Disambiguation: Dutch 'Dat' - Multiple Meanings and Related Words

Dat

'that/those' - indicating remote items - "that car over there"
'that' - in sub-sentences making a statement after verbs like 'say' or 'think' etc. - "I think that he's right"
'that/those' - referring to something that was mentioned or happened before - "I forgot to mention that"
'that' - instead of 'who' or 'which' in sub-sentences that further describe a preceding word or phrase - "the pen that wrote those words"

Dutch 'dat' has four different meanings, three of which are found in the following sentence:
Dat boek zegt dat hij dat gedaan heeft 2 3
'That book says that he did that' - so it's not a big problem for English-speakers as 'dat' is in most cases equivalent to English 'that'
Dat¹ boek zegt dat² hij dat³ gedaan heeft.
Dat¹: pointing at, indicating a usually remote item
Dat²: 'what is said/thought etc.' - connecting two sub-sentences: a conjunction
Dat³: short for, referring to, replacing something mentioned before, 'that thing' - a 'placeholder'
There is actually a fourth 'dat' in sub-sentences that describe or provide details about the preceding word or phrase. This 'dat' is sometimes rendered in English as 'who' or 'which.'
Het enige boek dat dit goed beschrijft 2 3 'The only book that/which describes this well'

1. dat = that (remote item)		dit, deze, die = this, these, those

2. dat = that (conjunction, introducing sub-sentence)

3. dat = that ('placeholder')

	'Dit' and 'Dat' as 'These' and 'Those'
	Recapitulation (Slight Return)

4. dat, die = that, who, which

1. 'Dat' adjective - 'indicating a remote item'

dat huis 2	that house
dat huis daar	that house over there
later dat jaar 2	later that year
Dat jaar was heel mooi	That year was very good, that was a very good year
Ik ken dat woord niet	I don't know, I'm not familiar with that word
We zullen dat varkentje wel even wassen 2 3	[We'll take care of washing that piglet] - We'll take care of that task - sayings
Hij heeft vaker met dat bijltje gehakt 2 3	[He's wielded that little axe before] - He's familiar with that (usually unpleasant) duty
Een aanval vanuit een land is een aanval door dat land	An attack from a country is an attack by that country

Synomyms, Alternates and Related Words

This English 'that' refers to a singular remote item; English indicates plural remote items with 'those.' Dutch 'dat' in this sense is for remote single items known by 'het'-words, while 'die' is for remote single items represented by 'de-'words, and all plurals. The nearby opposites are 'dit' 2 (~this) for 'het'-words and 'deze' (~these) for 'de'-words and plurals

hier 2 here		dit this		deze this, these
daar there		dat that		die that, those

(recap) 'Deze' and 'die' are used for 'de' words (including plurals)
'dit' and 'dat' are used for (singular) 'het' words.
'Deze' and 'dit' indicate nearby items;
'die' and 'dat' indicate distant items.

de boom	the tree
deze boom	this tree
deze boom hier 2	this tree here
die boom	that tree
die boom daar 2 3	that tree over there

het huis	the house
dit huis	this house
dit huis hier	this house here
dat huis	that house
dat huis daar	that house over there

de auto's	the cars
deze auto's	these cars
deze auto's hier 2 3	these cars here
die auto's	those cars
die auto's daar 2	those cars over there

op deze plaats 2 3	in this spot
een dezer dagen	one of these days
op dit punt	at this point, in this spot
Er was niet veel sneeuw dit jaar	There was not much snow this year
in die volgorde 2 3	in that order, sequence
later op die dag	later that day
Al die moeite voor niks 2	All that trouble for nothing, all that effort wasted
Houdt die herrie nooit op?	Is that noise never going to stop?
Ik kende die mensen goed 2	I knew those people well

2. 'dat' = 'that' conjunction -

'Dat' and 'that' is also found after verbs like 'say' or 'think' etc., in a sub-sentence that gives an opinion, makes a statement or expresses a feeling. In English this 'that' is often left out. For the change in word order after this 'dat' see the Dutch Summary.

Ik hoop dat het op tijd is	I hope that it's in time
Zorg dat je op tijd bent 2 3	Take care to be on time
Ik zag op het nieuws dat er geen oplossing gevonden is	I saw in the news that no solution has been found
Kan 't zijn dat ik U ken?	Could it be that I know you? (Have we met before?)
Ik ben bang dat de avocado's nog niet rijp zijn 2	I'm afraid that the avocados are not ripe yet
Men zegt dat in Kentucky het gras blauw is 2	It is said that in Kentucky the grass is blue
Zij denkt dat het nog gaat gebeuren	She thinks that it's still going to happen
Hij denkt dat ik het gedroomd heb 2	He thinks that I [dreamed it] saw it in a dream
Goropius zegt dat Adam en Eva Nederlands spraken 2	Goropius says that Adam and Eve spoke Dutch
Stel je voor dat er geen auto's waren! 2	Imagine that there were no cars!
Ik dacht dat de wereld verging 2	I thought [the world was perishing] it was the end of the world
Ik wou dat er een betere manier was 2 3	I wish there was a better way (procedure to do something)

compare the next 'dats'	- also note the change in 'sentence melody'
Veel mensen zeggen dat ...	Many people say that ...
Veel mensen zeggen dat.	Many people say that.
Veel mensen denken dat ...	Many people think that ...
Veel mensen denken zo	Many people think that way

