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Dutch Disambiguation: Common Words with More Than One Meaning

Disambiguation Home - Aan - Achter - Af - Al - Als - Binnen/Buiten - Daar - Dan - Dat - Door - Eens - Er - Erg - Even - Haast - Het - In - Laat - Maar - Na - Naar - Net - Nog - Of - Om - Onder/Boven - Op - Over - Toen - Uit - Van - Voor - Vroeg - Waar - Wat - Weg - Zo - more - 2

Like most languages, Dutch has many words that have more than one meaning. English for instance has 'broke' which is the past tense of 'to break,' but it can also mean 'out of money' (Dutch: blut ) - the two meanings of 'broke' may be related. Likewise Dutch has brak 2 3 as the past tense singular of breken ‑>> ('to break')

breken
to break

brak
broke

gebroken
broken

- het touw brak

2 ('the rope broke') - but 'brak' can also mean 'somewhat salty,' said of water, like English 'brackish' - brak water

English 'back' has several meanings that have different words in Dutch:

a person's 'back' (the body part) is (de) rug
the 'back' of an item, usually a side you cannot see is (de) achterkant 2 (more 'sides')
'back' like in 'going back, returning' is terug
Ik kom nooit meer terug 2 ('I'll never come back')

English 'What is it about?' can ask for the subject of a book, a documentary or a movie. That 'about' is translated in Dutch as: over 2

gaan over 2	'to be about'
Waar gaat 't over? 2 3	What is it about? (What is the subject of a book etc.)
Het boek gaat over dolfijnen	The book is about dolphins

But 'to be about' can also be a question about an argument or a fight: 'what is the important thing?' Then, 'about' is translated as: om

gaan om 2	'to be about'
Waar gaat 't om? 2	What is it about? (what's important, the bone of contention)
't Gaat om 't geld 2	It's about the money

As related languages, Dutch and English words sometimes have shared meanings, which are not found in other languages. For instance, Dutch 'voor' and English 'for' may be fairly equivalent, you can often use Dutch 'voor' where English says 'for,' but other languages may use a wide variety of prepositions to express those meanings. Don't focus on the English words when you're not a native speaker of English, but study the many sample sentences on the linked pages for a better understanding of the usage.

Aan

‑>>

'on, upon' - "Southend-on-Sea"
'on' (not off) - "The light is on"
'to' - "A letter to the king"
'at' - "There is someone at the door"
'of' - "lack of imagination"
'for' - "the need for warmth (heat)"
'in, into' - "You're putting a lot of work into it"
'from' - "That was still missing from it!"
'by' - "By its fruit the tree is known"
'about' - "Nothing can be done about it"

Aan de ene kant ...

2 3 On the one [side] hand ... Doe 't licht aan

2 3 Turn on the light Aan tafel!

2 [Come] to the table! (food is served) Hij zat aan tafel

He was sitting at the table een teveel aan informatie

2 an overabundance, overload of information de behoefte aan rust

2 3 the need for quiet, rest Geen wolkje aan de lucht

2 (saying) [Not a cloud in the sky] No problems are expected Ze lijden aan geheugenverlies

2 'They are suffering from memory loss' - usually said when people ignore inconvenient history Ik herkende hem aan z'n stem

2 I recognized him by his voice Je moet er wat aan doen

2 3 4 You have to do something about it The 'Aan' Page

Achter

2 ‑>>

'behind' - "behind a tree"
'back, rear' - "the back door"

achter 't huis

behind the house achter in de kerk

2 3 in the back of the church The 'Achter' Page

Af

‑>>

'off, away from' - "The ball rolled off the table"
'finished, done' - "My job is never done"

afsnijden

2 to cut off (with a knife) - and also figuratively Is 't af?

2 3 4 Is it finished? Is it ready? Are you done with it? Maak eerst je huiswerk af

First, finish your homework The 'Af' Page

Al

2 ‑>>

'already' - "Are the bananas already yellow?"
'all, every' (adverb and adjective) - "I've sold all my books"
'all, everything' (noun) - "All's well that ends well"
'even if' - a contradiction, an exaggeration or a strong feeling - "Even if it takes me years"

Zijn de perziken al rijp?

2 Are the peaches ripe already? Al die dingen doen dat nou

2 3 4 [All those things do that now] - All those devices now have that feature Eind goed, al goed

2 3 All's well that ends well Al kost 't me jaren

2 3 Even if it's going to take (me) years The 'Al' Page

Als

‑>>

'if' and 'when' (stating conditions) - "If it rains ..." - "When it rains ..."
'as, like' (comparing) - "Soft as butter"
'as a' (representing) - "As an example ..."

