Tag Archives: praten

Praat me er niet van!

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enough of that, talk to tell me about it, don't get me started Iconspeaker_3
[Dutch phrase of the week]
[praat me er niet van]

PraatMeErNietVan "Praat me er niet van" literally translates to "don't talk to me of that". You can use it to acknowledge that you recognize what the other is saying because you experienced it yourself (usually something tedious or annoying), or to express your own discontent about something.

Examples:
– "Ik moet tegenwoordig in pak naar het werk. Nu moet ik elke dag een overhemd strijken!" – "Man, praat me er niet van, ik heb besloten dat uit te besteden, dat scheelt een hoop tijd!" 
("These days I have to wear a suit to work. Now I have to iron a shirt every day!" – "Man… enough of that, I've decided to outsource it, that saves me a lot of time!")

– "Ik ga elke dag met de auto naar het werk, maar dat schiet totaal niet op." – "Ach, praat me er niet van, in Den Haag sta je voor elk stoplicht stil!" 
("Every day I go to work by car, but it's hopeless really." – "Pff, don't get me started, in The Hague you have to stop at each traffic light." Lit. "you stand still in front of each stop light".)

– "Mannen? Praat me er niet van!" 
("Men? Enough of them!")

– "Een hond als huisdier? Praat me er niet van… Elke dag moet je hem uitlaten en als je op vakantie gaat is het ook gedoe!" 
("A dog for a pet? Tell me about it… You have to walk it every day and when you go on holiday it's always a fuss!")

Related words:
– Praten: to talk/speak [verb] [praatte, gepraat].
– Praat: talk [noun] [de praat, <no plural>].

Example:
– "Ik ben zaterdag met Abby aan de praat geraakt, echt te gek, we hebben de hele avond gesproken!" – "Mafkees! Dat is de vriendin van Tex!"
("Saturday I got into conversation with Abby, that was awesome, we talked all evening!" – "Fool! That's Tex's girlfriend!")

Praatjesmaker

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boaster, windbag Iconspeaker_3
[noun]
[de praat-jes-maker, de praat-jes-makers]

Bla-bla The translation above is what the dictionary says, but a "praatjesmaker" is not necessarily somebody who boasts, but more like somebody who is all talk and no action, doesn't live up to what he/she claims, talks nonsense, claims to know what he/she is talking about but not really, a smart talker etc.

The noun is derived from "praatje" and "maken". The verb is "praten": to talk. A "praatje maken" in general is "to have a brief informal conversation with somebody". See the expressions below for more.

Examples:
– "Hoe was de lezing van Frank?" – "Het sloeg helemaal nergens op; weet je, het is gewoon een praatjesmaker." 
("How was Frank's lecture?" – "It did not make any sense at all; you know, he is just all talk and no action.")

– "Let wel, op praatjesmakers zitten we hier niet te wachten; wij verwachten inzet en kunde!" 
("Be aware, we have no need for boasters; we expect dedication and skills!" Lit. "we are not waiting on boasters here".)

– "Zeg praatjesmaker, nu is het genoeg geweest; het is tijd om naar bed te gaan!" 
("Hey mister know-it-all, that's enough now; it's time for bed!")

Expressions:
– "Een praatje maken met iemand": to briefly and informally chat with somebody.
– "Praatjes hebben": to talk big, to be a 'know-it-all'.

Example:
– "Let maar niet op hem; hij heeft praatjes."
("Don't mind him, he is just talking big.")

– "Mooie praatjes": sweet talk.
– "Een praatje houden": informal way of saying "to give a lecture". Note the use of "houden": to hold; this is the reason Dutch people often say they have to "hold a speech".

Related words:
– Praten: to talk [verb] [praatte, gepraat].
– Praatje: quick conversation, lecture [noun] [het praatje, de praatjes].
– Onzin: nonsense [noun] [de onzin, <no plural>].
– Liegen: to lie [verb] [loog, gelogen].
– Opscheppen: to brag/boast [verb] [schepte op, opgeschept]. Note this verb also means to serve/spoon/ladle out (as in putting food on your plate).

Kletsen

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to chat, to chatter, to gossip, to talk nonsense/rubbish, to splash, to throw/hit with a splashing sound [verb] [kletste, gekletst]

Although “kletsen” has more than one meaning, it is mostly used as a form of talking.

Examples:
1. “Laat ze maar kletsen.”
(<indifferently:> “Let them talk/gossip.”)

2. “Kinderen, niet kletsen in de klas! – sprak de juf.”
(“Children, no talking/chatting during class! – the teacher/nanny said.”)

3. “De regendruppels kletsten op de stoep.”
(“The raindrops were splashing on the pavement.”)

Expressions:
1. “Uit je nek kletsen.”: to talk nonsense. (Literally: to talk out of your neck).

Example:
“Frank zat weer behoorlijk uit z’n nek te kletsen tijdens de vergadering.”
(“Frank was really talking nonsense again during the meeting.”)

2. “Iemand de oren van het hoofd kletsen.”: to talk the hind leg off
a donkey / to talk really much. (Literally: to talk the ears off
someone’s head).

Related words:
1. “Bijkletsen” : to chat with a person in an informal way in order to update eachother on what has been going on in eachother’s lives (“to catch up”).

Example:
“We moeten binnenkort maar weer eens gezellig bijkletsen.”
(“We should catch up / have a nice little chit chat soon.”)

2. “Kletskous” : chatterbox, a person who is chatting/gossiping all the time. A “kous” is a “stocking”.

3. “Ouwehoeren”: to chatter / to go on, more or less synonymous to “kletsen” but very informal. (Literally: to old-whore…)

4. “Dijenkletser”: a really good joke. (Literally: a thigh splasher. Obviously it refers to the sound that is heard when you slap your upperlegs with your flat hands when hearing a really good joke…)