meshed wire') - gas

('a gas') - geniaal

2 ('of genius, brilliant') - heg

('hedge') - trog

2 ('manger, animals' food bin') - degen

('a sable' - sword type) - zegen

('blessing') - zeggen

('to say') - gezegde

('saying; the predicate') - allergie

('allergy') - allergisch

2 ('allergic') - ginnegappen

('to snigger') - giechelen

2 ('to giggle') - verslaggever

2 ('reporter') - gevechtsvliegtuig

('fighter plane') - grootgrutter

('supermarket chain' - ironic) - gigantisch

2 ('gigantic, very large') -

gorgelen

2 ('gargling, to gargle') - gegevens

2 ('data' - plural) - goed genoeg

2 ('good enough') - grote grutten!

2 ('good grief!') - doorslaggevend

2 ('determining, deciding' - factor) - graag gedaan

('you're welcome, my pleasure') - groot gelijk

2 ('you're absolutely right') - geld en goed

(['money and property'] - 'the total of someone's possessions' - god noch gebod

(['neither god nor commandment'] - 'lawless') - grijs en grauw

(['grey and ashen'] - 'very bleak') - grillen en grollen

('a person's idiosyncrasies') - geld geven is goed

2 ('giving money (to Marco) is a good thing' >>)
G and CH are pronounced somewhat differently in Belgium and in the South of The Netherlands: 'soft' G.

French
G

Several words from French have kept the French G: percentage

(' % ') - energie

2 ('energy') - genie

2 ('genius' - person) - gel

('gel') - gênant

('embarrassing') - gène

2 ('embarrassment') - logeerkamer

('guest room') - passagier

('passenger') - slijtage

('wear and tear') - giraf

('giraffe') - corrigeren

('to correct') - marge

2 ('margin') - geste

2 ('gesture') - college

('class at college or university')
First G Dutch, second G French: garage

('car repair shop; car housing') - bagage

2 ('luggage') - ongegeneerd

2 ('without embarrassment')
French OU: bougie

('spark plug') - courgette

('zucchini')
A very small number of not very common words in Dutch have a 'hard' French G (very similar to G in English GO or BEGIN): guerilla

2 ('guerilla') - gouache

('gouache') - bigarreaux

2 ('candied cherries') - guillotine

2 ('guillotine') - gaullisme

('gaullism') - Grenoble

('a city in France')

French
GN

'French' GN is pronounced as N - Consonant Y (Dutch NJ):
signaal

2 ('a signal') - signaleren

2 ('to notice') - magnifiek

("magnificent") - vignet

2 ("certificate") - appelbeignet

('a type of apple cake') - In the often-used, common word champignons

('button mushrooms') the NG has disappeared. With difficulty I say (exaggerated!) champiGNons

Compare with 'regular' Dutch: magneet

2 ('magnet') - Agnes

(girls' name)

G in NG

helling

('slope, ramp') - see NG under N for more examples

the H
page

haak

('hook') - haar

('hair; her') - hand

('hand') - heel

('whole; very') ->> - hoed

2 ('hat') - hoop

('hope; heap') - hun

2 ('their') - hoek

('corner; angle') - hond

('dog') - hap

('bite of food') - behalve

('except') - Henk

2 (boys' name) - Hans

(boys' name) - Han

(boys' name) - Johan

(boys' name) - gehakt

('ground meat') - behang

('wallpaper') - hooghartig

2 ('haughty') - heldhaftig

2 ('heroic') - houthakker

2 3 ('lumberjack, logger') - Hooghaarlemmerdijks

('~hypercorrect') - huizenhoog

('very high' - 'like houses') - bah!

('yuck!' - expression of disgust) - 'n heet hangijzer

2 ('a difficult problem that's not going away') - hebben en houden

(['haves and holds'] - all of a person's possessions) - van hot naar her

('sent to many random places') - met huid en haar

2 (['with skin and hair'] '~completely')

H after T

H in TH is not pronounced: thee

('tea') - theorie

2 ('theory') - apotheek

2 ('pharmacy') - thuis

('at home') - thema

('theme') - Thea

(girls' name) - catharsis

('catharsis') - thee/teen

('tea/toe') - thans/tand

('at present/tooth') - ether/eter

('ether/eater') - theoloog theïne

('theologist/theine (=caffeine)')
Do note that (like in English 'pothole') T and H are pronounced separately in some compound words, for example: witheet (wit-heet)

2 ([white-] 'red-hot')

I-short

like I in DIM or WIT - hear Dutch: wit

('white')
- ik

2 3 (' I ') - dit

2 ('~this') ->> - lip

('lip') - kin

('chin') - vis

('fish') - zich

("oneself") ->> - slim

('clever') - stil

('quiet, silent') - beslissing

('decision') - fris

2 ('fresh; chilly') - wil

('will, wishes') - vin

('fin') - stip

('dot') - tin

('tin' - metal) - pit

('seed, stone, pip') - lik

('lick' - tongue) - bit

('bit' - in horse mouth) - flink

('~brave, ~courageous') - mild

('mild') - niks

('nothing') - gis

('clever' - slang) - splitsing

('split; fork in road; fission') - mis

('not on target; (catholic) mass') - dis

('dish, meal item' - old-fashioned)
exceptions: Several common words have I as voiceless E in the -IS ending:
basis

('base') - kennis

('knowledge; acquaintance') - vuilnis

('garbage') - tennis

('tennis') - Teunis

(boys' name)
exceptions: words from French:
gratis

('free, at no cost') - bis!

('encore!' - music) ('I' as Dutch long I where spelling rules say it should be short)
- compromis

('compromise') (long I, and S dropped)

I-long (IE)

(often written as IE, but as I in words of foreign origin) like EE in SEE - hear Dutch: zie

('see!')
die

('that, those') ->> - idee

('idea') - wie

2 ('who') - niet

2 ('not') - ziek

('sick, ill') - lief

('sweet, dear') - vies

('dirty') - vier

(' 4 ') - tien

('10') - wiel

2 ('wheel') - vriend

2 ('friend') - vlieg

('a fly') - nier

('kidney') - stier

2 ('bull') - hiel

('heel' - foot) - vlies

('film, skin, membrane') - tralie

('prison bar') - piepen

('to squeak') - Mies

(girl's name) - Piet

(boys' name) - gitaar

('guitar') - kilo

2 ('kilo, kilogram') - silo

('silo') - bizar

('bizarre') - vitrine

('display cabinet, window') - crimineel

('criminal; a criminal') - polikliniek

2 ('outpatient clinic')

Conso-
nant I

after a vowel or a diphthong, Dutch I is often pronounced as English Consonant Y (like in YES - Dutch J)
maïs

2 ('corn, maize') - fraai

('beautiful; splendid') - papagaai

2 ('parrot') - kraaien

2 ('crows; baby sound') - haaien

2 ('sharks') - taaiheid

("toughness") - foei!

2 ('bad!' - disapproval) - groei

2 ('growth') - groeien

2 3 ('to grow') - vermoeid

/ vermoeide

('tired') - vermoeidheid

2 ('fatigue') - vloeien

('to flow') - vloeiend

2 ('fluent') - bloeien

('to bloom, flower') - hoi

('hurrah!; hello; goodbye' - slang) - kooi

2 ('cage') - hooi

('hay') - prooi

2 3 4 ('prey') - pleidooi

2 3 ('plea speech') - tournooi

2 ('tournament') - voltooide tijd

2 3 ('perfect tense') - voltooid deelwoord

('past participle') - gooien

('to throw') ->> - weggegooid geld

2 ('money [thrown away] wasted')
But, for instance: zoiets

2 3 ('something like that') - naïef

2 ('naive') - and of course the diphthongs EI and UI are another story
the 'Consonant i page

ia, iaa

a faint consonant-Y sound (Dutch J) is inserted to connect I and A:
piano

('piano') - via

('via, by way of') - triangel

('triangle' - music) - riant

('comfortable') - ammoniak

('ammonia') - triviaal

2 ('trivial') - Ria

(girls' name) - Pia

(girls' name) - ezels balken: 'ia'

('donkeys bray: "eeyo"')
exception: in many common words with -CIA- the I has become a consonant-Y (Dutch J): speciaal

2 ('special') ('special') - specialiteit

('specialty') - sociaal

('social') - asociaal

2 ('anti-social') - socialisme

('socialism') - but (a less common word:) cruciaal

('very important')

iau

like in MEOW: miauw

('meow') - poezen/katten miauwen: 'miauw'

