{"id":3424,"date":"2015-08-20T01:47:29","date_gmt":"2015-08-20T01:47:29","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.listenandlearn.org\/blog\/?p=3424"},"modified":"2015-08-20T22:35:18","modified_gmt":"2015-08-20T22:35:18","slug":"top-dutch-idioms-and-proverbs","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.listenandlearn.org\/blog\/top-dutch-idioms-and-proverbs\/","title":{"rendered":"Top Dutch Idioms and Proverbs"},"content":{"rendered":"

The world may think of clogs, tulips, herrings and the infamous coffee shops when thinking about the Dutch. If you moved beyond the stereotypes, you might be thanking the Dutch for giving the world the submarine, the chocolate bar (thank you Casparus van Houten Sr), the CD, bluetooth, and traffic enforcement cameras (ok, maybe we\u2019re not that happy about this one). But what we should really be thanking the Dutch for are their wonderful, and often hilarious, Dutch idioms and proverbs.<\/p>\n

The Dutch language is not only fun to speak with its rolling r\u2019s and guttural sounds, but it also has some glorious sayings that can sound quite bizarre when translated into English. Here are some of our favourites:<\/p>\n

\"PHOTO1<\/a>Talking about little cows\u2026 via eesaam \/ Flickr<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Animal Business<\/h2>\n

A number of Dutch idioms and proverbs revolve around business. Let\u2019s not monkey around, here are the cream of the crop of animal-related sayings.<\/p>\n

Nu komt de aap uit de mouw<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

Literal Translation: <\/b>Now the monkey comes out of the sleeve<\/p>\n

Meaning:<\/b> When you find out an important detail that you didn\u2019t know before, or that was deliberately kept hidden; or you finally see the true side of a person, you can exclaim nu komt de aap uit de mouw<\/i>! Picture a monkey falling out of a magician\u2019s sleeve.<\/p>\n

Over koetjes en kalfjes praten<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

Literal translation: <\/b>Talk about little cows and little calves<\/p>\n

Meaning: <\/b>This is the Dutch equivalent of small talk. When you are talking about nothing of real consequence, or just making conversation, you are talking about the koetjes<\/i> en kalfjes<\/i>!<\/p>\n

\u00a0Als haringen in een ton zitten<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

Literal translation: <\/b>To sit like herrings in a barrel<\/p>\n

Meaning:<\/b> Ah, the Dutch do like their herrings! This expression is quite self explanatory. It means to be somewhere very crowded. While in most cities you would use this to describe the metro or bus, you could feasibly use this in Amsterdam to describe the bike lane!<\/p>\n

\"PHOTO2<\/a>Like herrings in a barrel via Claus Ableiter \/ <\/i>Wikimedia<\/i><\/a><\/p>\n

Edible Idioms<\/h2>\n

Speaking of herrings, there are also a number of food related Dutch idioms. Here\u2019s a slice of some of the food related sayings that are common in Dutch.<\/p>\n

Iets voor een appel en een ei kopen<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

Literal translation:<\/b> To buy something for an apple and an egg<\/p>\n

Meaning:<\/b> To buy something very cheaply.<\/p>\n

Een koekje van eigen deeg gerepresenteerd krijgen<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

Literal translation:<\/strong> To give someone a cookie made from their own dough<\/p>\n

Meaning:<\/b> This is equivalent of the English expression \u201cto give someone a taste of their own medicine.\u201d<\/p>\n

Een appeltje met iemand te schillen hebben<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

Literal translation: <\/strong>To have an apple to peel with someone<\/p>\n

Meaning:<\/b> This is the Dutch equivalent of \u201cto have a bone to pick with someone.\u201d<\/p>\n

Alsof er een engeltje over je tong piest<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

Literal translation: <\/strong>As if an angel is peeing on your tongue<\/p>\n

Meaning:<\/b> This rather hilarious expression is used when food tastes amazing, or you like something. Quite a fun way to describe the sensation in your mouth!<\/p>\n

\"PHOTO3\"<\/a>I\u2019ve got an apple to peel with you via Clara T \/ Flickr<\/a><\/em><\/p>\n

Of knees and lids<\/h2>\n

Moving from the edible to the strange, there are other sayings in Dutch that are quite eclectic to the English ear, as they are very different to sayings we have. Here\u2019s a small sample of some quirky Dutch sayings.<\/p>\n

Iets onder de knie hebben<\/i>\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n

Literal Translation: <\/strong>To have something under the knee<\/p>\n

Meaning:<\/b> If you have mastered something, you have it under the knee. It is thought to come from a fight, where if you had someone literally under your knee, you would be winning \/ dominating your opponent.<\/p>\n

Een deksel op zijn kop hebben<\/i><\/strong><\/p>\n

Literal Translation:<\/b> Having a lid on his head<\/p>\n

Meaning:<\/b> To take responsibility for something. If you are the one with the lid on your head, you are in charge of something.<\/p>\n

The wonderful Dutch expressions are just one reason that learning Dutch is fun. If this teaser has sparked your curiosity to learn more, then contact us<\/a> today about Dutch lessons. And in no time at all you\u2019ll have Dutch under the knee!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The world may think of clogs, tulips, herrings and the infamous coffee shops when thinking about the Dutch. If you moved beyond the stereotypes, you might be thanking the Dutch for giving the world the submarine, the chocolate bar (thank you Casparus van Houten Sr), the CD, bluetooth, and traffic enforcement cameras (ok, maybe we\u2019re(\u2026)<\/p>\n

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\n\t \t\t\t\tCONTINUE READING »<\/a>\n\t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":30,"featured_media":3427,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[13,27],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-3424","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-language-learning","category-humour-offbeat"],"yoast_head":"\nTop Dutch Idioms & Proverbs<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Herrings in a barrel, peeling apples, lids on heads ... Dutch has some strange sayings! 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