Klinkers
Vowels
The Dutch alphabet is the same as the English one — but Dutch draws a much sharper line between short and long vowels.
| Short | Word | Means | Long | Word | Means |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| a | man | man | aa | maan | moon |
| mannen | men | manen | moons | ||
| ma | mom | ||||
| e | pen | pen | ee | peen | carrot |
| pennen | pens | penen | carrots | ||
| nee | no | ||||
| i | wil | want | ie | wiel | wheel |
| willen | to want | wielen | wheels | ||
| wie | who | ||||
| o | bom | bomb | oo | boom | tree |
| bommen | bombs | bomen | trees | ||
| zo | so | ||||
| u | mus | sparrow | uu | muur | wall |
| mussen | sparrows | muren | walls | ||
| nu | now |
Four spelling rules worth learning early
- Long vowels are spelled
aa, uu, oooree— but in the pattern {long vowel}–{consonant}–{vowel}, they're spelled with just one letter. A long vowel at the end of a word is also spelled with just one letter. (maken keeps one a because a vowel follows the single consonant; taak gets aa because it ends on the consonant.) - Short vowels stay simple — but in the pattern {short vowel}–{consonant}–{vowel}, the consonant doubles instead: man → mannen, lot → lotto, dun → dunne.
- ee and oo (and sometimes eu) can sound a little like diphthongs.
- A final e, and the endings -lijk and -ig, are pronounced like the "e" in unstressed "the."
Uitspraak
Long vowels, diphthongs & consonants
How each sound actually lands in your mouth, with an English or German reference point.
| Spelling | Sounds like | Example | Means |
|---|---|---|---|
| i | ee (need) | liter | litre |
| ie | niet | not | |
| a | German ah (fahren) | maken | to make |
| aa | taak | task | |
| u | German ü (müde) | buren | neighbours |
| uu | buur | neighbour | |
| o | o (phone) | zonen | sons |
| oo | zoon | son | |
| e | ay (may) | delen | parts |
| ee | deel | part | |
| eu | German ö (böse) / French eu | de neus | nose |
| oe | oo (hood) | de hoed | hat |
Diphthongs
| Spelling | Sounds like | Example | Means |
|---|---|---|---|
| ij / ei | i (dike) | de dijk / het feit | dike / fact |
| au / ou | ow (cow) | blauw / het touw | blue / rope |
| ui | French eui (fauteuil) | het huis | house |
Consonants
| Spelling | Sounds like | Example | Means |
|---|---|---|---|
| ch, g | German ch (loch) | lachen / gras | to laugh / grass |
| w (word-initial) | English v | wit | white |
| j | English y | jas | jacket |
| r | Spanish rr (rolled) | roer | rudder |
Every other consonant sounds roughly like its English counterpart — including d, s, and ng.
Five more things worth knowing
- b and d are pronounced like p and t at the end of a word.
- c depends on the vowel that follows it — just like in English.
- y is sometimes a vowel, sometimes a consonant.
- ch and g denote the same sound.
- Loanwords bring their own sounds along — zj as in garage, or a hard g as in goal.