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Grammar books and dictionary for Dutch | ||
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 Language Learning Forum : Specific Languages |  | |
| tristano Tetraglot Senior Member Netherlands Joined 3847 days ago 905 posts - 1262 votes  Speaks: Italian*, Spanish, French, English Studies: Dutch | Message 1 of 14 02 August 2014 at 12:24pm | IP Logged |
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Hello. I'm going through the Dutch grammar by using essentially Duolingo and Babbel; it is clear to me that I will not
go over A2 by using these two methods but I find ok for this first start to have a foundation in the language. I'm also using memrise to improve my vocabulary. But it is becoming clear that this language will be part of my personal and professional life so I need to master it. Than I will start with my part 2, Assimil at a quick pace plus intermediate and advanced grammar books. Part 3, use the language everyday, then I will need a Dutch vocabulary. So, in definitive, can you guys suggest me some very good intermediate and advanced grammar books with drills and exercises and a monolingual vocabulary? Thank you very much in advance! 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| tristano Tetraglot Senior Member Netherlands Joined 3847 days ago 905 posts - 1262 votes Speaks: Italian*, Spanish, French, English Studies: Dutch | Message 2 of 14 02 August 2014 at 2:14pm | IP Logged |
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(I forgot to mention, as a explanation language, one between English, Italian and French. Thanks again). Edited by tristano on 02 August 2014 at 2:14pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Doitsujin Diglot Senior Member Germany Joined 5120 days ago 1256 posts - 2363 votes Speaks: German*, English | Message 3 of 14 02 August 2014 at 3:46pm | IP Logged |
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I cannot help you with grammars since I only have a German Dutch grammar, but for dictionaries there's pretty much only one choice: The Van Dale dictionaries, which are also available online and as iOS and Android apps. Edited by Doitsujin on 02 August 2014 at 3:47pm 4 persons have voted this message useful | |
| Antanas Tetraglot Groupie Lithuania Joined 4612 days ago 91 posts - 172 votes Speaks: Lithuanian*, English, Russian, German Studies: FrenchB1, Spanish | Message 4 of 14 02 August 2014 at 4:29pm | IP Logged |
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The last edition of Assimil's La pratique du neerlandais has many explanations what concerns Dutch grammar. You learn a lot of vocabulary, too. No exercises, though.
Néerlandais débutant (I have a previous edition of this book that is called Neerlandais, pratique du base) has a at least a couple of grammatical exercises for each lesson. Other two usually are translating into Dutch or answering to questions. There are 90 lessons. Yes, it's the same good old Methode 90. Both volumes of Hugo Dutch are also helpful. Many exercises. The advanced one is out of print, though. Teach Yourself publishes Dutch Grammar as well as TY Dutch by the same authors Quist and Strik. Both have many exercises. But they are not very advanced. If you like SRS approach there is a course Dutch - Fast Track for Beginners by Supermemo. I have finished about 20% of it. There are occasional mistakes (usually resulting from confusing translations from Polish to English) in it but nothing grave. However, it claims that it teaches you only A2. Very boring. On the other hand, all SRS-based courses are. I don't have much experience with Dutch monolingual dictionaries. I understand perfectly and agree that everyone studies the way he likes. But I believe that if you don't know good other Germanic language than English your biggest problem in studying Dutch will be vocabulary. What concerns my experience, I've been playing with Dutch for about a couple of years. Speaking/writing is not my priority, so there is no Dutch in my profile, so far. I have made the biggest progress when I started to read in Dutch on an e-book reader with a Dutch dictionary. After 2000 pages or so I began to feel that I can understand quite a lot in Dutch. (But, on the other hand, I have a very good passive command of German. It's a good question whether there exists a native speaker of Dutch who cannot understand German nearly perfectly.) Good luck! Edited by Antanas on 02 August 2014 at 4:39pm 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| tristano Tetraglot Senior Member Netherlands Joined 3847 days ago 905 posts - 1262 votes Speaks: Italian*, Spanish, French, English Studies: Dutch | Message 5 of 14 10 August 2014 at 1:45pm | IP Logged |
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Hi, thank you very much you all.