('cats meow: "meow"')

see mostly under 'I-long' - above - Tiel

2 (a small city in the Netherlands)
ië: Ons Indië

('our India' - Indonesia of the colonial era) - see more under 'trema' below

French
ier

consonant Y + A like in FACE (Dutch J + long E) premier

('prime minister') - compare with regular Dutch kassier

('male cashier')

ieu

IEU represents two somewhat different sounds:
when ending in W, it's like EW in English NEW: Dutch IE + Dutch UW:
nieuw

('new') - nieuwe

2 ('new') - nieuws

('news') - kieuw

2 ('gill' - fish breathing) - nieuwsgierig Aagje

('too curious a little girl')
but when ending in S or R: Dutch I (long I) + Dutch EU + S or R, with a faint consonant-Y (Dutch J) connecting I and EU:
serieus

('serious') - furieus

('furious, very angry') - ambitieus

('ambitious') (T as TS) - religieus

('religious') - superieur

('superior') - inferieur

('inferior') - ingenieur

('engineer') (French G) - curieus

2 ('strange, odd, makes you wonder')

-IG ending

In the -IG ending, I is pronounced as voiceless E (like A in AGO) followed by Dutch G: luchtig

('airy, light, not serious') - twintig

(' 20 ')
gezellig

2 3 (untranslatable: '~pleasant, ~nice, ~enjoyable, ~gregarious, ~cosy') ->> - aanwezig

('present,' "is here") - aardig

2 ('kind, nice') - droevig

('sad') - eenvoudig

('simple') - enig

('only, unique') - ernstig

('serious') - evenwijdig

('parallel') - kleverig

('sticky') - luidruchtig

('loud, noisy') - nuttig

('useful') - verstandig

('sensible') - onverstandig

('not sensible,' "a bad idea") - regelmatig

('regular') - veilig

('safe') - vorig

('previous') - weinig

2 ('little, few') - rustig

('quiet, calm') - geweldig!

('great!') - geestig

('witty') - armoedig

('looking poor') - heilig

('holy, saintly') - heilige

('a saint') - zalig

('blessed; delicious') - jolig

2 3 ('jolly') - grimmig

2 ('grisly, grim') - vermenigvuldigen

2 3 ('to multiply') -vertegenwoordiger

2 ('a representative, delegate; travelling salesman') - gulzig

2 ('feeling an eager, almost compulsive urge to eat') - De zuinige huisvrouw

('the frugal housewife') - vereniging

('association, club') - schietvereniging

('gun lovers' club')
Of course, one-syllable words don't have suffixes: wig

('wedge') - big

('young pig') - ik lig

('I'm lying down') - and another exception: vaandrig

2 ('army cadet officer')

IJ (=EI)

the
EI/IJ
page

"between MATE and MIGHT" - hear Dutch: mijt

('parasitic bug') (see also Old Spelling in Names below)
There is no sound like Dutch EI/IJ in English, but it's very similar to French EI, like in soleil

2 ('') ('sun') or Marseille

- see also EI above
ijs

('ice') - bij

('~at, near') - gij

2 (Flemish 'you') - hij

('he') - mij

('me') - wij

2 ('we') - zij

2 ('she; they') - dijk

2 ('levee, dike') - pijn

('pain') - spijt

('remorse') - wijn

2 ('wine') - vrijheid

('freedom, liberty') - blijheid

('happiness, gladness') - blijde

2 ('large club (medieval weapon)') - wijk

('neighborhood') - krijt

('chalk') - strijd

('struggle, battle') - vlijt

('diligence, steady work') - Thijs

(boys' name) - Gijs

2 (boys' name) - strijdbijl

('battle-axe') - strijkijzer

('ironing iron') - tijdverdrijf

2 ('pastime') - ijsvrij

2 ([ice-free] - 'school closing so kids can go skating') - rijstebrij

('type of rice pudding') - bij tijd en wijle

('from time to time') - wijd en zijd

2 ('far and wide') - Wie schrijft, die blijft

([he who writes, remains] - 'the person writing down the scores always remains in the game')
exception: - bijzonder

('special') - IJ pronounced as English EE (Dutch long I)

ijstijd

2 ('ice age') - Dutchmen often write the two dots on top of "ij" as a bar.

"IJ" is seen as one letter, and when appropriate, I and J are both capitalized: IJsselmeer, IJsland.
"Y" is called by its French name: i-Grèc

2 (French: 'Greek i')
To differentiate in spoken Dutch, 'ei' is called korte ei

2 ('short ei') and 'ij' is called lange ij

2 ('long ij')
- see & hear also EI above

-LIJK ending

IJ like A in AGO ('voiceless E') rijkelijk

([richly] abundantly) - vrijelijk

('freely, liberally') - verrukkelijk

('delicious') - ijselijk

('[icely] dreadful, frightening')
afzonderlijk

('separate') - duidelijk

('clear') - gemakkelijk

('easy') - lelijk

2 ('ugly') - lichamelijk

('bodily, physical') - mannelijk

2 ('male') - mogelijk

2 ('possible') - persoonlijk

('personal') - stoffelijk

2 ('physical, material') - verantwoordelijk

('responsible') - vriendelijk

('kind, friendly') - vrouwelijk

('female') - billijk

('reasonable' - bookish) - olijk

('droll, funny') - belachelijk

2 ('ridiculous') - degelijk

('solid, robust, sensible') - natuurlijk

('natural, naturally; of course!')
Note that a few short words end in 'regular' -LIJK with IJ-sound:
- lijk

('dead body') - slijk

2 ('mire, sludge') - gelijk

2 ('equal') (voiceless E 'ge-' prefix) - gelijkheid

('equality') - gelijkwaardig

('of equal value') - soortgelijk

('similar')

ije-, iji-

When connecting with a vowel, the consonant-Y sound at the end of the IJ-diphthong becomes a little stronger:
vrij / vrijer

('free / more free') - dij / dijen

('thigh / thighs') - gedijen

('to grow well' - plants) - Bulgarije

('Bulgaria') - zijig

('silky, slimy' - person)

-ING ending

Just like in English RING: ring

2 ('ring') - ding

('thing') - dinges

('what's-its-name, what's-his-name') - main examples under NG below

io, ioo

A faint consonant-Y sound (Dutch J) is inserted to connect I and O:
pion

('a pawn') - trio

('trio') - riool

2 ('sewer') - radio

2 ('radio') - bioloog

('biologist') - prioriteit

('priority') - bastion

('stronghold' - a type of fortification)
exception: ion

('ion') - ionen

('ions') - here, I is pronounced as consonant Y; also note that O is short in the singular and long in the plural, very unusual for a 'modern' word

-ISCH ending

pronounced as English EES, Dutch IES (Dutch long I followed by S, CH is dropped)
automatisch

2 ('automatic') (French AU) - chemisch

('chemical') - elektrisch

('electric') - medisch

('medical') - kritisch / fysisch

('critical / physical') - Slavisch / chemisch / Belgisch

('Slavic / chemical / Belgian') - compare with: Fries

('Frisian; a Frisian')

a faint consonant-Y sound (Dutch J) is inserted to connect I and U:
geranium

('geranium' - a plant) - kalium

('Potassium') - lithium

('Lithium') - natrium

('Sodium') - jodium

('Iodine') - see also: chemistry

con-sonant I

I is pronounced as 'consonant Y,' Dutch J (Y in AWAY) after A, AA, O, OO or OE:
kooi / roeien / vlaai

('cage / to row / fruit pie') - see also under ai/aai, oi/ooi and oei

as English consonant Y (except in IJ of course)
jij

('you') - je

2 ('you') - jou

2 ('you') - jullie

('you') - more about Dutch 'you:' personal pronouns - je/jij - jaar

('year') - jas

('coat') - jasje

('small coat, jacket') - jurk

('dress') - jongen

('boy') - juli

('July') - Jan

(boys' name) - Jan Jansen

("John Doe") - Jaap

(boys' name) - Joop

(boys' name) - joch

('boy' - somewhat negative) - oranje

2 ('orange' - color) - anjer

2 ('carnation' - a flower) - jajem

(['Dutch gin'] - 'jenever' - slang) - sjouwer

('person carrying heavy loads') - sjoelen

2 3 ('playing ~shuffleboard' - a game) - jijen en jouen

(addressing each other in an informal manner, 'on a first-name basis') - Jut en Juul

