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

1. haast = hurry, haste		spoed = haste, speed, rush, urgency - gauw = quick, soon

	opschieten = to hurry		snel = quick, rapid, fast		hard = hard (not soft) // intense // loud // fast

	langzaam = slow		geduld = patience		rustig = not hurried		zacht = soft

2. haast = almost, nearly		bijna = almost, nearly		nauwelijks = barely, 'narrowly'

1. 'haast' = 'hurry, haste'

(de) haast	hurry, haste
haastig 2 3	hurriedly, hastily, hasty
gehaast 2 3	hurried, hurriedly
zich haasten	to hurry, make haste

Er is haast bij 2 3 4	'It is urgent'
Er is geen haast bij 2	there's no need for hurry, there is no rush'
't Heeft geen haast 2	'there's no need for hurry, there is no rush'

Haastige spoed is zelden goed slow	"Hasty speed is seldom good" - 'Hurry is rarely useful'
Ik zal me haasten 2 3 4	I'll hurry

Haast je als je de tijd hebt, dan heb je de tijd als je haast hebt

- 'Hurry when you have time, then you'll have time when you're in a hurry' (informal, singular 'you')
Haast U als U de tijd heeft, dan heeft U de tijd als U haast heeft

- 'Hurry when you have time, then you'll have time when you're in a hurry' (polite 'you')

Synomyms, Alternates and Related Words

(de) spoed	haste, speed, rush, urgency
spoedig	soon
(het) spoedgeval 2 3	urgent case, emergency
gauw 2	quick, soon
dringend 2	urgent, pressing
urgent 2	urgent, requiring prompt action
(de) urgentie	urgency
binnenkort 2	['within a short time'] - soon

zo spoedig mogelijk 2	ASAP, 'As soon as possible'
Haastige spoed is zelden goed slow	"Hasty speed is seldom good" - 'Hurry is rarely useful'
Tot gauw!	See you soon!
Kom gauw! 2 3	Come quick!
in de gauwigheid	in the rush of things, because I had to act quickly
Ik kan zo gauw geen voorbeeld bedenken 2 3	I cannot think of an example [that quickly] right away
Moeten we al zo gauw weg? 2 3	Do we have to leave that [quickly] soon?
Ik hoop er gauw naar te kunnen kijken 2 3	I hope [to be able] to have a look at it soon
't Is dringend 2	It is urgent
Ze wil je dringend spreken 2	She wants to talk to you urgently
Ze moet je dringend spreken 2	She urgently needs to talk to you
Er zijn binnenkort verkiezingen 2	There will be elections soon

The verb 'schieten' 2 means 'to shoot.' It's a strong verb:

schieten
to shoot

schoot
shot

geschoten
shot

schieten
to shoot

ik schiet
I shoot

wij schieten
we shoot

ik schoot
I shot

wij schoten
we shot

ik heb geschoten
I have shot

Schieten op kleiduiven

2 3 Shooting at clay pigeons Hij schoot een pijl naar de boom

He shot an arrow at the tree op

for a general or mulltiple targets, naar

for a single target

The compound verb 'opschieten' means 'to hurry' and there is a phrase 'goed kunnen opschieten met' 2 3 meaning 'to get on well with someone, to like a person.'

Ik zal opschieten 2	I'll hurry
Schiet op! 2	Hurry up!
't Schiet op 2	It's progressing nicely, it's almost done

Ik kan goed opschieten met Jan 2 3	I get on well with Jan, I like Jan

Dutch has a word kwiek 2 that's clearly related to English 'quick,' but it's not much used and it has come to mean 'lively.' (Het) kwik is 'quicksilver, mercury' and there's a bird with an busy tail called (het) kwikstaartje ('(little) wagtail.')
The common word for 'quick, rapid, fast' is 'snel (snelle 2 3 - snel / snelle )

(de) snelheid 2	speed
(de) versnelling 2	accelaration
(de) zwaartekracht 2 3	gravity
(de) vaart 2	speed // momentum, built-up speed
versnellingen 2 3	'gears' (bike, car)
(de) stroomversnelling 2	'rapids' (whitewater)
te snel 2	too fast

(de) snelweg	highway, freeway
(de) sneltrein	fast train, express
(de) sneltreinvaart 2	rapid pace
(de) snelkookpan	pressure cooker
bliksemsnel 2	[lightning-fast] very fast
(de) snelheidsmeter 2	speedometer

vlug 2	quick, fast, rapid
(vlug / vlugge 2	quick, fast, rapid)

vliegensvlug	[flying-fast] very quick
(het) vluggertje	speed-chess match (10-minutes)