't IJzer smeden als het heet is

2 3 Forge the iron when it's hot Als 't hard regent blijf ik thuis

2 If it rains hard I'll stay home 't Is niet zo erg als 't lijkt

2 3 It's not as bad as it looks Als Nederlander zou ik zeggen: "ja"

As a Dutchman I'd say: Yes! The 'Als' Page

Binnen

2 ‑>>

'inside, in, into, indoors'

Buiten

2 ‑>>

'outside, out, outdoors'

Ik ben de hele dag binnen gebleven

2 3 I've [stayed, remained] been inside all day Hij ging het huis binnen

He went into the house, he went inside the house binnen een uur

2 [in, inside of] within an hour 't Is koud buiten

It's cold outside Hij liep 't huis uit

he walked out of the house buiten adem

2 out of breath The 'Binnen / Buiten' Page

Daar

(over) there, in that spot - "there's a mailbox over there!"
(with preposition) that - "I had not thought of that"
(old fashioned, bookish) because - "because the negotiations failed"

De uitgang is daar

The exit is over there Daar moet je mee ophouden

2 You should stop doing that / Stop that! Daar was ik al bang voor

2 I was already afraid of that, that bad thing was expected Daar de verwachte groei uitbleef werd de fabriek weer gesloten

2 Because the expected growth didn't materialize the factory was closed (again) The 'Daar' Page

Dan

2 ‑>>

'than' - "bigger than"
'then' (future) - "... and then there'll be trouble"

Beter laat dan nooit

Better late than never ... en dan wordt 't spannend

... and then it'll get exciting The 'Dan' Page

Dat

‑>>

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

Ik ken dat woord niet

I don't know, I'm not familiar with that word Hoorde ik dat goed?

2 Did I hear that correctly? Ik hoop dat het op tijd is

I hope that it's in time Het was de derde keer dat ik 'm zag

It was the third time that I saw it/him The 'Dat' Page

Door

‑>>

'by' (the agent of activity) - "stung by a bee"
'through' (a passage) - "through the window"

Bent U gebeten door Uw hond?

2 3 Were you bitten by your dog? Als een mes door de boter

Like a knife through (the) butter (very easily) The 'Door' page

Eens

2 3 ‑>>

'once' - "once upon a time ..."
'sometime' - or hard to translate amplifier or pragmatic marker
" 't eens zijn met " - to agree with

Er was eens ...

2 3 Once upon a time there was ... Zeg eens wat

Say something! Wacht eens even

2 Now wait a moment Ik ben het met je eens

2 I agree with you, I think you're right The 'Eens' Page

Er

/or/

‑>>

a less specific 'there' - "We're almost there"
there is / there are ... - pointing out something, stating a fact - "There are no mountains in Holland"
(with preposition) placeholder 'it' - "I didn't think of it"
a somewhat meaningless, untranslated interjection -

We zijn er bijna

2 We're almost there Er zijn geen bergen in Nederland

There are no mountains in Holland Je moet er wat aan doen

2 3 4 You should do something about it Wat is er aan de hand?

What's going on? 't Ziet er vies uit

2 It looks unappetizing The 'Er' Page

Erg

‑>>

'very'- "I'm very tired"
'very bad, awful, terrible'- "It's not as bad as it looks"

Hij is erg blij

He's very happy 't Is niet zo erg als het lijkt

2 It's not as bad as it looks The 'Erg' Page

Even

2 3 ‑>>

a moment - "wait a moment!"
(even als) equally, just as - "I'm just as clever as you are"
even numbers - "odd and even numbers"

Wacht even

Wait a moment We zijn even oud

2 [We're equally old] - We're the same age even en oneven getallen

even and odd numbers The 'Even' Page

Haast

‑>>

'hurry, haste' - "It's urgent"
'almost' - "It's almost unbelievable"

Er is haast bij

2 3 4 'It is urgent' Er is haast geen geld

2 3 There is [almost no, hardly any] very little money The 'Haast' Page

Het

2 3

/ 't

‑>>

the (#2) - "the little street"
it - "it's late" - "the car - it's broken"

Het zinken van het schip

The sinking of the ship ('passive' sinking) 't Eten - 't was lekker

The food - it was (tasty) good The 'Het' Page

In

2 ‑>>

'in' - "in the house"
'into' - "into the house"
'to' - "Have you been to Rotterdam?"

