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- "Ik houd van deze bezienswaar…
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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". :)
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).
137
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).
"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)
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.
The word ‘sights’ seems a bit lame compared to bezienswaardigheden! Is it time that 'the sights' was replaced with TOURIST ATTRACTIONS or a similar phrase? SIGHTS can be anything: a beautiful sunset, children playing, a car accident, all of which may not be bezienswaardig.
Ik had een beeldig uitzicht over de stad van boven op de windmolen gisteren. That is the use of ...view... in Dutch ..... uitzicht = view or outlook.
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."
No, "sight" is the correct word. "site" means a place, whereas "sight" means either vision or a place worth seeing. :)
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.
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).
Because the gender of bezienswaardigheid is feminine -- ergo common gender -- deze is used as the demonstrative.
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!
- 503
I think "site" is a better translation. The question revolves around whether it is the "view" or the "location."
- 75
One meaning of the English word "sight" is something that you "see" with your "eyesight".
The English word "site" is not related to the word "see". It is related to the word "situation" -- both words refer to a location rather than to something seen.
The Dutch here clearly refers to something worth seeing. That is why "sight" rather than "site" is the better translation, and why "sight" is specified as the translation in all the dictionaries.
It sounds really awkward though. I would say, "I love this view" or "I love this place" or I would go sightseeing, but I would not say, "I love this sight".
- 75
- It sounds awkward to you, but perhaps not to other native speakers of English.
- If it is an awkward sentence, then the solution is for the Duo team to find a better example sentence -- for example, one that does not use "I love" in the English. It is NOT a solution to mistranslate the Dutch word "bezienswaardigheid" as "view" or "site" or "cat" or "dog".
"Ik hou van deze bezienswaardigheid" was marked wrong because "hou" was flagged that it should be "houd". An other example said that "Ik houd/ik hou" are equally acceptable. Am I missing something?
- 75
The words "sight" and "view" are two different words with two different meanings. Consider:
1. The tourist had a great view from his balcony.
2. The tourist saw all the sights from his balcony.
3. The tourist saw all the views from his balcony.
4. The tourist had a great sight from his balcony.
1 and 2 are correct but 3 and 4 sound odd. In normal idiomatic usage, you do not "see" a view. Rather, it is something you experience visually from a particular location. In contrast, a "sight" is some specific visual object with a view.
In other words, a "sight" is something specific included within a "view".