('a bunch of silly, useless people')

French J

journalist

('reporter') (French OU) - journaal

('TV News') (French OU) - jam

('jelly, jam') (English A) - jus

2 ('gravy') (also French -US ending)

2 ('an aggressive woman') - Kaatje

(girls' name) - kat

('cat') - kom

2 ('bowl; come!') - koper

('Copper; buyer') - koud

('cold') - kerk

('church') - kurk

('cork') - klok

('clock') - kind

2 ('child') - krant

('newspaper') - dak

2 ('roof') - dik

('fat, thick') - rijk

('rich') - broek

2 ('pants, trousers') - volk

2 ('a people, a nation') - markt

('market') - links

('left' - not right) - akker

('acre, agriculture field') - spijker

('carpentry nail') - koekoek

2 ('cuckoo' - a bird) - gek

('crazy, insane; a crazy person') - kwitantie

('receipt of money paid') - krik

('a jack' - for lifting cars) - kakelen

('to cackle' - like chickens) - kriskras

('criss-cross' - in random directions) - in kannen en kruiken

(['in pitchers and jars'] - 'all ready') - zo klaar als een klontje

2 (['as cear as a piece of crystal sugar'] - 'very clear') - kant en klaar

('ready to go') - kort en klein

('smithereens') - de kogel door de kerk

(['the bullet is through the church'] - 'the die is cast') - te kust en te keur

('a wide choice') - ons koude kikkerland

2 ('our chilly frog's country' - a wretched place but it's home)

Unlike in English, K before N is pronounced: - knie

('knee') - knokkel

('knuckle') knal

('a bang') - knoop

2 ('button; knot') - knop

2 ('a bud') - knippen

('to cut' - with scissors) - knaak

2 ('a guilder' - slang) - knoest

('a knot' - in wood) - knauw

2 ('bite, blow') - knecht

2 ('servant') - knul

('~boy') - knuppel

('club, bat') - knallen

2 ('to bang') - knarsen

2 ('to gnash') - knerpen

('to crunch' - sound) - knetteren

2 ('to crackle') - knikkers

2 ('marbles' - glass) - knikkeren

('to roll marbles') - knipperen

2 ('to blink') - knipperlicht

2 ('blinking light') - kneden

2 ('to knead') - knudde

2 ('not good, a failure' - slang) - knijpkat

(['squeeze-cat'] 'flashlight with squeeze dynamo') - knipselkrant

('newspaper cuttings service') - knap / knapper / knapst

('pretty, intelligent / more so / most so')

the L
page

('ell' - ancient length measure) - laat

('late, not in time') - leer

2 ('leather; doctrine') - licht

('light') - lijst

('list') - blad

('leaf') - fluit

('whistle, flute') - glas

2 ('glass; a glass') - klaar

('ready') - plank

2 ('board') - slaan

('to slap, to hit') - slag

('a great battle') - slecht

('bad') - vlag

('flag') - vlees

('meat') - melk

2 ('milk') - speld

('pin') - zelf

('self') - film

2 ('movie, film') - wolk

('cloud') - staal

('steel; fabric sample') - val

('a fall; a trap') - deel

2 ('part') - wel

('well;' positive amplifier) ->> - doel

('goal, objective') - hol

2 ('hollow; a lair') - slak

('snail, slug') - lepel

('spoon') - vleugel

('wing; grand piano') - lat

('slat') - lied

('song') - Let

('a Latvian') - sla

('lettuce') - altijd

('always') - wal

('city wall') - wals

('waltz; steamroller') - tolk

2 ('interpreter') - elleboog

2 ('elbow') - ellenlang

('terribly long' - length) - Ellen

(girls' name) - luilak

('lazy person') - galblaas

('gall bladder') - alvleesklier

('pancreas') - loodlijn

('perpendicular line') - zwelgen

2 ('to wallow, live immersed in dirt and misery; to guzzle') - blik

('tin, tinplate; a tin can; a look') - lichterlaaie

("burning hot, in full flame") - leerlooier

('leather preparation worker') - luilekkerland

2 ('Cockaigne' - mythical place of free, good food) - Goejanverwellesluis

(a hamlet near Gouda) - leven en laten leven

2 ('live and let live') - lekker lui liggen lezen

('enjoying a relaxed read') - lap en leur

('bad, undesirable people') - lief en leed

(['love and suffering'] '(sharing) good times and bad') - Leiden in last

([Leyden] 'in trouble') - De laatste loodjes wegen het zwaarst

('the final stages of a job are the hardest') - more L
exception: in 'bibliotheek'

('library') the L is usually dropped (and H of TH is never pronounced)

-LIJK ending

IJ like A in AGO ('voiceless E') vreselijk

('horrible') - gevaarlijk

('dangerous') - walgelijk

2 ('disgusting') - main examples under IJ above

French LL

like consonant Y (Dutch J) failliet

2 ('bankrupt') - faillisement

2 3 ('bankruptcy') - portefeuille

('wallet') - fouilleren

2 ('to frisk, body-search') - vanille

2 ('vanilla')

maat

2 ('measure, size;' "comrade") - macht

('power') - mand

('basket') - met

('with') - middag

('afternoon') - mier

('ant') - morgen

2 ('tomorrow; morning; good morning!') - mijn

('my, mine; mine' - coal etc.') - smaak

('taste') - smal

2 ('narrow') - naam

2 ('name') - kam

2 ('comb') - hem

('him') - zoom

2 3 ('hem') - bloem

2 3 ('flower; white flour') - bom

2 ('bomb') - bommen

2 ('bombs') - bomen

('trees') - warm

('warm') - kammen

('combs; to comb') - bezem

('broom') - met man en macht

('with everything available') - met man en muis

('with man and mouse' - a ship sunk with everything and all on board) - min of meer

([less or more] 'more or less')

('edema, water retention') - (de) foetus

2 3 ('fetus,' unborn baby) oecumenisch

2 ('ecumenical') - Oedipus

('Oedipus') (Latin -US ending pronounced as OOS, Dutch OES) - oedipaal

('like Oedipus')

naar

('to; sick, upset') - nat

('wet') - nek

('neck') - niets

('nothing') - noot

2 ('nut'- fruit; 'note' - music) - snel

('quick, fast') - maand

('month') - land

('land, country') - kans

('chance') - mens

2 ('a human being, a man') - grens

('border, limit') - brons

('bronze') - tien

('10') - lijn

('line') - zoon

('son') - zon

('sun') - nijd

('anger') - inmiddels

2 ('by now') - niet voor niks

('not for nothing' - there is a reason -or- the effort was not wasted) - nooit ofte nimmer

([never or never] - 'never') - nu of nooit

('now or never')

-N ending

Many people in Holland, especially in the West of the country, don't pronounce the N in the -EN ending of plurals and verbs. I consider that sloppy and incorrect, but I have to admit to a certain softening of some my final N's, as you may have noted when I read longer texts. But my recommendation to students is to pronounce those final N's, because they are written and dropping them would just add another rule to learn.
wij lopen

/ wij lope

('we walk') - De mensen praten plat.

/ De mense prate plat.