Synomyms, Alternates and Related Words

It's not really wrong to say 'dat dat' but it's not pretty. Try to say 'dat het' instead

Ik geloof niet dat dat zo is 2 3 4	I don't believe that that is like that
Ik ben blij dat het goed is afgelopen	I am glad that it ended well

3. 'Dat' and 'that' pronoun - 'placeholder:' instead of, short for something that happened or was mentioned before - or that'll be mentioned shortly after

Wat is dat?	What's that?
Wat is dat voor een auto? 2	What (kind of) brand car is that?
Dat is goed nieuws	That's good news (glad to hear that)
Dat wist ik niet 2	I didn't know that
Dat betwijfel ik 2	I doubt that
Hoorde ik dat goed? 2	Did I hear that correctly?
Kunt U dat nog eens zeggen?	Could you please say that again?
Dat geloof ik niet	I don't/can't believe that
Dat weet ik niet 2	I don't know (that)
Dat is een goede vraag 2 3	That's a good question
Dat is te veel werk 2	That's too much work
Dat is veel te lastig! 2 3 4	That is much too inconvenient, that is way too much trouble
Hoe zeg je dat precies? 2 3	How do you say that exactly?
Als ik dat vragen mag	If I may ask [that]
Wie zal dat betalen? 2	Who'll pay for that?
Hoe heb je dat gedaan?	How did you do that?
Wie heeft jullie dat verteld? 2	Who told you (guys) that?
Dat ging maar net goed 2 3	[That only just went right] - That could easily have gone horribly wrong
aanvoelen 2 3	'to sense,' to notice non-verbally, intuitively
Dat voel ik aan 2	I know that instinctively, it's something I sense (like one's native language)

Wat is dat voor een beest?

2 3 4
What [kind of] (unpleasant) animal is that?
[praying mantis]

't Is een bidsprinkhaan

It's a praying mantis ->>

Synomyms, Alternates and Related Words

Of course, this 'dat'/'that' is a more pointed, more specific form of 'het' / 'it' - see more 'het' on its - disambiguation page.

Hoe zeg je dat in het Nederlands? 2	How do you say that in Dutch?
Weet jij hoe je het moet zeggen?	Do you know how to say it?
Dat had ik niet moeten zeggen 2	I shouldn't have said that (It was wrong, it was a mistake)
Dàt had ik moeten zeggen 2 3	That's what I should have said (the right phrase didn't come to mind in the stress of the moment)

Like 'it' is not translated as 'het' but as 'er' when used with a preposition ->> 'that' with a preposition is translated not as 'dat' but as 'daar' - see the 'daar' disambiguation page

Daar had je aan moeten denken 2 (3 4)	You should have thought of that
Ben je daar zeker van? 2 3 4	Are you sure (of that)? Are you certain?
Daar ben ik te oud voor 2	I'm too old for that

'Dit' and 'Dat' as 'These' and 'Those'

Indicating items with a gesture or by pointing a finger, or talking about a situation or an event (commenting, describing, identifying) you can use dit

2 ('this') and dat

('that') by itself, 'independently,' not immediately followed by a noun. These 'Dit' and 'dat' may also be 'placeholders' like the words in the chapter above.

Dit is mijn auto	This is my car
Dit is verschrikkelijk langzaam 2	This is terribly slow ‑>>
Dit is niet verschrikkelijk langzaam	This is not terribly slow
Dit is gekkenwerk! 2 3 4	'This is a crazy way of doing things' - Freule Wttewaal van Stoetwegen during a chaotic 1970 session of the Dutch House of Representatives
Dit is het woord dat ik zocht 2 3	This is the word I was looking for
Dat is de reden 2 3	That's the reason
Dat is een ander verhaal 2	That's another story

Pointing at people in pictures, or introducing people to each other, you can also use dit 2 ('this') and (for pointing) dat ('that') by itself, 'independently,' not immediately followed by a noun. ('Dat' is not necessarily 'distant' but can be used to differentiate.)