Hij lag in bed

2 He was lying in bed Ik zag de zon in de zee zinken

(2) I saw the sun sink into the sea Ik ben nog nooit in Rome geweest

I've never been to Rome The 'In' Page

Laat

‑>>

'late, not in/on time' /or/ 'at the end of a time frame' - "late at night"
let, allow - "let it be"

't Wordt laat

2 It's getting late 't Is nog niet te laat

2 3 It's not too late (yet) Laat maar

Let it be, don't bother The 'Laat' Page

Maar

‑>>

'but' "strange but true"
'just, only' "there's just one solution" - "He's only a baby"
pragmatic marker - various translations

Rijk maar geen geld

2 3 Rich, but no money / Rich without money 't Lijkt maar zo

It only looks that way Hij is nog maar een baby

2 He's [still] just a baby Gelukkig maar!

2 3 Lucky indeed! We're lucky The 'Maar' Page

Na

‑>>

'after' - "after the elections"

na vijf uur

2 after 5 o'clock // after 5 hours, 5 hours later nadenken

2 3 (4) to think over, considering something carefully - this is the real 'denken' to think - use the brain The 'Na' Page

Naar

‑>>

'to (towards)' - going to Amsterdam ""
'sick,' 'unpleasant' - it made me feel sick ""

Ik ga naar Parijs

2 I'm going to Paris Hij is naar buiten gegaan

2 He went outside, he stepped out Ik kijk er naar

2 3 4 I'm looking at it een nare man

2 a very unpleasant male person The 'Naar' Page

Net

‑>>

just like - "just like before"
barely, with little margin - "we were just in time"
-or: a short time ago - "he just left"
neat, proper - "neat handwriting"
(fishing etc.) net

't Is net echt

2 [It's like real] - It's almost real, it looks very real Net als vroeger

2 3 Just like before, just as in the past We waren net op tijd

2 3 We were just in time De pont is net weg

2 The ferry just left, a moment ago een net handschrift

2 neat handwriting (het) netvlies

2 ['netlike membrane'] retina The 'Net' Page

Nog

‑>>

still, yet, 'remaining' - "It's still early"
even, still (with superlative) - "That's even better"

Het is nog vroeg

It's still early Hoeveel tijd is er nog?

2 3 How much time is [there still] left? Ik heb nog niet gegeten

have not eaten yet 't Was nog erger dan ik dacht

2 3 It was even worse than I had thought The 'Nog' Page

Of

‑>>

or - "red or green?" - "coffee or tea?"
if - "I don't know if that's true"

Wil je kaas of ham op je brood?

Would you like cheese or ham on your bread? Ik vraag me af of ...

2 I wonder if ... The 'Of' Page

Om

‑>>

'at' hours - "at midnight"
(om ... te) 'to' with verb infinitive, 'for' with present participle
- "to die for" - "crying to be heard"
about, 'because of,' 'for' - "It's not about money"
around - "trees around the house"
'alternating'
various

Ik ga om acht uur weg

2 3 I'm leaving at 8 Om te beginnen ...

2 To start with, For starters Het is niet om te lachen

2 3 4 [It's not for laughing] It's not funny, no laughing matter Waar gaat 't om?

2 What is it about? om gezondheidsredenen

2 for reasons of health, because of health concerns Ik ga even een blokje om

2 I'm going for a little walk around the block om de dag

every other day Ik kom om van de honger

2 3 I'm perishing of hunger, I'm starving - jocular The 'Om' Page

Onder

‑>>

'below, under' - "below zero"

onder 't huis

under the house onder 't mes

2 'under the knife' - surgery The 'Onder / Boven' Page

Op

‑>>

'up' - "get up!"
'on' - "on the roof"
'at' - "at the last moment"
'to' - "it fell to the floor"
'for' - "prepared for the worst"
'of' - "a chance of rain"
'in' - "in this spot"
'finished, gone, out of' - "the money's gone"

Ben je op?

2 Did you get up? Are you up? op het strand

2 3 on the beach op mijn leeftijd

2 at my age Het antwoord op Uw vraag ...