('the people talk sloppily') >>

like NG in SINGER ('vocalist') or HANGER, never like in LINGER or DANGER - hear: ringvinger

('ring finger')
- eng

('scary, creepy') - engerd

('a creep') lang

('long, tall') - slang

('snake; hose') - angst

('fear, dread') - sprong

('a jump') - tong

2 ('tongue' - in mouth) - jong

('young') - jongen

('boy') - vingers

('fingers') - bengel

('naughty boy') - honing

2 ('honey') - botsing

2 ('crash') - koningin

2 ('queen') - honger

('hunger') - gemengd

2 3 ('mixed') - belang

('interest') - belangrijk

2 ('important') - belangstelling

('interest') - als de dagen lengen, gaan de nachten strengen

('when the days get longer, the nights get more severe' - i.e. colder)
Also in compound words N gets a faint NG-sound before G: ingewikkeld

('complicated') - ongeluk

2 ('accident') - ongeveer

2 ('about, roughly')

Like in English, NK sounds like NGK
inkt

2 ('ink') - enkel

('only, single; ankle') - winkel

2 ('a shop') ->> - donker

2 ('dark') - afhankelijk

('dependent') - onafhankelijk

('independent') - onafhankelijkheid

('independence')
compare: bang

('afraid') / ban

('spell; excomunication') / bank

('bank; bench') - zink

('zinc' - metal) / zin

('sense; desire; sentence, line') / zing

('(I) sing') - zinken

('to sink') / zingen

('to sing') / zinnen

('senses; desires; sentences') - drinken

('to drink') / dringen

('to push, press forward') - wankel

2 ('not stable') / wangen

('cheeks') - koning

('king') / koninkje

('little king' - note G not written)
- klinker

('vowel; clinker' - street paving) - medeklinker

('consonant') - klank

('sound') - stank

2 ('stink, a bad smell') - stinken

('to smell bad') - vink

('finch' - a bird) - pink

('little finger, pinky') - een kink in de kabel

2 ('a kink in the cable, a problem came up')
In compound words N also gets a faint NG-sound before K:
steenkool

('coal, cokes') - overeenkomst

2 ('agreement') - inkomsten

('income') - onkruid

('weeds')

O-short

the tone of A in HALL but shorter - hear Dutch: hol

('lair; hollow')
of

('or') - om

('around; ~to; about; ~because') ->> - op

('on top of; finished, out of') - ons

2 ('us; 100 gram, ~3 oz.') - los

('loose') - nog

('still, yet') - rok

('skirt') - pot

('pot, jar') - wol

('wool') - krom

2 ('bent, crooked') - rond

2 ('round' - like a circle) - worm

('worm') - vonk

('spark') - drop

('Dutch liquorice') - nor

('prison' - slang) - mos

('moss') - mol

2 3 ('mole/mol' - digging animal/music/chemistry) - ton

2 ('barrel; measurement') - polder

2 ('polder, reclaimed land') ->> - belofte

2 ('promise') - ontploffing

('explosion') - rolmops

('a type of pickled herring') - onder ons gezegd en gezwegen

2 ('just between you and me')

O-long

like O in GO or BONE - hear Dutch: Co

('boys' name; business partner') - boon

('bean')
boot

2 ('boat') - loot

('new, young branch') - boor

('a drill' - making holes)
oog

('eye') - oor

('ear') - ook

('also, too') - boom

('tree') - doos

('box') - poot

2 ('leg' - animal, table or chair) - hoog

('high') - hoger

('higher') - koper

('Copper; buyer') - foto

('picture, photograph') - olie

2 ('oil') - sloot

('ditch') - Noor

2 ('girl's name; a Norwegian') - Moos

(boys' name) - Toos

(girls' name) - toon

2 3 ('tone') - molen

('windmill') - stomerij

2 ([steamery] 'dry cleaner') - chromosoom

('cromosome') - zo

('such; like this; in a moment') ->>

Com-
pare

Compare short and long O:
rok lot ton

('skirt; fate//lottery ticket; barrel')
/ rook loot toon

('smoke; shoot; tone')
- kok bon hor rot

('a cook; a coupon//ticket, fine; a bug screen; off, rotten') /
kook boon hoor rood

('(I) cook; bean; listen!; red')

French O

roze

('pink') compare with Dutch short O: ros

('a type of horse') - rossig

('reddish')
and Dutch long O: - roos

2 ('rose') rozen

2 ('roses') ->>
- roze rozen

('pink roses') - roze roos

2 ('pink rose') - roze ros

("pink horse")
also French O: katastrofe

2 ('catastrophe') - zone

2 ('area') compare with: - zonnen

2 ('suns') - zonen

('sons')
second O is French: trombone

('trombone') - controle

2 ('checking on, verification of') - comfort

2 ('comfort')

the
OE
page

like OO in BOOK (or a little shorter) - hear Dutch: boek

('book')
- stoep

2 ('sidewalk,' "stoop") - koekje

('cookie')
- hoe

('how') - koe

('cow') - toe

('~towards; come on!') - goed

('good, well') - stoel

('chair') - ploeg

('plow; team') - vloer

('floor, surface') - groen

('green') - snoep

('candy') - broer

('brother') - poeder

('powder') - koel

2 ('cool' - moderately low temperature) - moes

('something mashed') - hoef

('horse iron') - spoed

('urgent, urgency') - groet

2 ('greeting') - bloedgroep

2 3 ('blood group, blood type') - oefening

2 ('exercise') ->> - doezelen

2 ('to slumber, half-sleep') - stroef

('with difficulty, not easy' - not lubricated) - floep!

(exclamation: something happening quickly)

Greek OE

Pronounced as Dutch EU:

- (het) oedeem

Frech OEU

Pronounced much like 'voiceless E' or Dutch short U

but longer: oeuvre

('an artist's body of work') - manoeuvre

2 ('maneuver, strategic move') - but the OEU of the Dutchified verb manoeuvreren

2 ('to maneuver') is pronounced as OO (Dutch OE.)

oei, oi, ooi

After O, OE and OO, I is pronounced as consonant Y (Dutch J)
boei

('buoy') - moeilijk

('difficult') - moeite

2 ('difficulty, trouble, effort') - koe koeien

('cow cows') - groei groeien groeit

('growth; to grow; [it] grows') - het boeide me niet

([it didn't grip me] 'I wasn't interested, I didn't care for it') - al wat groeit en bloeit en ons telkens weer boeit

2 ('everything that grows and flowers and fascinates us again and again')
hoi

('hurrah!; hello; goodbye' - slang) - toi-toi-toi

('good luck! - knock on wood)
- mooi

/ mooie

('beautiful, pretty') - mooi / mooier / mooist

('beautiful, pretty/more so/most so') - nooit

('never') - ooit

('ever, sometime') - ooi

('ewe' - sheep) - ooievaar

('stork' - a bird) - hooivork

([hay-] 'pichfork') - hooiwagen

2 ([haycart] 'Daddy Longlegs spider') - rotzooi

2 ('a mess, garbage') - fooi

('tip' - to server) - 't Gooi

('the area around Hilversum, South-East of Amsterdam') - 't dooit

([it is thawing] - 'it stopped freezing') - 't Kan vriezen en 't kan dooien

([it may freeze or it may thaw] - things can go either way)

French oi

As in French: toilet

('toilet, bathroom') - dressoir boudoir

('fancy dining room cabinet; a lady's dressing room')

OU (=AU)

the
AU/OU
page

like OU in LOUD, OW in NOW - hear Dutch: nou

('now') There's always a Dutch W sound after OU; when the W is written it could be a little more pronounced. jou

2 ('you' - singular, informal) and jouw

('your' - singular, informal) ->> sound alike (both have the Dutch W-sound)
oud

('old') - hout

('wood' - the material) - touw

('rope, string') - vouw

('fold') - zout

2 ('salt') - gebouw

2 ('building') - berouw

('remorse') - Gouda

('city in Holland') - Gouke

(boys' name) - houweel

('pickaxe') - woud

2 ('wood, deep forest') - oubollig

('droll, funny') - louter

('pure') - koud mouw stouwen

('cold; sleeve; to stack tightly') - see & hear also OU above

French OU

French OU is like English OO, Dutch OE: gouverneur

('governor') - route

('route, way, course') - routine

('routine, habit') - troubadour

2 ('troubadour, minstrel') - coureur

('race car driver, motorcycle racer') - rouge

('make-up item, red') (French G) - bouillonblokje

2 ('beef cube') - souffleur

('stage whisperer') - zouaaf

('zouave' - Papal soldier) - zouaven

('zouaves')

('Dad') - paars

2 ('purple') - pan

2 ('pot, pan' - cooking) - pen

('pen' - writing) - plant

('plant' - nature) - pijp

('pipe') - pomp

('pump') - spier

2 ('muscle') - aap

2 ('monkey') - stap

('step') - kip

('chicken') - kop

('animal head') - diep

2 ('deep') - groep

('group') - pap

2 ('porridge') - pop

('doll') - poppen

2 ('dolls') - griepprik

('flu shot') - pimpelpaars

('very purple') - ophaalbrug

2 ('drawbridge') - ophef

("fuss, ado") - ophouden

2 ('to stop, cease') - ophangen

('to hang something;' also: 'to kill a person by hanging') - rasphuis

2 ('16th/17th Century poorhouse or place of punishment where inmates ground or pulped wood') - paal en perk stellen

('to set limits, to take measures to stop') - van Pontius naar Pilatus

([(sent on) 'pointless errands') - pracht en praal

('pomp and circumstance') - als puntje bij paaltje komt

('at the moment of truth, when push comes to shove')
As mentioned above, a B at the end of a Dutch word sounds like a P.
In Dutch Names (see below) PH is often pronounced as F.

