Dutch Tutorial Basic Phrases, Vocabulary and

Grammar

Note: Before heading to the tutorial I would Strictly recommend to download any online dictionary which could easily translate the difficult Dutch words provided

below so that you can understand them easily and learn quickly, if you have one so

thats good if not then Ill personally prefer BabelFish dictionary which is free so you dont need to buy it. The download link is provided below:

Download BabelFish Translator

1. Basic Phrases

Goedemorgen khoo-duh-mawr-ghuh

Good Morning

Goedemiddag khoo-duh-mih-dahkh

Good Day

Goedenavond khoo-duh-nah-fohnt

Good Evening

Goedenacht khoo-duh-nahkht

Good Night

Hoi / Hallo / Daag / Doei hoy / hah-loh / dahk / doo-

ee

Hi / Bye

Tot ziens toht zeens

Goodbye

Tot straks

toht straks

See you later (in the same

day)

Tot zo toht zoh

See you soon

Alstublieft / Alsjeblieft ahlst-ew-bleeft / ahl-shuh-

bleeft

Please

Dank u wel / Dank je wel dahnk-ew-vehl / dahnk-

yuh-vehl

Thank you

Hartelijk bedankt hahr-tuh-lik buh-dahnkt

Thank you very much

Graag gedaan khrahkh khuh-dahn

You're welcome (don't

mention it)

Sorry saw-ree

I'm sorry / Excuse me

Pardon, wat zei u? pahr-dohn, vat zay ew

Pardon me (didn't

understand)

Ja / Nee yah / nay

Yes / No

Hoe gaat het met u? hoo khaht ut meht ew

How are you? (formal)

Hoe gaat het? hoo khaht ut

How are you? (informal)

Goed / Heel goed khoot / hayl khoot

Fine / Very well

Het gaat / Slecht uht khaht / slehkht

So so / Bad

Ik ben moe / ziek ik ben moo / zeek

I'm tired / sick.

Ik heb honger / dorst ik heb hohng-ur / dohrst

I'm hungry / thirsty.

Hoe heet u? hoo hayt ew

What's your name?

(formal)

Hoe heet je? hoo hayt yuh

What's your name?

(informal)

Ik heet... ik hayt...

My name is (I'm called)...

Ik ben... ik ben

I am...

Aangenaam (kennis te

maken) ahn-guh-nahm (ken-nis tuh

mah-kuh)

Nice to meet you.

meneer / mevrouw /

mejuffrouw muh-nayr / muh-frow /

muh-yuh-frow

Mister / Misses / Miss

Waar komt u vandaan? vahr kawmt ew fun-dahn

Where are you from?

(formal)

Waar kom je vandaan? vahr kawn yuh fun-dahn

Where are you from?

(informal)

Ik kom uit Nederland. ik kawm owt nay-der-lant

I am from the Netherlands.

Waar woont u? vahr vohnt ew

Where do you live?

(formal)

Waar woon je? vahr vohn yuh

Where do you live?

(informal)

Ik woon in Amerika. ik vohn in ah-meh-ree-kah

I live in America.

Hoe oud bent u? hoo owt bent ew

How old are you? (formal)

Hoe oud ben je? hoo owt ben yuh

How old are you?

(informal)

Ik ben ... jaar (oud). ik ben ... yahr owt

I am ____ years old.

Spreekt u Nederlands? spraykt ew nay-der-lahnds

Do you speak Dutch?

(formal)

Spreek je Engels? sprayk yuh ehng-uhls

Do you speak English?

(informal)

Ik spreek [geen]... ik sprayk [khayn]

I [don't] speak...

Ik spreek niet zo goed... ik sprayk neet zoh khood

I don't speak ... very well.

Ik begrijp het [niet.] ik buh-khraip ut neet

I [don't] understand.

Ik weet het [niet.] ik vayt ut [neet]

I [don't] know.

Wat kost het? vat kohst ut

How much is it?

Ik wil graag... ik vil khrahk

I'd like...

Proost! prohst

Cheers!

Veel plezier! fayl pleh-zeer

Have fun!

