N
* Na regen komt zonneschijn
o Literal Translation: "After rain comes sunshine"
o Meaning: "Good things follow bad things"
o English equivalent: "Every cloud has a silver lining"
* Natte vingerwerk/Met de natte vinger
o Literal Translation: "Wet fingerwork/With the wet finger" (cfr. Germ. "Fingerspitzengefühl")
o Meaning: "Guesswork/performed on intuition"
* Nieuwe bezems vegen schoon
o Literal Translation: "New brooms sweep clean"
o Meaning: "Someone new at a job will change the way things are done (even if only to be noticed)."
* Niet geschoten is altijd mis
o Literal Translation: "Not [having] shot is always missed"
o Meaning: "If you don't try, you will miss opportunities"
o English equivalent: "You miss 100% of the shots you don't take"
O
* Onder de pet houden
o Literal Translation: "To keep under the hat."
o Meaning: "To cover up something that cannot see the light of day."
* Om de haverklap
o Literal Translation: "Every flail on the oats."
o Meaning: "Very often."
* Oost west, thuis best.
o Literal Translation: "East West, home best."
o Meaning: No matter where you travel, it's always great to come home.
o English Equivalent: "Home sweet home."
* Op alle slakken zout leggen.
o Literal Translation: "Putting salt on every snail."
o Meaning: "Looking for all of the smallest errors to comment on."
* Op de neus kijken.
o Literal Translation: "Looking down at one's nose."
o Meaning: "Being disappointed."
* Op elk potje past een dekseltje.
o Literal Translation: "Every little pot has a fitting lid."
o Meaning: "There's a solution for every situation. [or] There's a fitting partner for any person."
* Over lijken gaan.
o Literal Translation: "Going over corpses."
o Meaning: "Going for your own target however crude the method."
P
* Potje breken, potje betalen.
o Literal Translation: "Break a pot, pay for a pot."
o Meaning: You have to pay for the damage you caused.
o English Equivalents: "Paying the piper for playing the tune." "You break it, you buy it."
R
* Roeien met de riemen die je hebt.
o Literal Translation: "Rowing with the oars you have."
o Meaning: "Making do with the means available to you."
S
* Spreken is zilver, zwijgen is goud.
o Literal Translation: "Speaking is silver, being silent is gold."
o Meaning: It's better to listen well than to talk a lot.
o English Equivalent: "Speaking out is valuable, keeping your mouth shut priceless."
* Spijkers op laag water zoeken.
o Literal translation: "Looking for nails at low tide."
o Meaning: Being pedantic about small details.
o English Equivalent: "Nitpicking."
* Stel niet uit tot morgen, wat gij heden kunt bezorgen.
o Literal Translation: "Don't postpone until tomorrow, what you can take care of now."
o Meaning: Don't procrastinate.
* Stevig in het zadel zitten.
o Literal translation: "Sitting securely in the saddle."
o Meaning: "Having a solid high position; not easy to overthrow."
* Storm in een glas water.
o Literal Translation: "storm in a glass of water."
o English equivalent: "Storm in a tea cup."
T
* Twee linkerhanden hebben.
o Literal Translation: "Having two left hands."
o Meaning: Being clumsy.
o English Equivalent: "Being all thumbs."
* Tijd is geld.
o Literal translation: "Time is money."
o Meaning: Don't waste time, spend it productively.
U
* Uit het oog, uit het hart.
o Literal Translation: "Out of the eye, out of the heart."
o English equivalent: "Out of sight, out of mind."
* Uitstel is afstel.
o Literal translation: "Postponement is cancellation."
o Meaning: "Postponing something leads to inaction."
V
* Van de hoed en de rand weten
o Literal Translation: "Knowing of the hat and the brim."
o Meaning: "Having good thorough knowledge."
* Van een mug een olifant maken.
o Literal Translation: "To make an elephant out of a mosquito."
o English equivalent: "To make a mountain out of a mole hill."
* Vele handen maken licht werk.
o Literal Translation: "Many hands make light work."
o Meaning: "A task is easier if you work together."
* Voor de kat zijn viool.
o Literal Translation: "For the cat's violin."
o Meaning: "For no purpose, useless."
* Voor een appel en een ei
o Literal Translation: "For an apple and an egg."
o Meaning: "Buying something really cheap, paying very little money."
* Voorzichtigheid is de moeder van de porseleinkast.
o Literal translation: "Carefulness is the mother of the porcelain cabinet."
o Meaning: Don't rush in to things, you should always be very cautious, don't leap before you jump. Used more specifically to mean "be very cautious not to step on the toes of people that might have some (be it perceived) power over you"
English equivalent: Look before your leap
W
* Waar een wil is is een weg.
o Literal Translation: "Where there's a will, there is a way."
o Meaning: "There is a way to achieve anything, if one really tries."
