Dialogue

Vocabulary

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Lesson Transcript

INTRODUCTION
Hallo! Hello and welcome to Dutch Survival Phrases brought to you by DutchPod101.com, this course is designed to equip you with the language skills and knowledge to enable you to get the most out of your visit to the Netherlands. You will be surprised at how far a little Dutch will go.
Now, before we jump in, remember to stop by DutchPod101.com and there, you will find the accompanying PDF and additional info in the post. If you stop by, be sure to leave us a comment.

Lesson focus

In this lesson, we are going to introduce you to some phrases that are ideal for special occasions that you can use with Dutch speakers anywhere in the world! Whether you are sending an e-mail across the globe or saying it in person, the following phrases for celebratory events will allow you to express your sentiments in Dutch. In the Netherlands, the custom of exchanging regards and good wishes is very important. Usually the Dutch shake each other's hands and kiss each other's cheeks. Men do this with women, and women do this with women.
In Dutch, "Congratulations" is Gefeliciteerd.
Let's break it down by syllable: Ge-fe-li-ci-teerd.
Now Let's hear it once again: Ge-fe-li-ci-teerd.
This word literally means "congratulations," and we use it on many special occasions, such as a career move, after passing an exam, at a wedding, and so on.
"Happy birthday" in Dutch is Hartelijk gefeliciteerd met uw verjaardag.
Let's break it down by syllable: Har-te-lijk ge-fe-li-ci-teerd met uw ver-jaar-dag. Hartelijk gefeliciteerd met je verjaardag.
Let's have a look at the components of this phrase. We start the phrase with Hartelijk Gefeliciteerd, which means literarily, "Heartfelt Congratulations." Hartelijk Gefeliciteerd.
Let's break it down by syllable and hear it one more time: Har-te-lijk Ge-fe-li-ci-teerd. Hartelijk Gefeliciteerd.
Then we have met uw, meaning, "on with your." Met uw. Met uw. So far we have Hartelijk gefeliciteerd met uw.
This is followed by verjaardag, or "birthday." Verjaardag.
To recap here, the whole phrase is Hartelijk gefeliciteerd met uw verjaardag.
This phrase literally means, "Heartfelt congratulations." We have used the polite form here but if you want to make it more informal you can change uw into je.
The phrase will then be Hartelijk gefeliciteerd met je verjaardag.
Now let's see what other phrases we can use in the many situations you are likely to encounter.
"Happy New Year" in Dutch is Gelukkig Nieuwjaar.
Let's break it down by syllable: Ge-luk-kig Nieuw-jaar.
Gelukkig Nieuwjaar.
The first word, Gelukkig, means, "happy."
Ge-luk-kig.
Gelukkig.
The last word is Nieuwjaar, meaning, "new year."
Nieuwjaar.
So the whole phrase is Gelukkig Nieuwjaar. "Happy New Year."
"Merry Christmas" is Vrolijk Kerst.
Let's break it down by syllable and say it once again: Vro-lijk Kerst-mis.
Vrolijk Kerstmis.
The first word in our phrase, Vrolijk, means, "joyful." Vrolijk.
Vrolijk.
Then we end with Kerstmis, which means, "Christmas." Kerstmis.
So All together, we have: Vrolijk Kerstmis. ("Merry Christmas.")
"Happy Easter" is Vrolijk Pasen.
Let's break it down by syllable and say it once again: Vro-lijk Pa-sen.
Vro-lijk Pasen.
As you've probably noticed, this phrase is very similar to the one we just introduced.
We only exchanged "Christmas" (Kerstmis) for "Easter" (Pasen).
Let's break down this word: Pa-sen. Pasen.
The whole phrase is Vrolijk Pasen. ("Happy Easter.")

Outro

Okay, to close out this lesson, we'd like you to practice what you've just learned. I'll provide you with the English equivalent of the phrase and you're responsible for saying it aloud. You have a few seconds before I give you the answer, so good luck, that also means “good luck” in Dutch.
"Congratulations." - Gefeliciteerd.
Gefeliciteerd.
Gefeliciteerd.
"Happy birthday. (formal)" - Hartelijk gefeliciteerd met uw verjaardag.
Hartelijk gefeliciteerd met uw verjaardag.
Hartelijk gefeliciteerd met uw verjaardag.
"Happy New Year." - Gelukkig Nieuwjaar.
Gelukkig Nieuwjaar.
Gelukkig Nieuwjaar.
"Merry Christmas." - Vrolijk Kerstmis.
Vrolijk Kerstmis.
Vrolijk Kerstmis.
"Happy Easter." - Vrolijk Pasen.
Vrolijk Pasen.
Vrolijk Pasen.
All right, that's going to do it for today. Remember to stop by DutchPod101.com and pick up the accompanying PDF and additional info in the post. If you stop by, be sure to leave us a comment. Tot ziens!

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