Disambiguation: Many common words can have more than one meaning, with
different translations
Wat is dat?
|
What's that? |
| Wat in Godsnaam?
|
What in [God's] heaven's name? |
| Wat zegt U?
2
|
What [do] did you say? (polite 'you') |
| Wat zeg je?
2
3
4
|
What [do] did you say? (informal 'you') |
| Wat is de prijs?
2
|
What's the price? |
| more common alternate: Hoe duur is het?
2
3
|
[How expensive is it?] - What's the price? |
| Wat is Uw naam?
2
|
What is your name? (polite 'you') |
| more common alternate: Hoe heet je?
|
[What are you called?] - What is your name?
(informal 'you')
|
| |
| Wat denk jij ervan?
2
|
What do you think [of it]? |
| Wat zeg jij d'r van?
2
3
|
What do you say [of it]? (informal 'you') |
| Wat zegt U d'r van?
2
3
4
|
What do you say [of it]? (polite 'you') |
| Wat heb je daarop te zeggen?
2
|
What do you have to say on that,
what's your reaction? |
| Wat zou U aanraden?
2
3
|
What would you recommend?
(like in a restaurant) |
| Wat wil je horen?
|
What would you like to hear? (music choice) |
| Wat wil je drinken?
2
|
What would you like to drink? |
| Wat heb je gegeten?
2
|
What have you eaten? What food did you have?
|
| |
| Wat is er aan de hand?
2
|
What's going on? |
| Wat is er gaande?
2
|
What's going on? (old-fashioned) |
| Wat is er gebeurd?
2
3
|
What happened? |
| Wat zou er gebeuren?
2
|
What would happen?
|
| Wat ben je aan het doen?
|
What are you doing?
What are you busy with? |
| Wat is dat voor een auto?
2
|
What kind/brand of car is that? |
| Wat wil je later worden?
|
What do you want to be [later]
when you grow up? |
| Wat is er van hem geworden?
2
|
What became of him?
|
| |
| Wat kan ik voor U doen?
2
|
What can I do for you? How can I help you? |
| Wat is de weersverwachting?
2
|
What is the weather (expectation) forecast? |
| Wat vertellen ons de wolken?
2
3
|
What [do] can the clouds tell us?
(title of a famous weather book) |
| Wat bezielt die mensen?
|
What is driving those people?
What's in their minds? |
| Wat bezielt die mensen om dat te doen?
2
3
|
What drives those people to do that?
(those awful things)
|
| Wat betekent ...?
2
3
|
What is the meaning of ...? |
| Wat betekent dat woord?
2
3
slow
|
What does that word mean? |
| Wat betekent het?
2
|
What does it mean? |
| Wat zou daar het voordeel van zijn?
2
3
4
|
What could be the advantage of that? |
| |
| Wat is er?
2
3
|
What is it? - usually: What's wrong? |
| Wat is er met Jan?
2
3
|
What is with John?
(something seems to be wrong) |
| Wat is er veranderd?
2
|
What has changed? |
| Wat is er anders?
2
3
|
What is different? /or/
What else is there? (no alternative) |
| Wat zou 't zijn?
|
What could it be? |
| Wat heb je d'raan?
2
|
What's the use (to you)? |
| Wat maakt 't uit?
2
3
4
5
|
What difference does it make? It's no use. |
| Wat doe je met Pasen?
2
3
|
What are you going to do over the Easter Holiday? Any plans?
|
|
| Wat doe ik hier?
2
3
4
5
|
What am I doing here? (Why am I here?)
‑>> |
| Wat ik dacht ...
2
3
|
What I was thinking ... |
| Ik versta niet wat je zegt
2
|
I don't understand (can't hear) what you're saying |
| Ik begrijp niet wat U zegt
2
3
|
I don't understand (don't catch the meaning of)
what you're saying (polite 'you') |
| Ik begrijp niet wat je bedoelt
2
|
I don't understand what you mean |
| Ik begrijp wat je bedoelt
2
|
I understand what you mean,
I see what you mean |
| Begrijp je wat ik bedoel?
2
|
Do you understand what I mean? |
| Dat was niet wat ik bedoelde
|
That was not what I meant |
| Wat bedoel je daarmee?
2
|
What do you mean by that? |
| Begrijp je echt wat er staat?
2
|
Do you really understand what (is written)
it says? |
| Ik weet niet wat het geweest kan zijn
2
|
I don't understand what it could have been |
| Ik weet niet wat ik moet doen
2
|
I don't know what I should do |
| Ik begrijp niet wat ze in hem ziet
2
|
don't understand what she sees in him
|
| Hij vertelde mij wat er gebeurd was
|
He told me what had happened |
| Hij vertelde hun wat er gebeurd was
2
|
He told them what had happened |
| De agent vertelde de rechter wat hij gezien had
|
The policeman told the judge what he had seen |
| De verkenner vertelde
de kolonel snel wat hij gezien had
2
|
The scout quickly told the colonel what he'd seen
- military |
| Ik wil weten wat er gebeurd is
2
3
|
I want to know what happened
|
| |
| Ik wil precies weten wat er gebeurd is
2
3
|
I want to know exactly what happened |
| Ik wil weten wat er precies gebeurd is
2
3
|
I want to know what exactly happened
- the two lines above have the same meaning |
| Heb je enig idee wat het is?
