Zeeleeuw is a sea lion. heel grappig. How to say very funny in Dutch. Daddy Longlegs? ], Known for their logic, the direct Dutch translation for polar bear is ‘ice bear’. Sounds like kicker. stekelvarken = prickle pig = porcupine We don’t call a catfish a ‘zeewolf’ but they’re called a ‘meerval’. Rivet heads look like nails, so that’s where those come into play in Dutch. For instance, who needs a fancy (rather nonsensical) word like “glove” when you are simply looking for something to keep your hands warm (sort of like what shoes do for your feet!). Eekhoorn. so the rudest? Therefore I’d like to point out a typo in image number six. Gelukzak can also mean ‘lucky sack’. P.P.S. ‘Ear bells’ or earrings as we like to call them. inktvis = ink fish = squid To fall with the door into the house. Step out of bed with the wrong leg: Met het verkeerde been uit bed gestapt Sorry Henk, an ‘ouwehoer’ is someone who talks a lot/too much. Those had nails to fasten the pockets. Super cute, huh? maybe i’m missing something? Most are accurate and funny, but nr 12 is wrong. Ladybug? Like some models still have. Spijkerbroek was initially called like that as some people thought the stitching looked a lot like silver nailheads . We do have a fish that’s called a zeewolf, but that’s actually a wolffish in english, so not really that different. And I usually say wcbril instead of toilet bril. Or ‘oil balls’ – a festive dough-based treat, traditionally eaten at New Year. Means leopard, but is literally translated as ‘lazy horse’. These aren’t so different…. But Dutch has two words: familie and gezin. [Ok, about a million Dutch people told me that catfish is meerval. evrw Apr 2016. Eekhoorntjesbrood. For more on crazy things Dutch People say, get our book Stuff Dutch People Say! For bonus points, ask a Dutch person to say ‘crunchy nut’ (in English). There was until recently a ‘Gropecunt lane’ in London. ‘ziek’ is ‘being ill’; ‘zieken’ is ‘sick people’ which makes a ziekenhuis a ‘sick people house’ – not too far from the truth…? as a Dutch person both this site as the comments are extremely entertaining. Sorry for the rambeling, I’m a bit of a history nerd! “Heen en were” is a bit obscure indeed. Dutch Translation. I love Dutch naming logic, especially for animals. Apetrots. This site uses functional cookies and external scripts to improve your experience. These words, gezellig, ijsberen and uitzieken, are examples of this. Meaning mother-in-law. I’m (monkey) proud to have learned this word today. dolkomisch adjective. I’ve lived and speak Dutch and remember when spijker broken were really popular in the mid 50s. lieveheersbeestje = little dear lord animal = ladybug. Meaning peanut butter but it literally translates as ‘peanut cheese’. This can mean hairdresser or tasty Dutch kebab with chips, cheese and salad. Boterham. Translation: Met de deur in huis vallen. Think your Dutch friend has mental issues when they say they’ve got a monster at home? Never get confused about those again with Dutch . Actually, zeehond is a seal. My sons are ethnically half Michigan Dutch and half Puerto Rican (who are very partial Heineken beer, interestingly enough). Really like your blog posts, i had tons of fun reading, and i am glad that the articles resumed to be funnily observant instead of the few that clearly showed some ‘post winter?’ frustration. Like ‘nit picker’ I guess. (The correct translation in English is ‘I’m really proud of you’.) Bankhangen I will have fun with this. Why that’s ‘eikel’ – which can also mean jerk, and worse. While we’re on the food theme, let’s go with the word for Porcini mushrooms, which literally translates as ‘little squirrels’ bread’.