Veel succes! fayl suk-sehs

Good luck!

Wees voorzichtig! vays fohr-zikh-tikh

Be careful!

Dat is geweldig /

vreselijk! dat is khuh-vehl-duhkh /

fray-zuh-likh

That is great / terrible!

Ik hou van je. ik how fahn yuh

I love you. (informal)

Ik hou van jullie. ik how fahn juh-lee

I love you (all).

Wat vreemd! vaht fraymt

How funny / odd!

Wat jammer! vaht yah-mer

What a pity!

Wat is dit / dat? vut iss dit / dut

What is this / that?

Note: In the pronunciations, kh denotes a uvular guttural sound. Meneer, mevrouw and

mejuffrouw are all written with a small letter when they precede a name. When typing,

de Heer is used instead of meneer and Dhr. is used on envelopes. Mevrouw and

mejuffrouw are abbreviated as Mevr. and Mej. In addition, Mw. can be used as an

equivalent of the English Ms.

2. Pronunciation

Dutch

letters English sound

ch

sch

g

w

v

r

j

sj

tj

aa

ee

ie

oo

oe

eu

guttural sound, made at back of mouth

s followed by guttural ch sound

same as ch, guttural sound from back of mouth

like v before r, otherwise like w but with bottom lip

against top teeth

like v, but sometimes closer to f

either rolled or guttural

y as in yes

sh as in ship

ch as in chip

ah as in father, but longer

ay as in hail, but shorter

ee as in neat, but shorter

oh as in boat

oo as in pool, but shorter

uu

a

e

i

o

u

ei / ij

aai

oei

ooi

ou / au

eeuw

ieuw

uw

ui

ur as in hurt, but with lips rounded

ew, but with lips rounded (sound not found in

English)

ah as in father, but shorter

eh as in bed

ih as in bit

aw as in paw, with lips rounded

ir as in dirt, but very short

between the sounds in "light" and "late"

combination of aa and ie

combination of oe and ie

combination of oo and ie

like ow, as in house

combination of ee and oe

combination of ie and oe

combination of uu and oe

combination of a and uu

The consonants s, f, h, b, d, z, l, m, n, and ng are pronounced the same way in Dutch as in

English. P, t, and k are pronounced without the puff of air (called aspiration.) Sometimes

the g is pronounced like zh in words borrowed from French. One last vowel sound is

found in various Dutch spellings. It is pronounced like uh, as in along or sofa. For

example, this sound is found in de (the), een (a), aardig (nice), and vriendelijk (kind).

3. Alphabet

a ah j yay s ess

b bay k kah t tay

c say l ell u ew

d day m emm v fay

e ay n enn w vay

f eff o oh x eeks

g khay p pay y ee-grek

h hah q kew z zett

i ee r air

4. Nouns and Gender

All nouns have a gender in Dutch, either common (de words) or neuter (het words). It is

hard to guess which gender a noun is, so it is best to memorize the genders when

memorizing vocabulary. However, two-thirds of Dutch words are common gender

(because the common gender has combined the former feminine and masculine genders.)

So it may be easier to memorize which nouns are neuter, and then assign common gender

to the rest. All diminutives (words ending in -je) and infinitives used as nouns, as well as

colors, metals, compass directions, and all words that end in -um, -aat, -sel, -isme are

neuter. Most nouns beginning with ge- and ending with -te are neuter, as are most nouns

beginning with ge-, be-, and ver-. Common noun endings include: -aar, -ent, -er, -es, -eur,

-heid, -ij, -ing, -teit, -tie.

5. Articles and Demonstratives

common neuter

Singular "the" de het

Plural "the" de

Indefinite "a" or

"an" een

common neuter

Singular this

that

deze

die

dit

dat

Plural these

those

deze

die

The definite article is used more in Dutch than in English. It is always used before the

names of the seasons, street names and in an abstract sense. There are some idioms that

should be memorized, however: in het Nederlands (in Dutch), in de stad (in town), in het

zwart (in black), met de auto (by car), met de tijd (in/with time); op tafel (on the table), in

zee (in the sea), op kantoor (at the office), in bad (in the bath), op straat (in the street).