2
slow
2
|
Do you have any idea what it is? |
| Wat de boer niet kent, dat lust hij niet
2
3
4
|
What the peasant isn't familiar with, he doesn't
like (an aversion to trying exotic food)
|
| Wat vervelend!
|
How annoying! What a bore! |
| Wat vervelend nou!
2
3
|
How annoying [now]! What a bore! |
| Wat jammer!
|
What a pity! |
| Wat jammer nou!
2
3
|
What a pity! |
| Wat sneu!
2
|
What a pity! How sad! Such a disappointment! |
| Wat lastig!
2
|
That's difficult! Such a pain!
|
| Wat zit die vogel te piepen!
2
|
How that bird is tweeting! |
| |
| Wat een onzin!
2
|
Such nonsense! |
| Wat een onzin allemaal!
2
3
4
|
[Such nonsense all]! It's all nonsense!
What a load of bull! |
| Wat een herrie!
2
|
[Such noise!] That's a lot of noise! |
| Wat 'n ellende!
|
Such misery! |
| Wat 'n stom gedoe!
2
3
|
Such [a stupid doing] stupidity! |
| Wat een pech!
2
|
Such bad luck! What a misfortune! |
| Wat een weer!
2
3
|
Such (bad) weather! |
| Wat een hondeweer!
2
|
Such [dogs'] bad weather! |
| Wat 'n klereweer!
2
3
|
Such miserable weather! |
| |
| Wat een gedoe
2
|
Such a [doing] hassle!
|
| Wat een domme man
2
|
What a dumb guy! |
| Wat een rare man
2
3
|
What a strange, weird guy! |
| Wat een rare naam!
2
3
|
What a strange, weird name! |
| Wat een moeilijk woord!
|
Such a difficult word! |
| Wat een verschil!
2
3
|
What a difference! |
| Wat 'n saai verhaal!
2
3
4
|
What a boring story! |
| Wat was dat weer een akelige overstroming!
|
What a horrible flooding that was [again]!
|
| Mag ik een beetje kaas?
2
|
[May I] Can I have a little cheese? |
| Lukt het een beetje?
2
3
|
[Are you succeeding somewhat?]
Is it going OK? (Is there a problem?) |
| Ik ben een beetje een huismus
2
|
['I [am] have something of a house sparrow']
- I'm happy staying at home |
| Ik ben een beetje schor, lijkt het wel
|
I'm a bit hoarse, it looks like |
| 't Is een beetje plat
2
|
It is somewhat ['flat'] substandard Dutch |
| Maak 't nou een beetje
2
|
~ That's exaggerated! You're going too far |
| Alle beetjes helpen
|
[All little bits] - Every little bit helps
|
| enigszins
2
3
4
|
somewhat, slightly |
| ietwat
2
3
|
somewhat, slightly (old-fashioned) |
| |
| Next to
'a small amount' English 'some' can also mean 'a few,
a small number.' That is
sommige
in Dutch. |
| Sommige dagen gaat alles mis
2
|
On some days everything goes wrong |
| Sommige dieren zijn meer gelijk
|
Some animals are more equal |
| Alle mensen zijn gelijk,
maar sommige zijn meer gelijk
2
|
All people are equal,
but some are more equal |
| Sommige mensen denken
dat ze meer
rechten hebben dan anderen
2
|
Some people think they have more rights
than other people |
| Sommige mensen vinden
dat ze meer rechten hebben dan anderen
2
|
Some people think they have more rights
than other people |
| Op sommige stranden heeft niemand wat aan
2
3
4
|
On some beaches, nobody is wearing
anything |
| |
| Een
paar
can be 'a pair' like in 'a pair of shoes,' but it can also mean
'some, a few.' 'Een paar' is a random small number, while
'sommige' indicates a specific group with that characteristic. |
| een paar schoenen
2
|
a pair of shoes |
| een paar handschoenen
|
a pair of gloves |
| een paar regendruppels
|
a few drops of rain |
| over een paar jaar
2
3
|
in a few years |
| een paar jaar later
|
a few years later |
| Eten over een paar minuten!
2
|
Dinner (or lunch) in a few minutes! |
| Hij liet ons een paar foto's zien
2
|
He showed us a few pictures |
| Hij vertelde ons snel een paar mopjes
2
|
He quickly told us a few jokes |
| Er stonden een paar mensen
in de rij voor het loket
|
There were a few people in line
at the counter |
| Is er wat te eten?
2
3
4
|
Is there something to eat? Is there any food? |
| slang: Is er wat te nassen?
|
('nassen' - think of 'to nosh') |
| |
| Wil je wat eten?
|
Would you like something to eat?