Unlike in English, P before S is pronounced: psychiater

('psychiatrist') - psycholoog

2 ('psychologist') - pseudoniem

('pseudonym, pen name') - psalm

2 ('psalm')

In writing always followed by U - Dutch KW represents the same sound
quasi

('quasi') - queeste

('serious quest, like for the Holy Grail') - quiz

('quiz show') - (also: kwis

) - quorum

('required number of voters')
compare with: kwik

('mercury, quicksilver') - kwibus

('silly, headstrong person') - kwart

('a quarter, ¼')
Only recent French imports like quiche

('quiche, an oven dish') and quitte

('even, no debts towards each other') do not have the W sound after K.

Dutch R is quite different from English R:
er

('~there') ->> - raam

2 ('window') - rand

('edge') - rijst

('rice') - rug

('back' - body part) - borst

('breast') - drie

(' 3 ') - gras

('grass') - graad

('degree') - kraag

('collar') - droog

('dry') - broederschap

('brotherhood') - rit

('a ride, a drive') - rits

('zipper') - rook

('smoke') - brood

2 ('bread') - hart

('heart') - kerk

('church') - kleren

('clothes') - herrie

('noise') - in rep en roer

('in an uproar, everyone's upset') - rust roest

([rest rusts] - 'inactivity leads to stagnation') - more R
At the beginning of a word, English R starts with the tongue touching the top of the palate, and then moving down; it's a 'rolling' sound formed in the middle of the mouth.
Dutch R keeps the tongue flat, its tip touching the lower teeth, and it's formed in the back of the mouth.
Compare English and Dutch R's:

English	road	room	ram
Dutch	rood	roem	rem
meaning	red	fame	a brake

English	price	great	fern
Dutch	prijs	Greet	varen
meaning	price	(girls' name)	fern, to sail

English	deer	star
Dutch	dier	star
meaning	animal, mammal	inflexible, rigid

English	rat		fries
Dutch	rat	red	frietjes	Fries
meaning	rat	(I) save	fries	Frisian

sok

('sock') - soep

('soup') - slot

2 ('lock; castle') - spons

('sponge') - staart

('tail') - sterk

('strong') - kast

2 ('cabinet, cupbpard, shelves system') - naast

('next to') - post

('the mail') - barst

('a crack') - kunst

('art') - gas

2 ('a gas') - kaas

2 3 ('cheese') - mes

2 3 ('knife') - messen

2 ('knives') - kies

2 ('back tooth, molar') - dus

('so, therefore, thus') - wijs

('wise') - als

('if, when') ->> - plaats

('place; town') - beslissing

('decision') - spits

('sharp, pointed shape; clever') - stokstijf

('frozen, without movement, stock-still') - spiksplinternieuw

('brand-new') - sla je slag

('grab the opportunity') - zonder slag of stoot

('without a battle') - stut en steun

2 ([prop and stay] - 'support')

SCH

the
SCH
page

see also - CH above ("a sound like you clear your throat")
schaal

2 3 ('shallow bowl; scale') - schaap

('sheep' - singular) - schapen

2 ('sheep' - plural) - schaar

('scissors') - schep

('shovel, spade; scoop') - scherp

('sharp; spicy') - schip

('ship') - schoen

('shoe') - schoon

('clean') - school

('school') - schok

('shock') - schuld

('guilt') - schade

2 3 ('damage') - schande

('shame') - schaduw

('shadow') - schaamte

('shame, ashamedness') - schop

('shovel, spade; a kick') - schuit

2 ('ship, boat - somewhat negative) - schetsje

('sketch, rough drawing') - scherts

2 ('humor, jest') - scheikunde

('chemistry') - schuur

2 ('large shed') - beschaafd

('civilized, cultured') - heggeschaar

('hedge clipper') - schimpscheuten

('unpleasant remarks, mild cursing') - 'n scheve schaats

([a crooked skate] 'immoral behavior') - schots en scheef

('in a jumble, not well-aligned') - door schade en schande

([by damage and shame] 'the school of hard knocks')

SCHR

CH in SCHR is not pronounced:
schrik

('fright') - schroef

('a screw') - schroeven

('to screw in screws') - schreeuw

('a cry, a shout') - schreeuwen

('to shout') - schrobber

('hard broom') - ik schrijf

('I'm writing' ‑>>) - ik schreef

('I wrote' ->>) - schrander

('clever') - schram

('scratch') - schrammetje

2 ('a very small scratch')
Compare with: visgraat

2 3 ('fish bone') - asregen

2 3 ('rain of ash')

Com-
pare

Compare SCH and SCHR:
schaal schraal

('~bowl / ~poor, ~dry') - schil schril

('~skin, ~layer / shrill') - schiften schriften

('~to separate notebooks') - schap schrap

('shelf / ~firmly') - schikken schrikken

2 (-not enough space-) - schoot schroot

2 ('lap / scrap metal') - schijven schrijven

2 ('discs / to write')

-ISCH ending

As English EES, Dutch IES (CH in -ISCH is not pronounced) lyrisch

2 ('lyrical') - organisch

('organic' - chemistry) - anorganisch

('inorganic' - chemistry) - biologisch

('biological,' "organic" - agriculture) - main examples under I (above)

tand

('tooth, front tooth') - teen

('toe') - toen

2 3 ('then' - past ->>) - tot

('till, until') - taart

('cake') ->> - stijf

('stiff') - stok

('stick') - stoom

('steam') - straal

('ray') - iets

('something') - haat

('hate') - heet

('hot, warm') - wit

2 ('white') - bot

('bone // rude // dull (knife)') - mist

('fog, mist') - boter

('butter') - eten

('food, a meal; to eat') ->> - straat

('street') - tante

('aunt') - boomstronk

2 ('tree stump') - taal noch teken

([word nor sign] - 'no communications at all') - van top tot teen

([from head to toe] - 'completely')
Note that end-of-word D sounds like T in Dutch (see under D) ('') and that a mid-word T in Dutch is 'sharper,' not a sound like D as in American English:
water

2 ('water') - beter

2 ('better') - bitter

('bitter') - otter

('otter') - Otto

2 (boys' name)
CHTJ, STJ, STZ - In between certain letters, T is usually dropped:
postzegel

('stamp' - mail) - postzegels

('stamps' - mail) - tochtje

('small trip') - It's just too hard to say: pos-t-zegel

2 or toch-t-je

zachtjes

('softly') - nichtje

('cousin (female); niece') - luchtje

('a smell; something fishy') - nestje

('a bird's nest') - feestje

2 ('small party') - kastje worstje

2 ('small cabinet / small sausage')

At normal speaking speed, mid-word TD is pronounced as D. Only in deliberately slow speech are the letters pronounced separately. There is no difference in the pronunciation of ontd- and ond-: ontdekt ondier ont-dekt

('discovered monster')

H after T is not pronounced: therapie

('therapy') - thermometer

('thermometer') - mythe

('myth') - main examples under H (above)

-TIE ending

after C, P and R: SEE (Dutch SIE): reactie

('reaction') - infectie

('infection') - frictie

2 ('friction') - adoptie

('adoption') - proportie

('proportion') - selectie functie fractie

2 ('selection function fraction')
after vowels and N: TSEE (Dutch TSIE): conditie

("shape"; 'condition') - democratie

('democracy') - advertentie

('ad, advertisement') - operatie

('operation; surgery') - organisatie

('organisation') - positie

('position') - tolerantie

('tolerance') - clementie gratie

('clemency / a pardon') - natie traditie garantie

('nation / tradition / guarantee, warranty')
after S: not irrregular, TEE (Dutch TIE): - suggestie

('suggestion') - hostie

2 ('the holy wafer')
other -TIE endings like -TIEF, TIEK and -TIER are not irregular, compare: politie

/ politiek

('police/politics') - actie / actief

2 ('action/active') - optie / optiek

('option / view') - portie / portier

2 ('serving/doorman; car door') - motie / motief

2 ('motion, resolution / motive')

TJ, TSJ

Somewhat like CH in CHIRP or CHILL (No S in TJ) tjalk

('a ship type') - tjokvol

('chock-full: very full (room)') - tjilpen

/ tjirpen

/ tsjilpen

/ tsjirpen

('making that birds' sound')