* Water naar zee dragen.
o Literal Translation: "Carrying water to the sea."
o Meaning: "Futile activity."
o English proverb: "Carrying coals to Newcastle."
* Waar het hart vol van is daar loopt de mond van over.
o Literal Translation: "What the heart is full of, the mouth overflows with."
o Meaning: "If someone is enthusiastic about an idea he will be always talking about it."
* Wat baten kaars en bril, als den uil niet zienen wil.
o Literal Translation: "What good serve candle and glasses, if the owl does not want to see."
o Meaning: "No need to try to convince or help someone to do something if he doesn't want to do it.
o English equivalent: "You can lead a horse to water, but you cannot make it drink"
* Wat de boer niet kent dat eet hij niet.
o Literal Translation: "What the farmer doesn't know, he doesn't eat."
o Meaning: "A stick-in-the-mud will try nothing new."
* Weet wat je zegt, maar zeg niet alles wat je weet.
o Literal Translation: "Know what you say, but don't say all that you know."
o Meaning: "Be sure of your facts before speaking, but some things are best left unsaid."
* Weten waar Abraham de mosterd haalt.
o Literal Translation: "Knowing where Abraham gets the mustard."
o Meaning: "Being well-informed."
* Wie de bal kaatst, moet hem verwachten.
o Literal Translation: "He who throws the ball, must expect it [back]."
o Meaning: "Expect the repercussions of your actions."
* Wie de schoen past, trekke hem aan.
o Literal Translation: "He whom the shoe fits should put it on."
o Meaning: An appeal to take responsibility for ones actions.
o English equivalent: "If the shoe fits, wear it."
* Wie goed doet, goed ontmoet.
o Literal Translation: "Who does well, meets goodwill."
o Meaning: "Who does good things to others, will receive good things in return."
* Wie het laatst lacht, lacht het best.
o Literal Translation: "He who laughs last, laughs best."
o Meaning: When somebody is stating something in a self-confident way to you in an argument, which you know you are right in, and you know (or believe) that that somebody is still wrong, but you cannot refute that somebody now, said to mean that you mean to prove your point in some future.
o English equivalent: He who laughs last, laughs loudest
* Wie zijn neus schendt, schendt zijn aangezicht."
o Literal translation: "He who hurts his nose, hurts his face."
o Meaning: Accusing a close relative will usually damage your own reputation as well.
o English equivalent: "To cut off one's nose to spite one's face."
* Wie wind zaait, zal storm oogsten.
o Literal translation: "Who seeds wind, shall harvest storm."
o Meaning: "Who causes trouble, will be a victim of the trouble."
o English equivalent: A more specific form of "You reap what you sow."
* Wie zwijgt stemt toe.
o Literal translation: "Being quiet is agreeing."
o Meaning: "If you don't speak up for yourself, you won't get anywhere or change anything you don't like."
o English equivalent: Taking someone's silence as a sign that they agree.
Z
* Zachte heelmeesters maken stinkende wonden.
o Literal Translation: "Gentle healers make stinking wounds."
o Meaning: "It is better to treat a problem thoroughly even if the treatment is painful, otherwise it may get worse."
o English equivalent: A stitch in time, saves nine (?)
* Ze niet allemaal op een rijtje hebben.
o Literal Translation: "Not having all of them in a row."
o Meaning: "Being a dime short of a dozen."
* Zich met hand en tand verzetten.
o Literal Translation: "To resist with hand and tooth."
o Meaning: "To resist with every possible means, not giving in in any way."
o English equivalent: Resist tooth and nail
* Zij zijn twee handen op één buik.
o Literal Translation: "They are two hands on one belly."
o Meaning: "They do everything together."
* Zijn hand er niet voor omdraaien.
o Literal Translation: "Not turning his hand around for it."
o Meaning: "It is an easy job for him."
* Zoals de waard is, vertrouwt hij zijn gasten.
o Literal Translation: "Like the innkeeper is, so he trusts his guests."
o Meaning: "A person who is untrustworthy is unlikely to trust others."
* Zoals het klokje thuis tikt, tikt het nergens.
o Literal Translation: "Like the clock ticks at home, so it ticks nowhere [else].
o Meaning: "You can travel the world, but the best place is home."
o English equivalent: There's no place like home
* Zo dom als het achterend van een varken.
o Literal Translation: "As stupid as a pig's behind."
o Meaning: "Very stupid."
* Zo lang er leven is, is er hoop.
o Literal translation: "As long as there's life, there is hope."
o Meaning: "Never despair."