(de) hoge snelheid 2 3	high speed
lage snelheden 2 3	low speeds
'n snelle reactie 2 3	a quick reaction
snel eten	to eat quickly, eating fast
't Ging zo snel 2 3 4	It [went] happened so fast
Het is te snel voor mij 2	It's too fast for me
U praat te snel voor mij 2 3	You're talking too fast (for me)
Hij verfde het huis snel 2	He painted the house quickly
Hij drinkt snel een biertje 2	He's quickly drinking a beer
Hij berekende snel het verschil 2	He quickly calculated what the difference was
Hij deed 't werk snel 2 3	He quickly did the work, he finished the job quickly
Hij bedacht snel een smoesje 2 3	He quickly [thought up] made up an excuse
Ze zwemt snel	She swims fast, she's a fast swimmer
De boot vaart snel	The [boat] ship [sails] moves fast, it's a fast boat
met hoge snelheid 2	at high speed
vaart verliezen 2 3	[losing speed] slowing down, decelerate
in vliegende vaart	[at flying speed] at very high speed // quickly
in volle vaart	'at full throttle,' ~high speed
Ik gaf haar snel een knipoogje	I quickly winked at her

Hij vertelde ons snel een paar mopjes

2 He quickly told us a few jokes De verkenner vertelde de kolonel snel wat hij gezien had

2 The scout quickly told the colonel what he had seen Al is de leugen nog zo snel, de waarheid achterhaalt haar wel

2 3 4 ['However quick a lie may be, the truth will overtake it'] - Lies won't last, the truth will come out eventually Als je het werk snel doet krijg je meer geld

2 3 When you do the work quickly you'll get more money

Dutch 'hard' (harde 2 - hard / harde ) can mean 'not soft' (literally and figuratively) like in English, and it can like in English mean 'requiring great effort' - 'with great force' or 'with energy or speed' and 'intense, powerful' but Dutch 'hard' is not completely equivalent to English 'hard.' It can also mean 'loud' and 'fast.'
For zacht 'soft' see below

hardgekookt ei 2 3	hard-boiled egg
harde harten	'hard hearts' (unmoved by sympathy, don't feel your pain)
hardvochtig 2 3	hard-hearted, heartless ('hard' people)

Hij werkt hard	He's working hard
Er moet nog hard gewerkt ~~worden~~	There still needs to be (a lot of) hard work done, It still needs a lot of hard work
Harder werken aan Nederlands leren	Work harder on learning Dutch (a resolution)
keihard 2 3	hard, powerful, high-energy, with much effort
Gaat 't hard regenen?	Is it going to rain hard?
Als 't hard regent blijf ik thuis 2	If it's raining hard I'll stay home
Heb ik hard genoeg geschopt?	Did I kick (the ball) hard enough?
Gisteren schopte ik niet hard genoeg	Yesterday I didn't kick (the ball) hard enough
Ik had de bal harder willen schoppen	I had wanted to kick the ball harder.
Hij schopt de bal heel hard 2	He's kicking the ball very hard

Dutch 'hard' with words of sound can also mean 'loud'

Hij lacht hard	He's laughing loudly
hard praten 2	to talk loudly
harde muziek 2	loud music
keihard 2 3	very loud

See also: The Senses: Hearing

English 'driving hard' means to really put energy into it, making a serious effort, and it also means 'pushing hard,' literally and figuratively, while Dutch 'hard rijden' 2 just means 'fast driving or riding.' With Dutch verbs of movement 'hard' means 'fast.'

hardlopen 2 3 ['to walk fast'] - to run

hardlopen
to run

ik loop hard
I'm running

ik liep hard
I ran

ik heb hardgelopen
I have run

2 3

Morgen wil ik gaan hardlopen 2	Tomorrow I want to go running
ik rij(d) te hard 2	I'm driving (or riding) too fast
Hij kan erg hard fietsen 2	He can ride a bike very fast, he is a very fast biker

Keep in mind that Dutch 'rijden

2 means both 'to drive' and 'to ride.' It's a strong verb:

rijden
to ride/to drive

reed
drove/rode

gereden
driven/ridden

rijden
to ride/to drive

ik rijd
I drive/ride

wij rijden
we drive/ride

ik reed
I drove/rode

wij reden
we drove/rode

ik heb gereden/
ik ben gereden
I have driven/ridden

The opposite of 'snel 'fast, quick, rapid' is 'langzaam' (langzame 2 3 - langzaam/langzame ) 'slow.' The Z is often 'softened' to an S: "langsaam" 2 ("langsaam/langsame" 2)

Ik loop langzaam	I'm walking slowly, I'm a slow walker
Ik reed heel langzaam naar huis 2	I drove/rode home very slow
Je reed te langzaam 2	You were driving/riding too slow
langzaam aan 2	Go slow, don't rush, take it easy
langzaam maar zeker 2 3	slowly but certainly
De vader voerde het kind langzaam een bord pap 2 3	The dad slowly fed the child a plateful of porridge
Dit is (niet) verschrikkelijk langzaam slow 2	This is (not) terribly slow.
Verschrikkelijk langzaam slow 2	Terribly slow
langzamerhand 2 3	[slowly] - gradually
See and Hear also:	Slow Dutch
traag 2	slow, sluggish, languid
Onnatuurlijk traag slow 2 3	Unnaturally tardy, sluggish - more Slow Dutch
(de) vertraging 2	delay
Ik had vertraging 2 3	'I was late' (there was a delay)
't Leidde tot veel vertraging 2 3	It led to much delay, it caused much delay
not related: (de) tragedie 2 3	tragedy
and tragisch 2 (tragische )	tragic