U-short

the U
page

UH, like A in ALIVE or AGO - sounds the same as 'voiceless E' - dubbeltje

2 ('dime - 10¢-piece) - gummetjes

('erasers')
dun

('skinny, thin') - nul

('zero') - hulp

('help, assistance') - punt

('point') - druk

('pressure; busy') - stuk

('piece; broken, not working') - vlucht

('flight; escape') - spul

("stuff") - lus

('loop') - krul

('curl') - krullen

('curls') - tulp

('tulip') ->> - tulpen

('tulips') - rust

('rest, quiet') - gerucht

2 ('rumor') - blussen

2 ('to extinguish fire') - plunjezak

2 ('duffel bag') - blut

('broke, out of money' - slang) - smurrie

('dirty, mudlike stuff, sludge')
Dutch short U sounds exacly like voiceless E. Above I mentioned that except for de, te, me, je, ge, ze, we, 'n, 't, m'n, z'n, 'r and d'r >> there are no words with voiceless E as their only vowel, and there are no words of two or more syllables with voiceless E as their only vowels. However, short U is a regular vowel, and words can have short U and voiceless E as their only vowels, as for instance: tunneltje

('a small tunnel') - verrukkelijk

2 / verrukkelijke

2 ('delicious, very enjoyable')

U-long

the U
page

There is no sound in English similar to Dutch 'long U,' but is is found in French, like in cru or dur

and in German, like in Hügel and Muesli

('you' - formal) - uur

('hour') - nu

2 ('now') - duur

('expensive') - puur

2 ('pure') - vuur

2 ('fire') - muziek

2 ('music') - unie

('union') - uniform

('uniform') - fusie

('companies merging; fusion') - juni

('June') - stuur

('steering wheel') - bruut

('brutal; a brute') - bruusk

2 ('impolitely quick, abrupt') - fuut

('grebe' - a bird) - molecuul

('molecule') - spugen

('to spit') - guur

2 ('very unpleasant, harsh' - weather) - uniek

2 ('unique, one of a kind') - Utrecht

2 ('a major city in The Netherlands')

ua, ue, uo

a faint Dutch W-sound is inserted to connect U to A, E or O: (In most words, this W is not written.)
situatie

('situation') - januari

('January') - februari

('February') - dualiteit

('duality') - fluctuatie

('fluctuation') - duel

('duel') - minuet

('minuet') - duo

2 ('duo')
UEE and UWEE sound the same, compare: ritueel

('ritual; a ritual') - fluweel

('velvet')

the UI
page

There is no sound like Dutch UI in English, but French has it in a word like l'oeil

('the eye') - hear Dutch: lui

('lazy')
ui

2 ('onion') - uit

2 ('out') - buik

('belly') - duim

2 ('thumb') - huid

2 ('skin') - huis

2 ('house') - tuin

2 ('yard, garden') - vuil

('dirt, dirty stuff; dirty') - bruin

2 3 ('brown') - juist

('right, correct; exactly!') - suiker

('sugar') - bui

2 ('rainshower') - buit

('loot, booty') - duin

('dune') - muis

('mouse') - ruim

('roomy, spacious; well over; a ship's hold') - bruid

('bride') - bruidegom

('bridegroom') - snuit

('snout - pointy animal face, mouth') - spuit

('spout, hose end') - ruit

2 3 ('windowpane; equilateral parallellogram') - ruiten

('windowpanes; diamonds' - cards) - struik

2 ('bush') - kluif

2 ('bone for gnawing') - kluit

2 ('clod') - kruit

('gunpowder') - schuim

('foam') - sluik

('straight, thin' - hair; 'hidden, fishy' - trading) - Pruis

('a Prussian') - buil

('a bump' - swelling) - ruig

('rough') - huilen

('to cry, to weep,') - uil

2 ('owl') - zuil

2 ('pillar') - ruis

('static, noise') - gruis

('grit, dust') - kruis

('cross') - sluis

2 ('sluice') - duivel

('devil') - zuivel

('dairy') - zuiver

('pure') - huiveren

2 ('to shiver') - Duitser

('a German') ->> - stuiver

('a nickel, 5¢') - kruipen

('to crawl') - huilbui

('crying fit') - huisvuil

2 ('household garbage') - bruidssuiker

('wedding candy') - buitenshuis

([out of the house] - 'outside') - kruipruimte

('crawlspace' - under house floor)
When there is no consonant ending the word, some Dutchmen say UI with a consonant-Y-sound (Dutch J) at the end: ui(j)

('onion') - but I prefer the pronunciation with a Dutch W: ui(w)

- but the plural uien

('onions') has the consonant-Y-sound (Dutch J) - see also the next paragraph

uia, uie

a consonant-Y sound (Dutch J) is inserted to connect UI to A or E: (See also above under UI)
luiaard

2 3 ('lazy person; sloth') - buien

('rainshowers') - uier

('udder' - cow) - luier

('diaper, nappy') - sluier

('a veil') - grauwsluier

('a gray veil' - detergent commercial)

The U in Dutch UW is always long - it's an exception.
Uw

('your (formal)') - duw

('a push') - duwen

('to push') - zenuw

('nerve') - ruw

2 / ruwe

('rough') - juweel

('a jewel') - juwelen

('jewels, jewelry') - zwaluw

('swallow' - a bird) - ruwaard

('a medieval ruler') - gruwelen

('horrors; to be horrified') - ruwweg

('roughly' - estimating) - sluw

('sly, clever') - ruwheid

('roughness') - Veluwe Betuwe

(areas in the East of The Netherlands)
U

('you' - formal) and Uw

('your' - formal) sound different, but jou

2 ('you' - singular, informal, as object) and jouw

('your' - singular, informal) ->> sound alike (both have a W-sound)

the V
page

vak

2 ('compartment; trade, profession, subject') - vaak

2 ('often, frequent') - vast

('solid; fixed') - veer

('feather; ferry; a spring') - veld

('field') - vol

('full') - voor

2 ('for; before' ->>) - voet

2 ('foot') - vraag

2 ('question') - vroeg

('early') - vrees

('fear') - vrede

('peace') - levend

('live, alive') - lieve

('dear, sweet') - golven

2 ('waves') - veevoer

('animal fodder') - vervoer

('transportation') - verven

2 ('to paint') - vijver

('pond') - visvangst

('catch,' - fish caught) - veelvlak

2 ([multiplane] - 'polyhedron') - rivieroever

('river bank') - vogelverschrikker

([scare-bird] - 'scarecrow') - voortvarend

('energetic, forging ahead') - voetvolk

2 ('foot soldiers') - vorstverlet

('no construction work because of freezing weather') - vliegensvlug

([flying-] 'lightning-quick') - in vogelvlucht

2 ([in birds' flight] - 'a bird's eye view, quickly') - vies en voos

2 ('very dirty') - vriend en vijand

([friend and enemy] - 'everyone') - in vuur en vlam

([in fire and flame] - 'fired up') - vorm of vent

2 ('personality of the author or structure of the book?' - schools of literary criticism) - vrouw en vriend

2 ('woman and friend' - a book title) - vorst en vaderland

2 ('king and country')

the W
page

Keep lips relaxed, not rounded like in English W; Dutch W starts with the top of the lower lip touching the front upper teeth, but not clearly blowing out air like for a V or F. The sound is formed in the back of the mouth, and not in the front like English W.
waar

('where; true') ->> - was

('laundry; wax; (I/you/he) was') - week

2 ('week') - wet

('law') - wens

('wish, desire') - wijd

('wide') - winst

('profit') - woord

('word') - dwaas

('a fool') - kwast

2 ('paintbrush') - kwijt

2 ('lost, missing') - twee

(' 2 ') - zwak

2 ('weak') - zwaar

('heavy') - zwavel

('Sulphur') - geweld

('violence') - gewicht

('weight') - gewoon

('common, normal, usual') - bewust

('conscious') - hoewel

('although') - eiwit

('protein; egg-white') - bouwval

2 ('a building in bad shape, about to collapse') - winkelwagentje

2 ('shopping cart') - welwillend

('benevolent') - wipwap

('seesaw' - children's talk) - wirwar

('a jumble, things mixed up') - windwijzer

2 ('windvane') - witwas

('"white" laundry') - wijwater

('holy water') - werkwoord

([work-word] - 'verb') - winterwortel

('large carrot') - wittebroodsweken

2 ('a couple's first weeks after marriage') - wij willen water

('we want water')
- wie wat waar welke

('who what where which')
- wijze woorden

('words of wisdom') - van wanten weten

('being knowledgeable, knowing how to do things') - wel en wee

2 ([health and illness] - 'well-being') - wis en waarachtig

2 ('it's true') - wikken en wegen

2 ([deliberating and weighing] - 'pondering a decision') - weer en wind

([weather and wind] - 'in all kinds of weather') - Ik werd wakker van de wekker

('I was woken up by the alarm clock') - Wereldwijde week van de veiligheid

2 ('global safety week' - a company slogan I thought up) - more W
exception: a rare silent W: erwt

