Disambiguation: Many common words can have more than one meaning, with
different translations
List of Prepositions and Other 'Little Words'
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Disambiguation: Dutch 'Erg'
- Multiple Meanings and Related Words
Erg
'very'- "I'm very tired"
'very bad, awful, terrible'- "It's not as bad
as it looks"
1. 'erg' =
'very'
Hij is erg blij
He's very happy Ik ben erg moe
2
I'm very tired Hij was erg moe
He was very tired Ze waren erg arm
2
They were very poor Ze zijn erg gevoelig
2
They are very sensitive Gisteren was het erg mooi weer
Yesterday the weather was very nice
Gisteren was het erg slecht weer
Yesterday the weather was very bad Heb je je erg verveeld?
2
Were you very bored? Was it really boring? Het valt erg mee
2
3
It's by far not as bad as we were afraid of or as it looked Ik hou(d) erg van Bach
2
3
I really like Bach, I love Bach Hij houdt erg van soep
2
He likes soup very much, he really loves soup Hij kan erg hard fietsen
2
He can ride a bike very fast, he's a fast biker Hij is erg nieuwsgierig
2
3
He is very curious (inquisitive, eager to know things) Hij gaat erg achteruit
2
3
['He goes backward badly..'] He's quickly getting worse
(health, mental state) Dat is erg ongebruikelijk
2
3
That's very unusual erg lekker
2
very enjoyable (food, sensations) Het eten was erg lekker
The food was [very tasty, very enjoyable] great M'n zoon vond 't erg leuk
My son really enjoyed it (say, a concert) Hij is heel slim
en bovendien erg aardig
2
3
4
He's very clever and on top of that
very kind, a nice person De film ... van ... vind ik ook erg goed
I also really like the movie ... by ... Hij is erg principieel
2
3
He is very principled,
he lives by high principles erg groot
2
3
slow
slow2
slow3
very large, gigantic
't Was erg gezellig
It was really pleasant, we/I enjoyed it very much
'gezellig'
2
3
(gezellige
2
3 )
pleasant, nice, enjoyable, gregarious, cosy
(there is no exact English equivalent for this word)
A person can be gezellig:
een gezellige man
a gregarious guy een gezellige prater
2
a person that it's nice talking with
a space can be gezellig:
een gezellige kamer
a cosy room
time spent together can be gezellig:
een gezellige avond
an enjoyable evening
or: een gezellig etentje
2
3
a cosy, enjoyable dinner (in or out) 'Een gezellige dag gewenst'
2
3
'Wishing you a pleasant day
(in the company of family and friends)'
also used as an adverb:
Gezellig dat je meedoet
2
3
It's so nice that you're joining us
(in an activity) We zaten gezellig te praten
2
We were having a pleasant conversation,
a nice chat herinneringen ophalen
2
to reminisce, bringing up memories We zaten gezellig herinneringen op te
halen
2
We were reminiscing pleasantly,
we were having a good time chatting about the past Gezelligheid kent geen tijd
2
[Good times know of no clocks]
~ 'Time flies when you're having a good time with friends'
Het was vorige maand erg koud
It was very cold last month
'Heel erg'
2
is the superlative degree for 'erg' meaning 'very' - there's
no straightforward equivalent in English ('very very') - I often
translate it as 'really very' or something like that.
heel erg veel
very much, really a lot, a very large amount
'Erger' is the superlative degree of 'erg' meaning
'bad' - see - below
Het is heel erg koud
2
It's really very cold, terribly cold Ik ben heel erg moe
2
I'm really very tired, terribly tired Hij is heel erg moe
He's really very tired, terribly tired 't Spijt me heel erg
2
3
I'm really very sorry Ze was wel knap, maar niet heel erg
knap
2
3
She was pretty but [not extremely, extraordinarily
pretty] breathtakingly so Er is erg veel regen
2
There's [very much] really a lot of rain
Synomyms, Alternates and
Related Words
'Heel'
2
3
is an alternative Dutch
word for 'very.' Looking at the examples, I think they're mostly
interchangeable, though 'heel' is more colloquial. In writing,
I would mostly use 'erg.' And as I said above,
you can say 'heel erg'
- but 'erg heel' is completely wrong and
'erg erg' above
Heel goed, dank je
2
Very good, thank you
(in answer to: 'how are you?')
Het houten huis is heel oud
The wooden house is very old
Ik vind het heel raar
2
I think it's very strange
Een heel klein beetje
2
A very small amount
heel even
2
a very short time
Hij speelt heel goed gitaar
2
3
He plays the guitar very well 't Betekent heel iets anders
2
It means something [very] completely different
'Cowboy Gerard' in 'Het Spel Kaarten:'
Wat heb je daarop te zeggen?