'Patience' is (het) geduld 2
'patient' is geduldig 2 3
'impatient' is ongeduldig 2
'patient,' a person under medical care is (de) patiënt - Medical
The card game 'solitaire' is called 'Patience' 2 3 in Dutch (French pronunciation)

Geduldig zijn	Be patient (a resolution ->>
Geduld oefenen	['Exercise patience'] - Be patient (a bit old-fashioned)
Geduld is een schone zaak	Patience is a beautiful thing, patience is good
Hij wachtte geduldig op z'n beurt 2 3	He waited patiently for his turn
Hij onderging de behandeling geduldig 2	He patiently underwent the treatment

Dutch rustig (rustige 2 3 means 'not hurried' - 'calm, peaceful, quiet, steady, not much activity'

Alles was rustig	All was quiet
rustig aan 2	don't rush, take it easy, calm down
rustig rijden	drive calmly, don't rush
rustig maar 2 3 4 5	"there, there" (trying to comfort an upset person)
Drink eerst even rustig een kopje thee 2	First take a moment to relax and drink a cup of tea
Ik vind 't wel rustig 2 (3)	~I like the quiet (of it)

(de) rust

2 is 'rest,' a period of quiet and recuperation; rusten

2 is 'to rest' - more
(de) onrust

'unrest, turmoil; restlessness'

See also: stil 2 (stil / stille 2) 'quiet, silent, no sound' ‑>>

'Zacht ( zachte 2 - zacht / zachte ) is 'soft'
zachtjes 'softly, gently, carefully'
zachtaardig 2 kind-hearted, sweet-natured, mild-mannered

(een) zachtgekookt ei 2 3	soft-boiled egg (still-liquid yolk)
Zacht als boter 2	Soft as butter
Zo zacht als boter	As soft as butter
Even zacht als boter 2	Just as soft as butter
Voel hoe zacht de stof is! 2 3	Feel how soft the fabric is!
zachte muziek 2 3	soft music (not loud)
een zachte stem 2 3	a quiet voice (not loud)
Hij zei heel zachtjes 'ja' 2 3	He said 'yes' very softly
een zachte winter 2 3	a mild Winter
een zacht prijsje 2 3	'a soft price' - a rather low price, possibly fishy

Zachtjes aan, dan breekt het lijntje niet slow slow2 [Go [softly] slow so the [line] rope doesn't break] - Easy does it

The pronunciation of the G in the South of The Netherlands and in the North of Belgium is called (de) 'zachte G' 2 3 - more
'Groots met Een Zachte G' 2 'Great, majestic with a soft G' (A Guus Meeuwis show) 'Zachte G' 2 3

2. 'haast' = 'almost, nearly'

'Haast'

can also be an adverb meaning 'almost, nearly.' 'Welhaast'

2 3 is an older form

't Is haast onmogelijk 2 3	It's nearly impossible
't Is welhaast onmogelijk 2 3	It's nearly (well nigh?) impossible
Dat is haast niet te doen 2 3	That's almost impossible (to do) - it's going to be a very difficult job
't Is haast ongelooflijk 2	It is almost unbelievable, it's hard to believe
Er is haast geen geld 2 3	There is [almost no, hardly any] very little money
Je zou haast denken ... 2 3	You would almost think ...
Hij heeft haast niks gegeten 2 3	He [ate almost nothing] barely ate anything

Synomyms, Alternates and Related Words

Bijna

2 is also a common word for 'almost, nearly, barely'

bijna nooit 2	almost never
bijna altijd	almost always, almost every time
bijna even goed als ... 2 3	almost as good as ...
bijna net zo leuk 2 3 4	Almost as nice (funny, entertaining)
Het is bijna klaar	It's almost ready
We zijn er bijna 2	We're almost there
Ik viel bijna 2	I almost fell, I came close to falling
De minuutwijzer beweegt bijna niet meer slow	The minutes hand barely moves anymore

Nauwelijks 2 is 'barely,' 'almost no,' "narrowly"
Also: ternauwernood

Er is nauwelijks verschil 2 3 4	There is hardly any difference
Hij kan nauwelijks nog lopen 2	He can barely walk anymore
Hij kon nauwelijks nog lopen 2	He could barely walk anymore
Er is nauwelijks regen gevallen 2 3	There has [barely fallen rain] hardly been any rain
Ik heb hem nauwelijks gekend 2 3	I barely knew him

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