LESSON 2

Essential Dutch Survival Phrases

These are the most useful Dutch phrases for day one: greeting people, introducing yourself, asking for help, and handling simple daily situations.

Essential Everyday Phrases

Dutch	English	Use case
Hallo!	Hello!	Neutral greeting
Goedemorgen.	Good morning.	Morning greeting
Goedemiddag.	Good afternoon.	Afternoon greeting
Goedenavond.	Good evening.	Evening greeting
Tot ziens.	See you.	Polite goodbye
Hoe gaat het?	How are you?	Small talk
Goed, dank je.	Good, thank you.	Simple response
Ik heet ...	My name is ...	Introduce yourself
Ik kom uit ...	I come from ...	Say your origin
Spreekt u Engels?	Do you speak English?	Ask for language support
Ik begrijp het niet.	I do not understand.	Clarification
Kunt u dat herhalen?	Can you repeat that?	Ask to repeat
Waar is het station?	Where is the station?	Directions
Hoeveel kost dit?	How much is this?	Shopping
Ik heb hulp nodig.	I need help.	Urgent support
Alstublieft / Dank u wel.	Please / Thank you.	Politeness

Tip: learn these as full chunks, not separate words. Fast phrase recall is more useful than perfect grammar in your first real conversation.

Mini Dialogues

Short real-world examples using only beginner phrases.

A: Goedemorgen. Ik heet Emma. Ik kom uit Spanje. A: Good morning. My name is Emma. I come from Spain.

B: Hallo Emma. Ik heet Noor. Spreekt u Engels? B: Hello Emma. My name is Noor. Do you speak English?

A: Ja, een beetje. Kunt u dat herhalen? A: Yes, a little. Can you repeat that?

B: Natuurlijk. Waar is het station? B: Of course. Where is the station?

How to Actually Use These Phrases

Survival phrases are not grammar you build word by word — they are fixed social routines that Dutch speakers repeat the same way every time, the way an English speaker always says "nice to meet you" rather than assembling a new sentence. The habit that catches English speakers off guard is that Dutch bakes politeness into the phrase itself: talking to a stranger, an official, or someone older calls for u instead of je, and that single choice changes both the verb ending and which "thank you" you use.

Learn each phrase as one block tied to a situation, not as separate words to translate on the fly — Ik kom uit ... is a slot you fill with a country, not three words you build from scratch. For the politeness choice, default to the formal "u" form with anyone you don't know, such as shopkeepers, officials, or older neighbors, and relax into je only once someone uses it with you first.

Real-life note: Dutch people are famously relaxed about small grammar mistakes, but formality is different — calling a stranger je can land as overly familiar, while using u with someone your own age at a bar just sounds stiff. When unsure, start formal; nobody minds being called u too early.

COMMON MISTAKES

Mistakes English Speakers Make

English has no separate polite "you" and translates small talk word for word — neither habit carries over into Dutch. These are the four slips that come up most at A0–A1.

✗ ~~Hoe ben je?~~ ✓ Hoe gaat het?

English speakers translate "how are you" word for word, but Dutch really says Hoe gaat het? — literally "how goes it?"

✗ ~~Ik kom van Spanje~~ ✓ Ik kom uit Spanje

Dutch marks where you're from with uit ("out of"), not van ("of/from") — so it's Ik kom uit Spanje.

✗ ~~Dank je (to a stranger or older person)~~ ✓ Dank u wel

Dank je is for friends and family; with someone you don't know, or someone older, Dutch switches to the polite Dank u wel.

✗ ~~Spreek u Engels?~~ ✓ Spreekt u Engels?

After u the verb keeps its full -t ending — only jij drops the -t when it follows the verb, so it must be Spreekt u Engels?

PRACTICE

Lesson 2 Practice

Follow the dialogue flow: assistant asks on the left, choose your answer on the right.

Dialogue 0/8 Score 0

Choose your answer: