Tag Archives: wagen

Kar

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cart, trolley Iconspeaker_3
[noun]
[de kar, de kar-ren]

Kar The word "kar" or the diminutive "karretje" is typically use for relatively small carts or trolleys (shopping, luggage, golf). Bigger carts that are more like wagons can be called a "kar" but are also often called a "wagen". "Wagentje" and "karretje" are more or less interchangeable. "Kar" is also used informally for a "car (automobile)" with the associated verb "karren".

Examples:
– "Pak jij even een boodschappenkarretje, een mandje is niet voldoende denk ik." 
("Will you get us a shopping cart, I don't think a basket will suffice.")

– "Wow, wat een gave kar!!" 
("Wow, what a cool car!!")

– "Man, wat is deze koffer zwaar!" – "Waarom pak je dan geen bagagekarretje sukkel!" 
("Man, this suitcase is heavy!" – "Then why don't you get a luggage trolley you fool!")

 

 

Expressions:
– "De kar trekken": used figuratively for "to lead the effort".

Example:
– "Dit project schiet voor geen meter op!" – "Ja, dat heb je als Frank de kar trekt."
("This project is not progressing one bit!" – "Yup, that's what you get when Frank is leading the effort.")

Related words:
– Karren: to drive [verb, informal] [karde, gekard].

Example:
– "Morgen pakken we onze tassen in en overmorgen karren we naar Zuid-Frankrijk." 
("Tomorrow we'll pack our bags and the day after tomorrow we'll drive to the south of France.")

– Wagentje: cart [noun] [het wagentje, de wagentjes].
– Wagen: wagon, car [noun] [de wagen, de wagens].
– Huifkar: covered wagon [noun] [de huifkar, de huifkarren].
– Paard-en-wagen: horse and carriage [noun] [de paard-en-wagen, de paard-en-wagens].
– Karten: go karting [noun] [het karten, <no plural>]. Here, we also use the verb "karten".

 

Auto

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1. car [noun] [de auto, de auto’s]

The word "auto" is short for "automobiel", which translates to "automobile" or "motorcar".

Phonetically, "auto" ends in a long "o" and in order to keep this sound the plural form is formed by adding ‘s (apostrophe s) instead of just a single s (which would turn the long "o" into a short "o").

Examples:
– "Het aantal auto’s in Nederland groeit."
("The number of cars in the Netherlands is growing.")

– "Nederlanders rijden meestal in handgeschakelde auto’s."
("The Dutch usually drive manual transmission cars" or "The Dutch usually drive stick". Literally: "…ride in hand-shifted cars.")

– "Frank zit in een midlife crisis en wil daarom een snellere en grotere auto."
("Frank is having midlife crisis and therefore wants a faster and bigger car." There is no real Dutch equivalent for "midlife crisis" so we use the same terminology used with "zitten in" (literally "to sit in").)

2. self- [in a compound]

Examples:
– "Automutilatie duidt vaak op ernstige psychische problemen."
("Self-mutilation often indicates serious psychological problems.")

– "Frank is autodidact op de gitaar."
("On the guitar, Frank is self-taught.")

Related words:
– "Wagen": wagon (often used as slang for "car").
– "Auto(snel)weg": motorway, highway.
– "Automaat": either an automatic car, or a vending/slot machine.