6. Subject Pronouns

Subject Pronouns

ik ik I wij (we) vay we

jij (je) / u yay / ew

you (singular informal

/ sing. and plural

formal) jullie

yew-

lee

you (plural

informal)

hij

zij (ze)

het

hay

zay

ut

he

she

it zij (ze) zay they

Unstressed forms (shortened forms used in the spoken language) are in the parentheses.

There are also unstressed forms of ik ('k), hij (ie) and het ('t) but these are not written.

7. To Be and to Have

Present tense of zijn - to be (zayn)

I am ik ben ik ben we are wij zijn vay zayn

You are jij / u bent yay / ew bent you are jullie zijn yew-lee zayn

He, she, it is hij, zij, het is hay, zay, ut is they are zij zijn zay zayn

Present tense of hebben - to have (heh-buh)

I have ik heb ik heb we have wij hebben vay heh-buh

You have jij / u hebt yay / ew hebt you have jullie hebben yew-lee heh-buh

He, she, it

is hij, zij, het

heeft

hay, zay, ut

hayft

they

have zij hebben zay heh-buh

Past tense of zijn - to be (zayn)

I was ik was ik vas we were wij waren vay vah-ruh

You were jij / u was yay / ew vas you were jullie waren yew-lee vah-ruh

He, she, it

was hij, zij, het

was

hay, zay, ut

vas they were zij waren zay vah-ruh

Past tense of hebben - to have (heh-buh)

I had ik had ik hahd we had wij hadden vay hah-duh

You had jij / u had yay / ew hahd you had jullie hadden yew-lee hah-duh

He, she, it

had hij, zij, het

had

hay, zay, ut

hahd they had zij hadden zay hah-duh

Note: You must use the subject pronouns; however, I will leave them out of future

conjugations.

Expressions with zijn and hebben:

Het/dat is jammer - It's/that's a pity

jarig zijn - to have a birthday

kwijt zijn - to have lost

op het punt staan - to be about to

van plan zijn - to intend

voor elkaar zijn - to be in order

honger / dorst hebben - to be hungry / thirsty

gelijk hebben - to be right

haast hebben - to be in a hurry

het hebben over - to talk about

het druk hebben - to be busy

het koud hebben / warm - to be cold / warm

last hebben van - to be bothered by

nodig hebben - to need

slaap hebben - to be sleepy

zin hebben in - to feel like

8. Useful Words

sometimes

always

never

often

usually

now

and

but

or

very

here

there

also

much

another

already

perhaps

soms

altijd

nooit

vaak,

dikwijls

gewoonlijk

nu

en

maar

of

zeer, heel

hier

daar

ook

veel

een ander

al

misschien

9. Question Words

Who Wie vee Where Waar vahr

What Wat vaht Where to Waar... naartoe vahr nahr-too

Why Waarom vah-rohm Where from Waar...

vandaan vahr vun-dahn

When Wanneer vah-nayr Which Welk(e) velk(-uh)

How Hoe hoo Isn't it?, etc. Niet waar? neet vahr

Welk is used before het words, and welke is used before de words and plural nouns. Niet

waar is a tag question, and is added to the end of statements to make them questions. It

can translate several ways into English: isn't it?, doesn't it?, isn't he?, doesn't he?, isn't

she?, doesn't she?, aren't we?, don't we?, aren't they?, don't they?, aren't you?, don't you?,

right?, yes?, etc.