('pea') - erwt erwten

2 ('pea peas') - kekererwten

('chickpeas, garbanzo beans') - in Dutch it's rare that letters are not pronounced.
another exception: W pronounced as F: murw

('beaten down, spirit broken') - compare: smurf

('smurf')

W before R is said as V:
wrede

('cruel') - compare with: vrede

('peace') - the sound is identical. - wreed

('cruel') - wreedheid

('cruelty') - wrijven

('to rub') - wrijving

2 ('friction') - wrak

('wrecked ship') - wrik

('(I) pry, jiggle') - wrok

('grudge, rancor') - wervel / wrevel

('vertebra (backbone) / irritation, mild anger')
- vraag

2 ('question') / wraak

('revenge')
- weerwraak / verwrongen

2 ('~revenge / twisted')
- wrat / vrat

2 ('wart / (I/you/he) ate' - slang)
- wang / wrang

('cheek / unpleasant taste, wry')
- wok / wrok

('wok / rancor, grudge')

Com-
pare

Compare V and W:
val

('a fall; a trap') / wal

2 ('city wall')
- vaas

('vase') / waas

('haze')
- vacht

('furry skin') / wacht

('guard')
- vel

('skin') / wel

('positive amplifier') ->>
- vee

2 ('cattle') / wee

('contraction' - birth)
- vilt

('felt') / wild

('wild')
- vol

('full') / wol

('wool')
- vorst

2 ('frost, freezing; king') / worst

('sausage')
- volk

2 ('a people, a nation')
/ wolk

2 ('cloud')
- bevolking

('population') / bewolking

2 ('clouds, cloud cover')
- toeval

('coincidence') - hoewel

('although')
- houweel

('pickaxe') - hoeveel

('how much, how many')
- vadem

('old depth measure, about 1.7M, 6 feet') - waden

('to wade')
- vaarwel!

('farewell!') - welvaart

('prosperity')
- wuiven

2 ('to wave') - walvis

('whale') - voorwaarde

('precondition') - veelwijverij

('polygamy') - vrijwilliger

2 ('volunteer')

the X
page

always like X in AXE - hear Dutch: ex

('ex-wife or ex-husband') - Dutch KS represents the same sound - hear Dutch: heks

('witch') - ekster

('magpie' - a bird)
x + y = z (x plus y is z)

2 3 - experiment

('experiment') - explosie

('explosion') - flexibel

('flexible') - xenon

('xenon' - a noble gas) - xylofoon

('xylophone') - saxofoon

('saxophone') - hexagonaal

('hexagonal') - extra

2 ('extra') - extract

2 ('extract, essence') - luxaflex

2 ('French blinds') - Lex

('boys' name') - Trix

(girls' name) - Xantippe

('Mrs Socrates')

the Y
page

almost always pronounced as Dutch I (either long or short) (see also Old Spelling in Names below)
systeem

('system') - cylinder

('cylinder') - hypercorrect

('hypercorrect') - symfonie

('symphony') - symptoom

('symptom') - synthetisch

('synthetic') - polypiep

([poly-squeak] a fun word for 'squeak-foam,' styrofoam, polyurethane) - cynisme hygiëne hysterisch

('cynicism hygiene hysterical')
exception: nylon

('nylon') - nylons

('sheer stockings') (like Dutch EI/IJ, somewhat imitating the English word)
In a very small number of Dutch words, usually between two vowels, Y is like English 'consonant Y' as in YES:
yoghurt

2 ('yogurt') - royaal

2 ('generous, ample') - loyaal

2 ('loyal') - loyaliteit

2 ('loyalty') - rayon

2 ("area")

zaad

('seed') - zand

2 ('sand') - zee

('sea') - zes

(' 6 ') - zilver

('silver') - zien

('to see') - zijn

('his; to be') ->> - zoet

('sweet') - zuur

2 ('sour, acid; an acid') - zwart

2 3 ('black') - glazen

('glasses (for drinking); made of glass') - gezin

('basic family') - wezen

2 ('orphans; to be - slang; the essence, the nature') - ijzer

2 ('iron') - zwager

('brother-in-law') - zwanger

('pregnant') - zwijg!

2 ('be silent! shut up!') - sperziebonen

('French (green) beans') - zigzag

2 ('zigzag') - zwanenzang

2 ('swan's song') - ziel en zaligheid

('soul and eternall bliss') - de Zeven Zeeën

2 ('the Seven Seas') - 't Vogeltje zit zo zoet op z'n nestje

('the little bird is sitting on its nest so sweetly') - dat zou zuur zijn

2 ('that would be unfortunate, a great disappointment') - ik zag de zon in de zee zinken

('I saw the sun sink into the sea') - in Amsterdam: ik sag de son in de see sinke

pronounced as voiceless E - N:
'n

is short for the indefinite article een ('a') with the same, there irregular pronunciation - 'n beetje

('a little')
m'n

is short for the first person singular possessive mijn

('my')
z'n

is short for the third person male singular possessive zijn

('his') - z'n lust en z'n leven

([his passion and his life] something very important to him')
exception: zo een

2 ('such a') is often shortened to zo'n

2 - no voiceless E, it sounds exactly the same as zoon

('son') - zo'n mooie dag

2 ('such a beautiful day') - zo'n sombere zomer

('such a dark, sad summer')

pronounced as voiceless E - Dutch R: 'r

('her; ~there') - for ease of pronunciation, often said a bit slangy as: d'r

('her; ~there')
- either short for the third person female singular possessive haar

('her')
- or the word of many meanings er

('~there') >>
Fairy tales often start out with: 'Once upon a time there was ...' - in Dutch:
er was 'r 'ns ...

2 or:
d'r was 'ns ...

2 or:
d'r was 'r 's ...

- d'r op of d'r onder

([on top of it or under it] - 'do or die')

pronounced as S - apostrophe-s can be:
1. an indication of time: 's morgens

('in the morning') - 's middags

('in the afternoon') - 's avonds

('in the evening') - 's nachts

('at night') - 's zomers

('in Summer') - 's winters

('in Winter') - see also the 'Time' page
2. for S-plurals of words ending in single A, I, O or U, to keep that single vowel long: foto's

('pictures, photographs') - risico's

('risks') (if we would write "fotos" or "risicos" OS would be pronounced with a short O, which is not correct, and to write "fotoos" or "risicoos" would look silly.)
3. an incorrect possessive: Jan's vrienden

("Jan's friends") (following the English, a very common mistake; it should be: "Jans vrienden.") ‑>>

pronounced as 'voiceless E' - T:
't

('the' (#2); 'it') is short for het

2 which can either be 'it' or 'the' ->> - the other, more frequently used definite article is de

('the' (#1))
't regent

2 ('it is raining') - regent 't?

('is it raining?') - 't Spui

2 (square or street name) - 't is niet waar!