The answer to your question ... Wees verdacht op windstoten

Expect, watch out for, be prepared for sudden gusts of wind Gezicht op Delft

View of Delft, Looking at Delft (a Vermeer painting) op klaarlichte dag

3 [in the clear light of day] - in broad daylight De benzine is op

The gasoline is finished, we're out of gas The 'Op' Page

Over

2 ‑>>

'in' - amount of time until - "in two hours"
'past' (hours on the clock) - "10 past 11"
'over, across' ('bridging') - "a bridge across the canal"
'about' - "talking about freedom"
'left, remaining' - "there are few whales left"
various in other verbs

over een paar jaar

2 3 in a [couple of] few years kwart over zes

a quarter past 6, 6:15 een brug over de gracht

2 a bridge across the city canal Het boek gaat over dolfijnen

The book is about dolphins Er zijn weinig walvissen over

There are few whales left Laat het aan de vakman over

Leave it to the professionals The 'Over' Page

Toen

2 3 ‑>>

'then,' 'at that time' - "... and then I became a teacher"
'when,' 'at the time that' - "I stopped smoking when I became a teacher"

... en toen gingen we eten

2 ... and then we [went to eat] had food, lunch/dinner Toen de bliksem insloeg ging het licht uit

2 When lightning hit the light went out The 'Toen' Page

Uit

2 3 4 ‑>>

'out of, out, from' - "tulips from Amsterdam"
'off' - "turn it off!"

uit 't zicht

2 'out of sight,' no longer seen, hidden Ze komt uit Engeland

2 She's from England Doe het licht uit

2 Turn off the light The 'Uit' Page

Van

2 ‑>>

of - possession, association etc. "William of Orange"
from - point of origin or departure "from 9 to 5"
by - "a painting by Van Gogh"
various

't Begin van 't einde

2 (3) The beginning of the end Willem van Oranje

William of Orange van Den Haag naar Rotterdam

2 from The Hague to Rotterdam Ik schrok van de prijs

2 I was [shocked] taken aback by the price ‑>> The 'Van' Page

Voor

2 ‑>>

1a. before - time - "before eight"
1b. before, in front of - place - "a tree in front of the house"
2. for - "a present for Mary"
2a. in favor of - "are you for or against?"
3. various, others - "be kind to animals"

De stilte voor de storm

The quiet before the storm (literally and figuratively) een boom voor 't huis

a tree in front of the house Een cadeau voor Els

2 A present for Els Ben je voor of tegen?

Are you for or against? Ik ben allergisch voor eieren

2 I'm allergic to eggs The 'Voor' Page

Vroeg

‑>>

'early' - "early in the morning"
'asked' - "he asked where the station was"

Het is nog vroeg

It's still early Hij vroeg waar 't station was

2 He asked where the station was The 'Vroeg' Page

Waar

‑>>

where? - what place? - "Where is the exit?"
where - the place that - "Where Jesus was born"
what - the thing that - "What you should think of"
true - 'real' - "Every word was true"

Waar ben je geweest?

2 Where have you been? (What places have you visited?) Hij vroeg waar het station was

2 He asked where the station was Waar denk je aan?

What are you thinking of? 't Schijnt niet waar te zijn

2 3 It seems not to be true The 'Waar' Page

Wat

‑>>

'what?' - 'what is?' 'what is it?' - "What's the problem?"
'what' 'the thing that, the event that - "I can't hear what you're saying"
'what a!' - 'such (a)!' - 'how!' - surprise, annoyance or emphasis - "What a bore!"
'some' - 'a little' - "Could I have some wool?"
'something' - "There's something wrong"

Wat is er gebeurd?

2 3 What happened? Ik begrijp niet wat U zegt

2 3 I don't understand (the meaning of) what you're saying Wat een verschil!

2 3 What a, Such a difference! Heb je wat brood?

Would you have some bread? Heb je d'r wat van geleerd?

2 [Have you learned ...?] Did it teach you something? The 'Wat' Page

Weg

‑>>

'way, road, street' - "the way back"
'away' - "going away"

(de) eigen weg

private road (a sign) Ga je eigen weg

2 [Go your own way] - Choose yourself what you want to do, make your own choices (de) snelweg

[fast road] highway uit de weg

2 3 4 1. get out of the way, make way!
2. out of the way, not a problem anymore ver weg

2 3 far away De sleutel is weg

2 'The key is gone, lost' The 'Weg' Page

Zo

‑>>

'very, a high degree of'
- 'so' (very) - "that's so old-fashioned!"
- 'that' (very) - "it's not that expensive"
- 'such a' / 'a very' - "he's such a good cook"
'this/that way' - "that's the way to do it"
in a moment, soon - "we'll have dinner in a moment"

Ik voel me zo vol

2 I feel so full (I've eaten too much) niet zo vaak

2 3 not that often Ik heb zo'n zin in een kopje thee

2 3 ['I have such a great desire for ...'] - What I'd really like now is a cup of tea 't Lijkt maar zo

It only looks that way Ik kom zo bij U

2 I'll [come to you] be with you in a minute The 'Zo' Page

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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