10. Numbers

0 nul nuhl

1 een ayn 1st eerste

2 twee tvay 2nd tweede

3 drie dree 3rd drede

4 vier feer 4th vierde

5 vijf faif 5th vijfde

6 zes zehs 6th zesde

7 zeven zay-fuh 7th zevende

8 acht akht 8th achtste

9 negen nay-khuh 9th negende

10 tien teen 10th tiende

11 elf ehlf 11th elfde

12 twaalf tvahlf 12th twaalfde

13 dertien dayr-teen 13th dertiende

14 veertien fayr-teen 14th veertiende

15 vijftien faif-teen 15th vijftiende

16 zestien zehs-teen 16th zestiende

17 zeventien zay-fuh-teen 17th zeventiende

18 achttien ahkh-teen 18th achttiende

19 negentien nay-khuh-teen 19th negentiende

20 twintig tvin-tuhkh 20th twintigste

21 eenentwintig ayn-ehn-tvin-tukh 21st eenentwintigste

22 tweentwintig tvay-ehn-tvin-tukh 22nd tweentwintigste

23 drientwintig dree-ehn-tvin-tukh 23rd drieentwintigste

30 dertig dayr-tukh 30th dertigste

40 veertig fayr-tukh 40th veertigste

50 vijftig faif-tukh 50th vijftigste

60 zestig zes-tukh 60th zestigste

70 zeventig zay-fun-tukh 70th zeventigste

80 tachtig takh-tukh 80th tachtigste

90 negentig nay-guhn-tukh 90th negentigste

100 honderd hohn-dert 100th honderdste

101 honderd en een hohn-dert en un 101st honderd en eerste

110 honderd tien hohn-dert teen 110th honderd tiende

200 tweehonderd tvay-hohn-dert 200th tweehonderdste

1,000 duizend dow-zuhnt 1,000th duizendste

1,001 duizend en een dow-zent 1,001st duizend en eerste

million een miljoen meel-yoon millionth miljoenste

billion een miljard meel-yart billionth miljardste

Note: In the word for twenty-two, the is necessary because there are three of the same

vowels in a row, and the accent mark shows that the third one needs to be pronounced

separately. The use of commas and decimals is reversed in Dutch. Also note that I speak

American English, so billion means 1,000,000,000 and not the British counterpart.

11. Days of the Week

Monday maandag mahn-dahkh

Tuesday dinsdag dins-dahkh

Wednesday woensdag voons-dahkh

Thursday donderdag dohn-der-dahkh

Friday vrijdag frai-dahkh

Saturday zaterdag zah-ter-dahkh

Sunday zondag zohn-dahkh

day dag dahkh

morning ochtend awkh-tehnt

afternoon middag mih-dahkh

evening avond ah-fohnt

night nacht nahkht

today vandaag fahn-dahkh

tomorrow morgen mawr-khuh

tonight deze nacht

yesterday gisteren khih-stuh-ruh

last night (de) afgelopen nacht

day after tomorrow overmorgen oh-fer-mawr-khuh

day before yesterday eergisteren ayr-khih-stuh-ruh

week week

last week afgelopen week

weekend weekend

daily dagelijks

weekly wekelijks

12. Months of the Year

January januari yah-noo-ah-ree

February februari fay-broo-ah-ree

March maart mahrt

April april ah-pril

May mei mai

June juni yoo-nee

July juli yoo-lee

August augustus ow-khus-tus

September september sep-tehm-ber

October oktober awk-toh-ber

November november noh-fehm-ber

December december day-sehm-ber

month maand mahnt

year jaar yahr

last year het afgelopen jaar

monthly maandelijks mahn-duh-luks

yearly jaarlijks yahr-luks

13. Seasons

Winter de winter

Spring de lente / het voorjaar

Summer de zomer

Autumn de herfst / het najaar

14. Directions

Compass/Wind Location/Movement

North noord noorden right rechts

South zuid zuiden left links

East oost oosten straight rechtdoor

West west westen

15. Colors

orange oranje oh-rahn-yuh

pink roze roh-zuh

purple paars pahrs

blue blauw blow

yellow geel khayl

red rood rohd

black zwart zvahrt

brown bruin brown

gray grijs grah-ees

white wit viht

green groen khroon

silver zilver

gold goud

beige beige

Licht and donker are added to the colors to mean light and dark: lichtbruin - light

brown.