- >> |
| Wil je wat drinken?
2
|
Would you like something to drink?
- >> |
| Als je vis eet moet je ook wat drinken
2
3
4
|
When you [eat] have fish,
you should also drink something |
| Je moet wat drinken
2
3
|
You should drink something |
| |
| Heb je d'r wat van geleerd?
2
|
[Have you learned something from it?] -
Did it teach you [something] anything? |
| Heb je d'r wat aan?
2
|
Is it of (any) use to you? |
| Je moet er wat aan doen
2
3
4
|
You should do something about it |
| Heb je nog wat van Piet gehoord?
2
|
Have you heard (something) from Piet? |
| Weet je wat ...
2
|
You know what? - Let me tell you something
|
| |
| Elk wat wils
|
(saying) Something for everyone |
| Als er wat is ...
2
|
If/When there is something ... |
| Komt er nog wat van?
2
3
|
Will something be happening?
(you're getting impatient) |
| Ik heb wel wat beters te doen
2
3
|
I have [something better] better things to do |
| Er is wat aan de hand
2
|
There is something going on
|
| |
| Vertel eens wat leuks
2
|
Tell us something amusing |
| Heb je wat leuks gedaan in het weekend?
|
Did you do something nice in the weekend? |
| Ik kan nog wel wàt
2
3
|
I can still do sòme things (but maybe not as much
as before) |
| Doe iets!
2
3
4
5
|
Do something! Take action! |
| Er is altijd wel iets
|
There's always something
(wrong, bad, a problem) |
| Neem je d'r iets voor?
2
|
Do you take something
(medicine) for (against) it? |
| Vergeet ik iets?
2
(3)
|
Am I forgetting something? Did something slip my mind? |
| Ben ik iets vergeten?
|
Did I forget something? |
| Er is iets tussen gekomen
2
3
|
Something came [between it] up |
| Mag ik U iets vragen?
2
3
|
May I ask you something? |
| Niemand heeft me iets verteld
2
|
Nobody told me anything (about it) |
| We moeten iets doen
2
3
|
We have to do something |
| 't Is niet iets
waar ik veel van weet
2
3
4
|
It's not something I know [much]
a lot about |
| Er is iets heel ergs gebeurd
2
3
4
|
Something [very] really bad happened |
| Er is iets mis
2
3
|
There is something wrong |
| Wil je iets toe?
2
3
|
Would you like ["something after"]
some dessert? |
| een mooi iets
2
3
|
a beautiful thing, a good thing, something
beautiful |
| iets moois
2
3
|
a beautiful thing, something beautiful |
| iets bijzonders
2
|
something special |
| Heeft U iets vegetarisch?
|
Would you have something vegetarian? |
| Wil je koffie of thee of iets fris?
2
3
|
Would you like coffee or tea or
["something cold"] a soda or fruit juice? |
| 't Heeft iets geheimzinnigs
2
|
[It has something mysterious] There is something
mysterious to it, it is a bit mysterious |
| Misschien is het iets onschuldigs
|
Maybe it's something [innocent] harmless |
| Ik heb zo'n zin in iets lekkers
2
|
I [have a great desire for] would really like
someting tasty (usually sweet) now |
| 't Betekent heel iets anders
2
|
It means something completely different |
| Ik ben met iets anders bezig
2
3
|
I'm [busy with] working on something else |
| iets dergelijks
2
3
(GG)
|
something similar, something like that |
| Wat is dat nou voor iets doms?
2
3
|
[What a stupid thing that is] - Such stupidity! |
| D'r is iets geks mee
2
3
4
|
There is something weird about it |
| Net iets minder dan honderdduizend gulden
2
|
Just [something] a little less than
100,000 guilders |
| Mag 't iets meer zijn?
2
3
|
Is it alright if it's a little more?
(the butcher cuts off considerably more than you asked for) |
| Net iets lekkerder
2
|
Just a little more tasty, better |
| 't Heeft iets van chocola
2
3
|
[It has something of] There's a hint of
chocolate |
| |
| iemand
|
someone, somebody |
| Iemand zal een oplossing moeten vinden
|
Somebody will have to find a solution |
| Er is iemand aan de deur
|
There is someone at the door |
| Hoe kan iemand zoiets doen?
|
How can someone do a thing like that? |
| We krijgen iemand te eten
2
|
We're having [someone for lunch/dinner]
a dinner guest |
| Iemand van mijn leeftijd
2
|
Someone my age |
| Ik ben een eenvoudig iemand
|
I'm a simple person |
| (een) geestig iemand
2
3
|
a witty person, making clever jokes |
| Kan iemand me vertellen ...?
2
3
|
Can someone tell me ...? // Is there anybody who
can tell me ...? |
| Iemand iets door de neus boren
2
3
4
|
[to drill something through someone's nose] - to
deny someone something that was deserved or within reach |