Dutch for beginners! How to get started?

How to get started?

As a student who studies in the Netherlands, I really wanted to learn Dutch at first. I started to study Dutch on my own during the summer before my first year. Studying on your own is really challenging if you don’t know the right approach. Firstly, I suggest looking up how to read the Dutch alphabet with audio recordings of the correct pronunciation. Although the Dutch alphabet is similar to the English one, there are many differences when it comes to pronunciation. Once you can read correctly, a helpful website, to begin with, is one you may have heard of, it is called Duolingo. There you can really dive into studying Dutch because you pick the topics you want to learn. It has basic, intermediate, and advanced grammar and vocabulary levels that you can go through. It is an excellent website for self-studying. One tip I can give is studying it as you were studying English in school, setting some words to learn per week, and testing them regularly. Also, don’t forget to check a fair amount of grammar because grammar is the core of every language. If you are a person who prefers studying with a teacher, don’t forget that you can always sign up for a Dutch language course.

Basic words for a simple conversation  

Knowing how to have a proper small conversation in Dutch is something essential to know in general. To start a conversation, you always greet the other person by saying hello, which is quite similar in Dutch "Hallo". Of course, only that is not enough to create a conversation. When meeting someone for the first time, usually, you ask for his name, and you say "Hoe heet je?" meaning "what is your name?". To answer the question, you can say "Ik ben (name)," which means "I am" and finish with your name. If you really want to show off, you can also say "Leuk je te ontmoeten," meaning "nice to meet you".

The conversation can go many directions after that, but a core question you can be asked as an international is "Waar kom je vandaan?" which basically means "Where are you from?". A common way of answering is "Ik kom uit (country)," which means "I am from (country)". Likely, there will be a difference between the way you pronounce your country in your native language and how Dutch people pronounce it, but you can stick to the English pronunciation and be okay. If you feel uncomfortable speaking Dutch to people you don't really know, you can always say "Ik spreek geen Netherlands" which translated in English as "I don't speak Dutch," and continue the conversation in English. Once you already know the person, you can ask a more specific and personal question such as how are you, which in Dutch is "Hoe gaat het?" and answer simply by saying "goed" or be fancy saying "Het gaat goed met mij" meaning "I am doing well".

Once you get confident with these words and questions, you can start developing your Dutch language skills, which will always come in useful for you. One personal tip is not to be afraid to practice words and phrases you have learned. Everyone understands that this is not your native language and that you are trying your best, so there is nothing to be afraid of. 

Going out and shopping  

As an international student, there is a high chance that you will have to deal with grocery shopping and cooking. It is challenging to go shopping for meat if you are not familiar with any Dutch words for meat or animals. The core words for meats which are beef, pork, chicken, and fish, are "rundvlees," "varkenvlees," "kip" and "vis," as you may guess "vlees" in Dutch means meat. If you are not a fan of meat, there is always the option to show off with the phrase "I don't eat meat," which is "Ik eet geen vlees".

Another situation where you can show off a little bit of your Dutch skills is when going out for a drink with friends. Although almost every person who works in a café in the Netherlands speaks English, it is an opportunity to practice your Dutch language knowledge. You can order a beverage by saying "Ik wil graag wat drinken", which means "I would like to have a drink", and then add the beverage you want. The most common drinks are coffee, beer, tea, water, and wine: Dutch "koffie, bier, thee, water and wijn". Of course, if you want to keep it simple, you can just say "Ik wil," meaning "I want," and try to pronounce the word you read from the menu. 

Travelling  

Travelling is something every international student will have to do when going to the Netherlands but also when is already in the Netherlands. Words for transportation such as bus and train have little to no difference in Dutch as a bus is bus and train is trein with an "e" instead of "a." A car is also an option, auto in Dutch, but trains are the primary way to travel within the Netherlands. Other valuable words one should know are platform and city. There are two ways to say platform in Dutch. One way is the same "platform," and the other one is "perron," which is used in the question "which platform does the train leave on?" which translated in Dutch is "Vanaf welk perron vertrekt de trein?" Other useful questions you should probably know as a student are "Which train is to, e.g., Deventer" and "What time does the train leave?" The first one may come in handy quite often and is easy to remember "Welke trein is naar (city)?" the second one is a little bit harder, but still, nothing to be afraid of it goes "Hoe laat vertrekt de trein?". Learning these words and questions will be very useful in many situations if you want to lay your Dutch groundwork. 

Try it yourself 

The best way to learn a language, is to just start practising. Don't be afraid to make mistake, as this it what we all do when we try to learn a new language!