2
What have you got to say about that?
(explain yourself) Heel veel
2
Really a lot, very many things
See also
'Heel,' 'Veel' and
'Erg'
'Verschrikkelijk'
(verschrikkelijke
2 )
can mean 'horrible' but also 'terrible' - 'very serious,' in a serious,
often 'terrifyingly' high degree
Ik ben verschrikkelijk moe
2
I am terribly tired, really very tired verschrikkelijk langzaam
2
3
terribly slow Dit is verschrikkelijk langzaam
2
This is terribly slow Dit is niet verschrikkelijk langzaam
This is not terribly slow Een verschrikkelijke winter
A horrible, very bad Winter
also: vreselijk
'dreadful, terrible, horrible'
2. 'erg' =
'very bad, awful, terrible '
Ik hoop dat je het niet erg vindt
I hope you don't think it's bad, I hope you don't mind Is het echt zo erg?
2
3
4
5
Is it really that bad? 't Is niet zo erg als het lijkt
2
It's not as bad as it looks Zó erg is 't toch ook weer
2
3
[Thàt bad is it yet also again not?]
Zó erg is 't nou
toch ook weer niet?
2
3
4
5
6
7
It's not really thàt bad, is it?
Ik vind het heel erg
I think it's [very] really bad, I'm upset over
it
't Is allemaal niet zo erg
2
3
[All those things are]
- It's not that bad, not that grave
- don't worry Ik heb erge pijn
2
3
I'm in bad, serious pain 't Is al minder erg
2
3
[It's already less bad] - It's not as bad as it
was (pain etc.) Ik vind 't niet erg
2
3
4
I don't mind, it doesn't bother me
(usually said about an inconvenience)
Ik vind het heel erg
als ik eten weg moet gooien
2
3
4
I feel bad, I hate it when I have to
throw out food Compare 'heel erg' in the examples below:
Ik vind het heel erg
I think it's [very] really bad, I'm upset over
it
't Spijt me heel erg
2
3
I'm really very sorry
Synomyms, Alternates and
Related Words
The superlative degree
of the 'erg'
meaning 'very bad'
is 'erger'
2
3 'erger'
can be the simple present
for 'I' of the
reflexive verb zich ergeren
2
Is 't erger geworden?
2
Did it [become] get worse? 't Had erger kunnen zijn
2
It could have been worse 't Was nog erger dan ik dacht
2
3
It was even worse than I had thought 't Wordt steeds erger
2
3
It's getting worse [all the time] and worse Dat maakt 't alleen maar erger
2
3
4
That only makes it worse,
that just makes it worse Ik erger me dood
2
3
I'm annoyed to [death] no end zich ergeren aan
2
3
4
to be annoyed by (at, with) Ik erger me aan z'n houding
2
3
4
I'm annoyed by his attitude Ik erger me aan de buren
2
3
4
I'm annoyed by the neighbors
'Ergste'
means 'worst' - it is the superlative degree of 'erg' meaning 'bad.'
In the examples it's used as a noun:
op 't ergste voorbereid
2
prepared for the worst 't Ergste is voorbij
2
The worst is over Ik vrees 't ergste
2
3
I fear the worst (has happened)
- I'm afraid the worst possible
outcome has come about 't Ergste dat je kan overkomen ...
2
3
The worst that can happen (to you) ... (usually said
when that 'worst' isn't so bad, you're not taking much risk) in 't ergste geval ...
2
3
[in the worst scenario] - the worst
outcome, 'if worst comes to worst'
‑>>
'Ergs' is the noun of 'erg'
Er is iets heel ergs gebeurd
2
3
4
Something [very] really bad happened
->>
As you
may have seen
the Dutch word (de) worst
'Wurst')
De worst is over
2
The sausage was left over, not eaten
'Ergens'
2 ('somewhere' - and
sometimes 'something') and 'nergens'
2 ('nowhere' - and
sometimes 'nothing') moved to the
Disambiguation: 'Er'
The somewhat old-fashioned
zeer
2 similarly to
'erg' means both 'very' and 'hurt, pain.'
zeer vereerd
[very] much honored, "obliged"? oud zeer
'old hurt,' historical wrongs, long-lasting grievances Doet 't zeer?
2
Does it hurt? Tegen 't zere been
2
3
['Against the sore leg']
- figuratively hitting someone in a
sensitive, already sore spot, like pointing out an already
acknowledged failure
Dutch Vocabulary Overview
- Dutch Grammar Overview
- Listen to and Read Dutch
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