([it's not true!] - 'you don't say!') - 't Hart

(last name, famous author Maarten 't Hart) - 't Sufferdje

(nickname for small-town newspaper)

AÄ, EË
EÏ, EÜ
IË, OË
UÏ, UÜ

Diaeresis (dieresis) - two dots on top of a vowel indicate that the vowel is pronounced separately from the preceding vowel(s), not forming a long vowel or a diphtong. In Dutch, it's called trema

- it may look somewhat similar to the German Umlaut, but its meaning is completely different.
Kanaän / kanaal

('Canaan / channel') - beëdigd / beet

('sworn in, board-certified / animal bite; gotcha!') - geïnd / gein

('money collected / fun' - slang) - reünie / reuma

('reunion / rheumatism') - piëteit / pieten

('piety / Peters') - agrariër / gier

('agriculturist, farmer / vulture') - poëten / poezen

('poets / cats') - bedoeïen / loeien

('bedouin / to moo') - coördinatie / koord

('co-ordination / cord, rope') - ruïne / ruime

('ruin / roomy, spacious') - vacuüm / buur

('vacuum / neighbor') - geëerd

2 ('honored, respected') - weeën

('contractions' - birth) - kopiëren

2 ('to copy, xerox') - ingrediënt

('ingredient') - België

2 ('Belgium') - De Zeven Provinciën

('The Seven Provinces' - official name of the Dutch Republic ca. 1600-1795) - De Verenigde Provinciën

('The United Provinces' - official name of the Dutch Republic ca. 1600-1795) - Nederlands-Indië

2 ('The Dutch Indies' - Indonesia of the Dutch colonial era) - Californië

('California') - Oekraïne

('Ukraine') - Israël

('Israel') - Sinaï

('Sinai') - Rafaël

(boys' name) - Daniël

(boys' name)
(In a recent minor spelling reform, most of the trema's in compound words have been scrapped (except in numbers.) I used to write zoëven

2 ('just a moment ago') to differentiate it from zoeven

('~to move quickly, zoom, whiz') - nowadays both should be written 'zoeven.' Likewise, I would write (if it came up) eendeëi

2 ("ducks' egg") but the rules for the 'connecting N' that even I don't pronounce were changed, and nowadays it's supposed to be spelled 'eendenei.')
I've seen the trema used in Dutchified English words, like geüpdate ('updated') but it looks extremely silly to me, and makes me pronounce it like the German U with Umlaut. Why not simply write ge-update?

Dutch has the almost identical vooruit 2 ('forward! come on!') and voorruit 2 ('windshield, front window') - the difference is not in how the R's are said, but in the stress of the words: "voorUIt" 2 or "vóórruit." 2
Similarly, a very small number of words with identical spelling get a different meaning with a shift of the stress or which E's are voiceless, unstressed:

	'uh' stands for 'voiceless (unstressed) E' (schwa)
`bedelen:`	bedelen ("beDElen - buhdéluhn" - to apportion, distribute)
	bedelen ("BEdelen - béduhluhn" - to beg, ask for things) - bedelaar 2 - 'beggar'
`voornaam:`	voornaam ("voorNAAM" - 'important')
	voornaam ("VOORnaam" - 'first name, Christian name') ‑>>
`sterkers:`	sterkers ("STERkers - stèrkuhrs" - [something] stronger)
	sterkers ("sterKERS - stèr-kèrs" - a kind of bean sprouts)
`regent:`	't regent (" 't REgent - uht réguhnt" - 'it is raining') ‑>>
	de regent ("de reGENT - duh ruhgènt" - 'a high official in the Dutch East Indies colonial administration')
`kantelen:`	kantelen ("KANtelen - kàntuhluhn" - 'to cant, tilt, tip over')
	kantelen ("kanTElen - kantéluhn" - 'battlements,' the blocks atop medieval castle walls and towers ->>)
`legering:`	legering ("LEgering - léguhring" - 'the housing of an army, encampment')
	legering 2 ("leGEring - luhgéring" - 'a mixture of metals')
`voorkomen:`	voorkomen 2 ("VOORkomen" - 'to occur')
	voorkomen ("voorKOmen" 'to prevent') ‑>>
`ondergaan:`	ondergaan ("ONDERgaan" 2 - 'to go down, go under')
	ondergaan 2 3 ("onderGAAN" - 'to undergo, be subjected to') ‑>>

Ik heb gezegd 2 - I have spoken . . . All examples translated on a separate page - or rather go to Master List of Dutch Words

Helpful related pages: Hear All Vowels and Diphthongs Side-by-Side - Slow Dutch - English with Dutch Accent for the stage

EXERCISES: test what you've learned on this page
Flash Cards Exercises
'False Friends' Pronunciation Exercise - Smartphone Version
Pronunciation Exercise - Listening Exercise
More Exercises

Names and Old Spelling

Dutch spelling is revised every 50 years or so, but names often retain features no longer found in Modern Dutch, like unusual letter combinations and superfluous characters. For instance, 'Huydecooper' would nowadays be written as "Huidekoper"

Note that double consonants are usually pronounced as single, not longer or with a pause in between: Van Poll, Verhoeff, De Witt, Wolff

AAIJ, AAY	long A, consonant Y as in YES: Kraaijkamp, Van Waay
AE	as long A: Clauwaerts, Daendels, Maetsuycker, Van der Zaen - Kersemaeker 2 / 2
EIJ, EY, UIJ, UY	in Modern Dutch written as EI or UI: Breydel, Van Eijbergen, Den Heyer, Meyers, Schey, Van Speijck 2 Buys, Van Duyn, Ruygers, Van Uylenburg, Van Zuylen van Nijevelt
CH after S	(usually at the end of the name or root word): often not pronounced: Bosch, Van Asschendelft, Musschenbroek
CK	K(K): Bicker, Van den Broecke, Van Eyck, Luyck, Ockenburg, Schimmelpeninck, Vonck
CX, CKX	X: Asselincx, Dierickx, Sterckx
-DT	(at the end of a name) T: Heldt, Van Slingelandt
H after G, H after T	often not pronounced: Van Bomberghen, Van Gogh, De Hoogh, Leeghwater, Tullingh, De With
OEIJ, OEY	OO as in BOOT, IJ or Y as consonant Y in Yes: Boeijen, Van Roey
OY, OOY, OIJ, OOIJ	IJ and Y as consonant Y in YES: Van Ooijen, Plockhoy, Roy, Van Royen, Verlooy
OU	in names sometimes as Engl. OO in BOOT, (the Dutchman recognizes the root word); in Modern Dutch as OU in LOUD: Ruys de Beerenbrouck, Snouck Hurgronje -but- Tjarda van Starkenborgh Stachouwer, Woutersen
PH	F when as first letters of name or syllable: Philips, Zutphen separate P and H in 'compound names:' Koophuis, Opheusden 2
-SZ	at the end of a name: S (short for -szoon, 'son of'): Florisz, Van Heutsz
WTE-, WTTE-	a few families write their name with Wte or Wtte as the first letters. It should be pronounced as (Dutch) ute Freule Wttewaall van Stoetwegen, Wterwijck Joachim Wtewael 2 3 Some Dutchmen will assume it actually says witte 2 ('white') - for instance "Wittewaal" or uite 2 3 (~'out of, from') - for instance Uitewaal (Uytewael) 2 3
Y	- as a vowel: As Modern Dutch EI and IJ. Rare: Hymans, Nyssens - after consonant, at end of name: as Engl. EE in SEE: Gerbrandy, Lely

Occasionally, a name is said in way that diverges from standard pronunciation, for instance: Bruegel, Baron Van Lynden
Dutchmen will attempt to pronounce foreign names as in the original language: Brüggen, Lumey, Zimmerman

More Dutch names: First and Last Names - Geography
170 Dutch and Flemish Painters
Vermeer's World - Rembrandt
17th Century Sailors and Ships
Old New York
Names by Request
The Dutch in Sports

Search Names in Holland
A beautiful website for searching Dutch last (and first) names is 'Het Meertens Instituut' which has maps showing the distribution of names over the country, both for the 1947 census and for the 2007 national population registry. Click the British flag for the English version.
You could also search for your distant Dutch relatives in The Netherlands Phone Directory. It's all in Dutch. 'Wat zoekt U?' = What are you looking for? - Enter a name.

Names Corrupted
I was asked about 'Fami(t)cha,' the first name of a Dutch greatⁿ-grandmother who came to America in the 1700s. It didn't look Dutch to me, but after some reflection and looking through Van der Schaar (the Dutch Dictionary of First Names) I think it's most likely: Femmetje 2 as written down phonetically by an English-speaking clerk. Try it for yourself: how would you write it down as you hear it? That clerk didn't do a bad job: when you say 'Famicha' as if it were an English name, doesn't it come out like I say 'Femmetje'?

Further Study: Basic Dutch Words - Pictures Dictionary - Easy Dutch - Lessons - Exercises - Listening - Reading - Grammar

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Don't be a dief (thief) / dievegge (female thief) - diefstal (theft) - stelen (to steal) - heler (dealer in stolen goods) - hear Dutch - 2