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A-Z of Turning Dutch – Today’s Letter is the Letter G

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It’s time for a new instalment of The A-Z of Turning Dutch – the Letter G is up today. It’s a letter many foreigners dread in the Dutch language, but today we are embracing it. Which G words ring out when you think about with life here in the Netherlands? Or which G words do you associate with the Dutch themselves?

The G Words

Here’s what Twitter followers said:

  • Gooise matras
  • Gezellig (cosy, sort of – see below)
  • gvd (short for godverdomme, which is cursing)
  • Geëerd (honoured)
  • Gratis (see below)
  • Gezever (drivel, nonsense – that kind of idea)
  • Goegemeente (explained beautifully below in the tweet)
  • Gouda kaas, belegen
  • Gatverdamme (handy word as it shows your displeasure without actually swearing)
  • Glimlach (smile)
  • Grachtengordel (neighbourhood in Amsterdam)
  • Gracht (canal within a city – the country is full of them!)
  • Gegiechel (giggling)
  • Goed (good)
  • Groen gras (green grass)
  • Graag (please, gladly, willingly – used a lot)
  • Groningen
  • Gaaf (great, fantastic, or cool)
  • Groen Links (political party)
  • Grommen (growl)
  • Gramschap (wrath – this was a new one for me)
  • Groeten (greetings, regards)
  • Grimmig (grim, unpleasant – if someone tells you the sfeer was grimmig, it really wasn’t a great place to be)
  • Gruwelijk (horrible, horrific)
  • Grolsch (you know this, I don’t need to help you)
  • Gezondheid (health)
  • Graag gedaan (you’re welcome)
  • Goude Eeuw (Golden Age, an important part of Dutch history)
  • Gevels (façades, which feature prominently around the grachten for sure. If this is your thing, check out types of gevels)
  • Gesneuveld (literally fallen – but actually mainly used to indicate killed in action)
  • Gezeik (load of crap, bullshit – but this Dutch word doesn’t have the same connotations as the English equivalents. However, my advice is use informally only)
  • Gezanik (whining, moaning, nagging)
  • Gooien (to throw – I guess some readers are sports fans?)
  • Goederen (goods, merchandise, property)
  • Geven (to give)
  • Gulden (former Dutch currency – see below)

The G Sound in Dutch

The G sound in Dutch, to the untrained foreign ear, can lead you to believe you need to step in and help someone from choking. For non-Dutch speakers, it takes time to get the G sound right. If you really cannot master it, despite years of trying, one reader has a tip for you:

It’s no coincidence that many of the G words above start with Gr. The Dutch do it on purpose to pester the rest of us. Gr is even harder to pronounce than a simple G. The rolling r really is difficult for most of us to pronounce. and I say that even after two decades here….

Gulden

When I moved to the Netherlands in September 2000, I caught the tail end of the gulden. The euro was introduced in January 2002 and replaced the Dutch currency. A little known fact, my mother-in-law still calculates prices back to the gulden, and teh result never delights her.

Gratis and Gezellig

Gratis is a word any seasoned Netherlands inhabitant will come to know. It means free, and the Dutch love gratis. The other G word any serious resident of this wonderful country should know is gezellig. The closest translation is cosy, but that doesn’t capture it. You can read all about gezellig in this blog post I made earlier….. what is your idea of gezellig?

A-Z of Turning Dutch – the Letter G: gezellig - candles, a book and an autumnal scene

So that’s it today for the A-Z of Turning Dutch – the Letter G. Watch out for the next instalment, which will be brought to you by the letter H.

Over to You

What’s your favourite Dutch G word? Is it one already in the list above, or can you add a new one to the mix?

The post A-Z of Turning Dutch – Today’s Letter is the Letter G appeared first on Turning Dutch.