Dunglish: when languages collide
“Make that the cat wise”, “I fok horses”, “My will is wet” and “I’d like a chocolate rape”: when Dutch and English collide, a lot can go wrong.
English is on the rise at Dutch universities – and so are student complaints about the incomprehensibility of their professors. Dunglish is a growing annoyance at universities, the Volkskrant reported on Tuesday.
Students don’t seem to have a lot of sympathy for the Dutchisms committed by their teachers. But let’s be honest: the unhappy marriage between Dutch and English can be quite amusing at times. Here are some examples of Dunglish at its finest.
“I hate you welcome”
Dutch: “Ik heet u welkom”
Meaning: “I welcome you”
“This theory is totally grabbed from the sky”
Dutch: “Deze theorie is totaal uit de lucht gegrepen”
Meaning: “This theory is completely unfounded”
“He couldn’t make it hard”
Dutch: “Hij kon het niet hardmaken”
Meaning: “He couldn’t prove it”
“Take the carrot of two”
Dutch: “Neem de wortel van twee”
Meaning: “Take the square root of two”
“I don’t have it under the knee yet”
Dutch: “Ik heb het nog niet onder de knie”
Meaning: “I haven’t mastered it yet”
“That’s another cook”
Dutch: “Dat is andere koek”
Meaning: “That’s something else”
“I can stand my little man”
Dutch: “Ik kan mijn mannetje staan”
Meaning: “I can stand up for myself”
“This college goes over ramps”
Dutch: “Dit college gaat over rampen”
Meaning: “This lecture is about disasters”
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