Speaking Dutch like a Native

Learn how to pepper your Dutch with colloquial words and expressions and start speaking Dutch like a native. Plunge into the world of interjections ('huppakee', 'doeidoei', 'prima'), short, but significant words ('Kom nou toch eens even!') and everyday phrases that defy all the grammar rules you learnt in Dutch class ('Piet z’n fiets').

Speaking Dutch requires more than just mastering the formal language skills taught in coursebooks. It also requires proficiency in informal Dutch, which is packed with colloquialisms, interjections and slang.

Do you sometimes feel bewildered by the strings of words that don’t seem to mean anything, like: 'maar eens even' and 'nou toch'? Are you confused by farewells like 'dag', 'doeg', and 'doei'; and is 'ja dag' a farewell, too? Who, or what, is 'puntje puntje puntje'? What is the difference between 'jawel' and 'welja', and what does 'welnee' mean?

This reference guide discusses over a hundred words frequently used in real, everyday speech. Discover Dutch slang and hard-to-make-out expressions, expressions of annoyance, reassurance or warmth, as well as grammar-defying idiomatic phrases. And learn how to speak Dutch like a native. This book will be of interest to intermediate and advanced learners of Dutch as well as native speakers with an interest in language and language learning. From professional language teacher Dr Lijntje Pronk, this is the first basic guide to colloquial Dutch.

Level: B1 and higher

-- "Het boek van Pronk is vandaag meer dan welkom omdat het hedendaags heet-van-de-naald spreektalig Nederlands aanbiedt waar de anderstalige steevast over struikelt, maar dat jammer genoeg te vaak ontbreekt in reguliere taalcursussen. Dat taalgebruik typeert de echte moedertaalspreker, maar is vaak ontoegankelijk voor de tweedetaalgebruiker."
em.Prof.Dr. Ludo Beheydt in 'Neerlandia'