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Category Archives: Elementary

Making do

Making a jigsaw in English would mean cutting the puzzle pieces out, not putting them together. One of many occasions where Dutch uses “make” but English prefers “do”.

Posted byMike WilkinsonJanuary 18, 2022Posted inAdvanced, Elementary, VerbsTags:dunglish, engels, makenLeave a comment on Making do

Water monsters

No, we’re not talking Nessie or ichthyosaurs: a water monster in Dutch also has a second, more common and prosaic meaning: a water sample.

Posted byMike WilkinsonJanuary 14, 2022January 14, 2022Posted inAdvanced, Elementary, Mistranslations, Valse vriendenTags:dunglish, engels, monster2 Comments on Water monsters

The verb for spatial positioning: to be

My car is located in the car park. It is placed in the car park. It can be found in the car park. It is positioned in the car park. It stands in the car park. Nope.

Posted byMike WilkinsonAugust 11, 2021Posted inElementary, Longwindedness, StyleTags:dunglish, engels, liggen, staan, zittenLeave a comment on The verb for spatial positioning: to be

Mo-Fr, Sa+Su

You’re probably not going to confuse anybody by using two-letter abbreviations for days. But English doesn’t do that.

Posted byMike WilkinsonFebruary 15, 2021February 15, 2021Posted inElementary, Fake EnglishTags:dunglish, engelsLeave a comment on Mo-Fr, Sa+Su

Twenty twenty-one

The way dates are said out loud is sometimes a little different to the spoken form of a simple number. Short and simple.

Posted byMike WilkinsonJanuary 1, 2021Posted inElementaryTags:decimale komma, duizenden, dunglish, engels, jaartallen, scheidingstekenLeave a comment on Twenty twenty-one

I before E (except after C)

Lots of people think this (or even just the first part) is supposed to be a spelling rule and get annoyed by the exceptions. But they’ve only learned part of it!

Posted byMike WilkinsonDecember 24, 2020December 24, 2020Posted inElementaryTags:engels3 Comments on I before E (except after C)

A black-and-white issue?

You’d think colours are pretty elementary and there ought to be no mistakes there. But there are still pitfalls when colours are combined.

Posted byMike WilkinsonNovember 20, 2020Posted inElementary, PunctuationTags:dunglish, engels, geel-zwart, rood-wit, zwart-wit1 Comment on A black-and-white issue?

A new threat

Dutch doesn’t have words that end in D. Or rather, the pronunciation is the same as a final T so they have a hard time distinguishing the two.

Posted byMike WilkinsonNovember 10, 2020Posted inElementary, VerbsTags:dt-fouten, dunglish, engels3 Comments on A new threat

GB, England and the UK

The term “Great Britain” has nothing to do with delusions of grandeur. It’s just the biggest island in the group, same as Gran Canaria or Grand Cayman.

Posted byMike WilkinsonJune 7, 2020June 8, 2020Posted inCultural, ElementaryTags:dunglish, Engeland, engels, GB, Groot-BritanniĆ«, Verenigd Koninkrijk, VKLeave a comment on GB, England and the UK

Using “a” and “an”

Whether to use “a” or “an” depends on if a vowel follows. But remember: that’s determined by the spoken sound, not the alphabetical letter.

Posted byMike WilkinsonMay 26, 2020May 26, 2020Posted inArticles, ElementaryTags:acroniemen, dunglish, engels, klinker1 Comment on Using “a” and “an”

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