40 Comments
I can't decide whether I like Sehenswürdigkeiten or bezienswaardigheden better...
I'm not a linguist, but this can probably already help you:
- zien = to see
- bezien = to look at, to consider
- waarde = value
- waardig = worthy
- waardigheid = dignity (lit. something that is worthy)
So it comes down to "something that is worth looking at". :)
2086
Nice explanation! When I saw this word, I was thinking about these details.
Similar to the German word/concept "Denkmal." Something to stop and think about.
Actually much more similar to the German "Sehenswürdigkeit" = something worth looking at. The German "Denkmal" is "monument" in Dutch (and in English).
bezienswaardigheid drops the "i" in the plural? "bezienswaardigheden". that is confusing
Most (all?) words with the suffix -heid get -heden in plural, e.g.
- bezienswaardigheid - bezienswaardigheden - sights
- schoonheid - schoonheden - cleanliness, beauty (usually a woman)
- minderheid - minderheden - minority
- overheid - overheden - government
- and many more
Could you please explain that a bit more? Why would -heiden not work as an ending?
It's probably easier to think of as "bezienswaardighed" is the base singular form of the word, but you don't want a short vowel sound (for whatever reason). In the plural, you add -en and the vowel is long. In the singular, you lengthen from "e" to "ei" and the vowel is long. Hope that makes sense (I can't say that's necessarily what actually happened in the language).
Try breaking it down a little! When I come across a word that's hard to spell, I'll often spend a few minutes really getting it down, breaking it down into its different components. Here are the different parts of this word:
- beziens
- waardig
- heid
If you look above, Susande wrote exactly what each of these components means. If you learn what each part means, and take a few moments practicing spelling it, I'm sure you'll get it down pat. ^_^
Thanks! This is was I was trying to do but always got a letter or two wrong and was becoming frustrated. I made it though! Practice makes perfect.
"ik hou van" is more used in everyday speech. You'll be more likely to hear a native speaker say this when talking. "ik houd van" is the more proper spelling, which you would generally use in writing.
I don't remember having heard or "houd van" in 3 years of interacting in Dutch. I think they taught us exclusively "hou van" even in the Dutch class but there's no question in my mind that in everyday language "hou van" has more or less a monopoly.
If I remember correctly, I have learned at school (in Belgium) that "ik houd van" and "ik hou van" are pronounced the same way (the "d" isn't pronounced)
Can this also mean 'vista', or is it more like an attraction/ point of interest/ landmark?
"bezienswaardigheid" is strictly attractions, landmarks or points of interest. If you wanted to say something more like "vista," you would use "zicht."
- 1910
I think that the hint should be "site," not "sight," based on your explanation.
No, "sight" is the correct word. "site" means a place, whereas "sight" means either vision or a place worth seeing. :)
- 1910
I see. So what is the Dutch word for "site" (as in a "historical site")?
You can use site (Dutch pronunciation, not the English one), but I'm not sure if you'll be understood by most people. So maybe you can use historische locatie or historische vindplaats instead (the latter for an archeological site).
So would "view" be correct? Saying "I love this sight" just doesn't seem like something you would typically say in English -- unless you are referring to a site.
Because the gender of bezienswaardigheid is feminine -- ergo common gender -- deze is used as the demonstrative.
as someone else mentioned above, sight and site have different meanings so you cannot really use zicht for sight, but you can use it for site
"the sight" betekent "het zicht" in het Nederlands. Dus ik denk dat het oké is om "het zicht" te gebruiken. Terloops, bedankt voor uw commentaar.
It isn't "dit bezienswaardigheid" because the article "dit" is used with het-words, and bezienswaardigheid is a de-word. Therefore, you have to use "deze" instead, the article which is used with de-words as well as all plural nouns.
Woordenlijst is a great website to use to find out the gender of a word as well as its plural form. You can also use it to see all the forms of an adjective and to conjugate verbs.
Hopefully this helps!