Dit is Tine 2 3	This is Tine
Dat is Karel 2	That is Karel

But the strange thing is that in this kind of sentences Dutch 'dit' and 'dat' are also used for multiple items or more than one person - where English will use 'these' and 'those'

Dit zijn mijn woorden	These are my words
Dit zijn de ruimtereizen ... 2 3	These are the voyages ...
Dat zijn mijn woorden	Those are my words - my writing was stolen, plagiarized
Dat zijn mijn boeken 2	Those are my books
Dat zijn de gevolgen 2	[Those are ...] Here you see the consequences, results

'Deze zijn mijn woorden,' 'Deze zijn de avonturen' and 'Die zijn de gevolgen' are not good Dutch

In Dutch, you can also say "Dit zijn ..." when introducing more than one person, where (I'm told) in English you should rather say "This is ... and this is ..." than "These are ... and ..." - or pointing at pictures you could say "These/Those people are ... and ..."

Dit zijn Jan en Mies 2 3	This is Jan, this is Mies
Dat zijn Pia en Hans 2	That is Pia and that is Hans

Thank you Ieva Gailuma for bringing this up

Recapitulation (Slight Return)

(het) huis

(de) fiets

2 3

boeken

'Mijn huis' / my house can refer either to a house you own or that you live in; bikes and books are more affordable, unlikely to be rented, so there 'mijn' / my implies ownership

Dit is mijn huis 2 3 4	This is my house
Dit huis is van mij 2	This house is mine (I am the owner) // This is my house
Dat is mijn huis 2 3	That is my house
Dat huis is van mij 2	That house is mine (I am the owner) // That is my house
Het is mijn huis 2	It's my house // I own the house
Dit is mijn fiets 2 3	This is my bike
Deze fiets is van mij 2 3	This bike is mine, this is my bike
Dat is mijn fiets 2 3	That's my bike
Die fiets is van mij 2 3	That bike is mine, that is my bike
Het is mijn fiets 2 3	It's my bike
Dit zijn mijn boeken 2	These are my books
Deze boeken zijn van mij 2 3 4	These books are mine, these are my books, t
Dat zijn mijn boeken 2 3	Those are my books
Die boeken zijn van mij 2	Those books are mine, those are my books
Het zijn mijn boeken 2	~Those are my books, those books are mine

4. 'dat' = 'that' - instead of 'who' or 'which'

'Dat' is also found where English uses 'that' instead of a 'who' or 'which' in sentences that further describe a preceding word or phrase.
But in sentences where 'that' (or 'who' or 'which') refers back to a plural or a 'de'-word, Dutch uses die

In English, this 'that' can often be left out. For the change in word order after this 'dat' see Dutch Summary

Het mes dat het touw doorsneed 2 3	The knife that cut the rope
Het huis dat te koop staat 2 3	The house that's for sale
De auto die in brand stond 2 3	The car that was on fire
De komeet die gezien werd 2 3	The comet that was seen
De man die de woorden schreef 2 3	The man who wrote the words
De pen die gebruikt werd 2 3	The pen that was used
De vrouw die het bedacht had 2	The woman who had thought it up
De mensen die naast ons wonen	The people [who/that live] next door [to us]
Niemand die me lastig valt 2 3	['Nobody who is bothering me'] - [There is] 'nobody to bother me, nobody bothering me'
Het enige boek dat dit goed beschrijft 2 3	The only book that describes this well
Het boek dat dat zei 2 3	The book that said that
De man die dat zei 2 3	The man who said that
Het meisje dat dat zei 2 3	The girl who said that
Het enige voorbeeld dat ik kan bedenken	The only example (that) I can think of
De mens lijdt 't meest van 't lijden dat-ie vreest	Man suffers most from the suffering (that) he fears
Het was de derde keer dat ik 'm zag	It was the third time that I saw it/him
Het vroor dat 't kraakte 2	It was freezing [so hard] that it cracked (ice, I assume)
Het land dat God vergat 2	The country that God forgot (The country forgotten by God) - /or/ The country that forgot (about) God
Wat de boer niet kent, dat lust-ie niet 2 3 4	[What the peasant doesn't know, he doesn't like] - a reluctance to try something new, neophobia
De druppel die de emmer deed overlopen 2 3	[The drop that made the bucket spill over] - The straw that broke the camel's back - sayings
De uitzondering die de regel bevestigt 2	"The exception that confirms the rule" ->>
Er zijn mensen die zeggen dat ... 2	[There are people who say that ...] Some people say that ...
Van oude mensen en dingen die voorbij gaan 2	'Of old people and things that pass' (a Louis Couperus book title - slightly incorrect)
Al de domme dingen die ik gedaan heb 2 3	All the stupid things I've done
Roeien met de riemen die je hebt	['Rowing with the oars you've got'] Using the material at hand
De landen die neutraal bleven 2	The countries that remained/stayed neutral
Hij was een van de weinige mensen die ... 2 3	He was one of the few people who ...
Mannen die lui worden 2 3	[Men that are becoming lazy] - Men getting lazy
Die achterop doet er niks aan! 2 3	The one in back is [not doing anything about it] not helping (a comment I often got riding a tandem bicycle)

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