Snor

moustache/mustache [noun] [de snor, de snorren] [‘snor‘]

Ek_voetbal_1988
This morning in the popular Dutch radio show “Evers staat op” (Evers rises/gets up) hosted by the DJ Edwin Evers, one joked about the Dutch football/soccer team not being very convincing and that maybe they should start growing moustaches. Why? Well, in 1988 the Dutch won the European football/soccer championship and obviously this was because 8 out of the 11 players had a moustache!

Examples:
– “Persoonlijk vind ik een snor geen gezicht. Ik ben blij dat mijn vriend er geen heeft!”
(“Personally I think that a moustache is hideous. I’m happy that my boyfriend doesn’t have one!” Literally: “… think a moustache is no sight.”)

– “Moet je niet eens tegen je vader zeggen dat een snor echt niet meer kan in deze tijd?”
(“Shouldn’t you tell your father that a moustache is really old-fashioned?” Literally: “… that a moustache really is not possible anymore in this age?”)

Expressions:
– “Dat zit wel snor!”: That’s fine / all right. You can use this for example when you want to say that things will be all right or that you will be fine.

Example:
– “Sander, zal je dit jaar alle deadlines halen?” – “O, dat zit wel snor, maak je geen zorgen!”
(“Sander, will you meet all deadlines this year?” – “Oh, that will be fine, don’t worry!”)

– “Zijn snor drukken”: to shirk/make oneself scarce, to weasel out.

Example:
– “Er was vanochtend een belangrijke vergadering, maar wederom had Frank zijn snor gedrukt.”
(“There was an important meeting this morning, but once again Frank weaseled out.”)

Related words:
– “Baard“: beard.
– “Snorharen”: whiskers.
– “Hitlersnorretje”: used to describe the typical small moustache, like the one Adolf Hitler used to have.
– “Bromsnor”: synonym for a policeman. See Extra below.
Snorfiets_1
– “Snorfiets“: this looks like a “bromfiets” (moped) but its maximum speed is lower (30 km/h), a helmet is not required and one has to stay on the bike path. An orange marking on the front wheel mud guard is mandatory and is used by the police for recognition, as opposed to a yellow marking for a “bromfiets”. Here, “snor” is derived from the verb “snorren”: to whirr/buzz/zoom, making less sound than “brommen”: to drone/hum.

Spartamet

While we are on the topic, another version is the motorized bicycle, aimed at senior people who might need some help at times. This is usually referred to as a “spartamet“, similar to a popular brand name. A “spartamet”, too, has to show the orange marking.

 

Extra:
Swiebertje” is the name of a classic Dutch tv-series that ran from the end of the 50s till mid-70s. It showed the adventures of a tramp called “Swiebertje”. One of the main characters was the rural policeman/constable called “Bromsnor”. He had a moustache and the verb “brommen” is an informal synonym for “to grumble”. Due to the popularity of the series the word “bromsnor” became an informal synonym for a policeman. It is not used a lot though, but you might hear it!

3 thoughts on “Snor

  1. Just stumbled upon this site. Its a very good resource. Thank you…Dankuwel.

  2. Thanks for this website. I just found it and have made it our home page. Perhaps next year I will be able to leave a comment in Dutch!
    Peace in the new year
    Greg

  3. I too, just found this AMAZING web site!
    I am committed to becoming fluent in Dutch one day!! This will help!!!
    Dankjewel!

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