Rijksmuseum (the national museum) sounds like RIKES-mew-zay-um.
the national museum
Rijks: ij = 'eye'; museum keeps the Latin-ish 'mew-zay-um'.
a seaside district of The Hague
The sch- is s + a guttural g (like a throat-clear), not 'sh'. It was famously used to spot non-native speakers in WWII.
a city (and the cheese)
The g is a hard guttural 'kh' from the throat — never the English 'g' in 'good'.
a central Dutch city
The -cht is a guttural 'kh' + t. The u sounds like the 'u' in 'put'.
an old city in the east
ij sounds like English 'eye'; the g is the guttural 'kh'.
a city in the northeast
The w is soft, close to a 'v'. Short o as in 'doll'.
the blue-pottery city
Easy one — just a clear, short e as in 'bell'.
the southernmost city
aa is a long 'ah'; -cht is the guttural 'kh' + t.
a historic university city
ei sounds like English 'eye', exactly like ij.
the main northern city
Starts with the guttural g; the rest is gentle.
a city near the German border
sch again = s + guttural g. The final -e is a soft 'uh'.
the tech city of Philips
ei = 'eye'; the v is soft, almost an 'f'.
a southern city
Stress the first syllable; the a's are long 'ah/ay'.
a city on the Rhine
Pronounce the h clearly; short vowels throughout.
a city west of Amsterdam
aa is a long 'ah'; the r is lightly rolled.
the 'Dutch Venice' village
g is guttural; oo is a long 'oh'.
a Wadden island
Here the x is said 's', not 'ks' — a special case.
a small river city
Locals swallow it to 'KHOR-kum' — a classic trap even for Dutch people.
the oldest city of Holland
-cht is the guttural 'kh' + t again.
the cheese-market city
aa is a long 'ah'.
the Frisian capital
eeuw is a long 'ay' gliding into 'w'.
a town north of Amsterdam
aa long 'ah'; the z is a soft buzzing 's'.
a coastal port town
IJ is a single letter ('eye'); ui is that tricky 'ow/ur' vowel.
a central city
oo is a long 'oh'; stress the first syllable.
the painter Vincent van Gogh
In Dutch it's 'van KHOKH' with two guttural g's — not 'van GO' (US) or 'van GOFF' (UK).
the Golden Age painter
The final -dt is just a 't'. Stress the first syllable.
the painter of the Milkmaid
ee is a long 'ay'; stress the second syllable.
former PM Mark Rutte
Short u as in 'put'; the final -e is a soft 'uh'.
footballer Johan Cruijff
uij is the ui vowel — roughly 'ow'; the final -ff is an 'f'.
a common boy's name
ij = 'eye', so it rhymes with English 'nine'.
a boy's name
The v leans toward 'f' at the start of a word.
a common girl's name
Short a; the final -e is a soft 'uh', not 'ee'.
a boy's name
g is guttural; uu is a long 'ew' (round your lips).
a Frisian boy's name
sj = English 'sh'; oe = 'oo'; final -d = 't'.
a girl's name
Short e; double n keeps the vowel short.
a girl's name
ou here is like 'oo'; stress the second syllable.
a boy's name
The J is a 'y' sound; oe = 'oo'.
a boy's name
Th is just 't'; ij = 'eye', so it rhymes with 'nice'.
a girl's name
eu is the French-style 'ur' with rounded lips.
the king's name, William
The Dutch w is soft, between English 'v' and 'w'.
a girl's name (means rose)
oo is a long 'oh'; the s stays sharp.
a very common boy's name
aa is a long 'ah'.
a caramel syrup waffle
oo = long 'oh'; the w is soft (v-ish).
chocolate sprinkles for bread
Two guttural g's — one in the middle, one at the end.
New Year's doughnut balls
oe? No — 'olie' is 'OH-lee'; short o in 'bollen'.
deep-fried ragout snacks
Short i and a; double letters keep vowels short.
Dutch (salty) liquorice
Just a short o as in 'top'. The salty kind is 'zoute drop'.
peanut butter
kaas ('cheese') = 'kahs' with a long 'ah'.
a mashed-potato stew
Short u as in 'put'; short o.
thick pea soup (snert)
The w in 'erwten' is silent-ish; oe = 'oo'.
mini fluffy pancakes
-tje is a soft 'tyuh'; short o.
the biggest supermarket
Heijn: ij = 'eye', so it rhymes with 'nine'.
the beer brand
In Dutch the ei = 'eye', so it's 'HY-nuh-ken', not 'HINE-uh-ken'.
a fried-egg-and-ham dish
ui = 'ow'; ij = 'eye'. Two hard vowels in one word.
cosy / convivial (untranslatable)
Guttural g at both ends; the middle is stressed.
please / here you go (formal)
Say it as one smooth word; ie = 'ee'.
please / here you go (informal)
sje = 'shuh'; ie = 'ee'.
girl
ei = 'eye'; sje = 'shuh'.
ice / ice cream
ij = 'eye', so it's literally the English word 'ice'.
onion
The ui vowel has no English match — round your lips and glide from 'ow' to 'ur'.
good morning
Two guttural g's; oe = 'oo'.
bye (casual)
oei glides from 'oo' to 'ee'. Very common goodbye.
tasty / nice / good
Short e; the double k keeps it short. Used for far more than food.
cheers!
oo = long 'oh'. Say it while raising your glass.
the December gift-giving figure
aa = long 'ah'. Not the same as Santa Claus.
bicycle
ie = 'ee'. The single most useful Dutch word.
canal
g and -cht are both guttural — a full mouthful of 'kh'.
treasure / darling
sch = s + guttural g; short a.
eight
-cht is the guttural 'kh' + t. Practise it in 'achttien' (18) too.
little house
ui = 'ow'; -sje = 'shuh'. A perfect ui + diminutive drill.
orange (colour & the nation)
The nj = 'ny' as in 'canyon'; final -e is a soft 'uh'.
Rijksmuseum is pronounced roughly "RIKES-mew-zay-um". Rijks: ij = 'eye'; museum keeps the Latin-ish 'mew-zay-um'.
Rijksmuseum is the national museum. Press play above to hear it spoken by a native Dutch voice.
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