Customer Reviews

The Rough Guide to Dutch Dictionary Phrasebook (Rough Guide Phrasebooks)

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I took a copy of this along with me on a trip to the Netherlands, primarily for assisting in understanding signs and menu items more than as a phrase book. Unless you plan to travel to very rural areas, you will have absolutely no problem getting along/around in NL. Just learning a few phrases of greeting, please/thanks, and goodbye (for courtesy's sake) is sufficient.

A plus for providing some Dutch grammar basics, which might spark an interest in more in-depth study. A minus for an unnecessary section on vulgarisms. The translations of some phrases are a bit too "interpretive" for my taste, some of the translations could be a bit more literal (or provide a literal meaning of the Dutch phrase). The pronunciation guide is not completely accurate, either.

If you're just heading to the Netherlands or Belgium on a brief holiday, you really won't *need* a phrase book. A waiter will be happy to decipher the menu for you if it is not multi-lingual. You won't really need to know the road signs unless you're driving (and with the excellent public transportation system and bicycle paths/lanes, you probably won't). And if you're seriously interested in learning Dutch, it won't offer you anything you can't learn in a more substantial book.

Save the money, and put it toward your Lonely Planet guidebook.

I bought this book before going over to the Netherlands for a business trip. I found the book VERY confusing and VERY unusable. The pronunciation guide is very misleading. For example, it leads you to think that the "n" at the end of every word should be pronounced as "u" as in bus, which is totally untrue. The content is arranged in dictionary format, and is thus unhelpful at all for the beginner. I highly recommend AGAINST this book. BTW, most people in the Netherlands can understand and many can speak English, so if you go over there for a short stay, you don't need to learn Dutch at all.

Since I am a beginner in studying Dutch, I try every possible way to look for books and courses which are able to help myself improve my knowledge of the Netherlands. To know a country or a state or a nation, the best way is to understand what the people think, how the people lead their lives and the language they use. "The Rough Guide to Dutch" I think it is good for the beginners. It is a so-called "dictionary phrasebook." you can get not only basic vocabulary and phrases but also daily life information. In my opinion, to choose the book is a good idea to help yourself. It is a pocket book that you can bring it to everywhere without any trouble. Everytime and everywhere you want to enlarge your vocabulary, it is at hand. It is full of basic & daily vocabulary. The more you attempt, the more you earn!

I used the book for two weeks driving around and doing business in The Netherlands and Belgium. It's sized so that I can keep it in a back pocket so I always had it with me. It might be a great book for people who have had some instruction and need refreshing. Since I had "never seen Dutch before" it was impossible to have a conversation using it.

I never expected to talk, just read signs. But each time I tried, I only found half the words I needed. (I was driving and parking on my own and I'm sure I bypassed legal parking or parked illegally but was lucky. I also completely misunderstood a "there's major traffic problems, find alternate route" sign because too many key words weren't listed.) A section of "common signage" would be really helpful.

The menu section was useful for $5-10/meal restaurants (whose staff may not be very good with English), but leaves out most of the fancy things at a good restaurant. (where there will often be someone who speaks enough English) (And if you're going to be in the area you have to treat yourself to good food - there's so much of it).

I try not to be an Ugly American, but found that it was better to greet someone in English, because they'll instantly switch over to continue the conversation. But if you start in Dutch they assume you understand and chatter on too fast to follow. Get a local to show you how to say "thank you" and "goodbye" and other key phrases for the end of your conversation - there are lots of locals out there laughing at our mispronunciation of words that can't be described through dictionary phoenetics and include sounds that don't exist in American words.

I wouldn't go back without it, but I'm still looking for a replacement that meets my needs for my return in a few months.

I agree with the first reviewer in that the pronounciation is off for the -en sounds (and a couple others, perhaps), but this book seems to be a useful guide for the casual tourist. Most of the travel items are the often-used phrases that folks would need. (Especially if you're in amsterdam or Rotterdam, where dropping that -en for the -eh is typical)