16. Time

What time is it? Hoe laat is het? hoo laht is ut

It's 1:00 Het is een uur. ut is ayn ewr

2:00 Het is twee uur. ut is tvay ewr

3:30 Het is half vier. ut is half feer

5:45 Het is kwart voor zes. ut is kvahrt for zehs

7:03 Het is drie (minuten) over zeven. ut is dree mih-new-tuh oh-fer zay-

fuh

at 9:30 om half tien awm half teen

noon twaalf uur 's middags tvahlf ewrs mihd-dahkhs

midnight twaalf uur 's nachts / middernacht tvahlf ewrs nahkhts

In the morning 's ochtends

During the day 's middags

In the evening 's avonds

At night 's nachts

Minuten can be omitted, just as in English.

17. Weather

How's the weather today? Wat voor weer is het vandaag?

It's cold Het is koud

beautiful mooi

hot heet

clear open / helder

icy het vriest/ijzig

warm warm

windy windig

cloudy bewolkt

hazy mistig

muggy drukkend/benauwd

humid vochtig

foggy mistig

It's snowing het sneeuwt

It's raining het regent

It's freezing het vriest

18. Family and Pets

Parents ouders adult volwassene

Mother moeder relative bloedverwant

Father vader siblings broers en zusters

Son zoon twin tweeling

Daughter dochter birth geboorte

Brother broeder, broer death dood

Sister zuster, zus marriage huwelijk (n)

Grandfather grootvader, opa divorce echtscheiding

Grandmother grootmoeder, oma

Grandson kleinzoon

Granddaughter kleindochter dog hond

Niece nicht cat poes

Nephew neef bird vogel

Cousin (m) neef goldfish goudvis

Cousin (f) nicht

Uncle oom

Aunt tante

Boy jongen

Girl meisje (n)

Child kind

Man, husband man

Woman, wife vrouw

Friend (m) vriend

Friend (f) vriendin

Note: In the vocabulary lists, (n) after the noun denotes neuter nouns.

19. To Know People and Facts

kennen - to know people weten - to know facts

ken ken kennen ken-nuh weet vayt weten vay-tuh

kent kent kennen ken-nuh weet vayt weten vay-tuh

kent kent kennen ken-nuh weet vayt weten vay-tuh

20. Formation of Plural Nouns

Most plural nouns are formed by adding either -en or -s. Remember that the definite

article is always de before plural nouns.

1. -en (the n is pronounced softly) is added to most nouns, with a few spelling changes

boek - boeken book(s)

jas - jassen coat(s)

haar - haren hair(s)

huis - huizen house(s)

Spelling changes: Words with long vowels (aa, ee, oo, and uu) drop the one vowel when

another syllable is added. Words with the short vowels (a, e, i, o and u) double the

following consonant to keep the vowels short. The letters f and s occur at the end of

words or before consonants, while the letters v and z occur in the middle of words before

vowels. (These spelling rules are also used for conjugating verbs, so it's best to memorize

them as soon as possible.)

2. -s is added to nouns ending in the unstressed syllables -el, -em, -en, and -er (and -

aar(d), -erd, -ier when referring to people), foreign words and to most nouns ending in

an unstressed vowel

tafel - tafels table(s)

jongen - jongens boy(s)

tante - tantes aunt(s)

bakker - bakkers baker(s)

Nouns ending in the vowels -a, -o, and -u add an apostrophe before the s: foto's,

paraplu's

Irregular forms

3. Some nouns containing a short vowel do not double the following consonant in the

plural before -en. The plural vowel is then pronounced as long.

bad - baden bath(s)

dag - dagen day(s)

spel - spelen game(s) (like the Olympics, smaller games are spellen)

glas - glazen glass(es)

weg - wegen road(s)

4. A few neuter nouns take the ending -eren (or -deren if the noun ends in -n)

blad - bladeren leaf(leaves)

kind - kinderen child(ren)

ei - eieren egg(s)

been - beenderen bone(s) [Note: been - benen leg(s)]

lied - liederen song(s)

volk - volkeren nation(s), people

5. Nouns ending in -heid have a plural in -heden.

mogelijkheid - mogelijkheden possibility(ies)

6. Some other common irregular plurals are:

stad - steden town(s)

schip - schepen ship(s)

lid - leden member(s)

koe - koeien cow(s)