Now I have an additional problem: I already finished the Babbel courses (they have only the beginners ones), and I don't want to use only a resource at a time to learn a language. @Antanes I decided, after your advice, and having read different reviews, to buy Le Néerlandais Débutant (already ordered). The fact the teaching language is French is an added value for me because: - it allows me to keep French in exercise when I study Dutch - French is much closer to my mother tongue (Italian) than it is English, so I expect to see more focus for the problems that a learner of a romance language can face studying a quite different language like Dutch. Very cool, I can't wait to have to book in my hands :) Thank you very much! Edited by tristano on 10 August 2014 at 1:46pm 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Speakeasy Senior Member Canada Joined 3852 days ago 507 posts - 1098 votes Studies: German | Message 6 of 14 10 August 2014 at 4:44pm | IP Logged |
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Hi Tristano,
INITIAL POST: I have found the following materials to be of good quality. You are probably already familiar with the publisher, ROUTLEDGE. While you order directly from Routledge you can also find many of their language-learning materials on Amazon, in bookstores, and elsewhere. Routledge Dutch Grammar and Workbook This comes in two volumes: Basic Dutch and Intermediate Dutch, both by Jenneke A Oosterhoff. Both act as reference grammars that present the underlying concepts with examples and with exercises with solutions in the appendix. Both are quite good. The New Routledge & Van Dale Dutch Dictionary (second edition) As far as I understand, this is the "standard" English-Dutch dictionary. I have the first edition, with the blue cover. It measures about 4" x 8" x 1.5" and is quite useful for the student. Of course, as for all dictionaries, you will inevitably come across words that are not listed in this dictionary. While I have not been able to find a more complete English-Dutch dictionary, I have read comments to the effect that others do exist, but that they are hidden away in bookstores in the Netherlands. UPDATED POST: The following two publishers offer a range of materials for students wishing to learn Dutch. De Boeck. I purchased their book "Néerlandais avancé" and I must say that it is very well designed. You can order directly from the publisher and you can also find some of their publications on Amazon. Prisma While I have not yet purchased any material from this publisher, I saved the link should I wish to return to studying Dutch. Edited by Speakeasy on 11 August 2014 at 1:11am 2 persons have voted this message useful | |
| tristano Tetraglot Senior Member Netherlands Joined 3847 days ago 905 posts - 1262 votes Speaks: Italian*, Spanish, French, English Studies: Dutch | Message 7 of 14 11 August 2014 at 12:25pm | IP Logged |
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Hi @Speakeasy, thank you very much!
Now I have quite a lot of material to take into account. Question, the book "Néerlandais avancé", from which level should I start to use it? I need to understand if I can use in sequence "Néerlandais débutant", Routlege Intermediate Dutch and "Néerlandais avancé", or should I decide between the last two. Thank you again :) 1 person has voted this message useful | |
| Speakeasy Senior Member Canada Joined 3852 days ago 507 posts - 1098 votes Studies: German | Message 8 of 14 12 August 2014 at 12:23am | IP Logged |
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Hi Tristano,
SOME GENERAL COMMENTS: I will try to answer your specific question concerning De Boeck's "Néerlandais avancé", but I am not sure that I should respond, just yet, to your question concerning the order in which you should study the material you are gathering. That is, if you are presently only considering working with either Assimil Le Néerlandais or Néerlandais débutant , and have not yet done so, forgive me for saying, but this suggests to me that you have only just begun your study of Dutch. Are you looking for advice on your complete study programme? If so, you might want to revise the original title of this dicussion so as to attract suggestions from other members. With respect to the book Néerlandais débutant, you should be aware that this is a basic introduction to the Dutch language. Like many such courses, it presents short dialogues, introduces new vocabulary, and introduces the rudiments of the grammatical structure that is deployed in the individual lessons. However, it is NOT a grammar and the goal of this book is NOT to improve one's knowledge of grammar. In addition, in consulting the Amazon.fr website, it is not clear to me that the CDs are included in their offer. This is very important, as the usefulness of the course book diminishes significantly without the recordings. As to the book, or series of books, Néerlandais avancé, it seems to me that one should have already achieved at least the B1 level, before embarking on this series. You might try communicating with Forum Member "1e4e6" who often posts questions and comments on learning Dutch. SPECIFICALLY: NÉERLANDAIS AVANCÉ Here is an extract from the preface of this book: “Essentiellement axé sur la compréhension à l’audition, le présent manuel est aussi une méthode « complète » visant à intégrer les quatre aptitudes de base : à partir d’un travail d’écoute sur un thème d’actualité (la connaissance des langues, le marché de l’emploi, l’environnement, la liberté de la presse, les identités culturelles, etc.), l’apprenant est invité à s’exercer à la compréhension à la lecture et à pratiquer l’expression orale et écrite. Cet ouvrage cible le niveau B2/C1 du Cadre européen commun de référence pour l’enseignement des langues. Il s’adresse prioritairement aux étudiants de l’enseignement supérieur, bacheliers et masters (futurs Germanistes, traducteurs-interprètes, économistes, gestionnaires, etc.). Il s’agit d’une formule d’apprentissage modulaire et souple qui peut s’utiliser en classe ou en situation d’autoapprentissage car les retranscriptions des documents audio et les solutions de nombreux exercices sont regroupées à la fin du livre. Le manuel contient 12 dossiers avec, pour chacun d’entre eux, deux documents audio authentique (d’une durée de 2 à 12 minutes) et un texte provenant de la presse écrite ou de la Toile. Les dossiers sont classés en ordre de difficulté des documents audio (niveau conceptuel, accent, débit, etc.). » From reading the above introduction, I would say that it would be an unfair burden to attempt to proceed directly from “Néerlandais debutant” to “Néerlandais avancé”. FURTHER ADVICE If "Néerlandais débutant" is not sold with CDs, or if you cannot acquire the CDs separately, then forget about this book. Simply start working on "Assimil Le Néerlandais". Some of the lower-level De Boeck publications might for make interesting supplementary material at this stage. While no longer in print, you can still find used copies of "Assimil Néerlandais Perfectionnement" on Amazon. Studying this course would help you achieve the level required for "Néerlandais avancé". Again, I would be tempted to acquire some of the intermediate-level De Boeck books as supplementary material. However, I am not at all convinced that studying the Intermediate Dutch Grammar, while useful in itself, would be sufficient preparation for "Néerlandais avancé". I sincerely hope that this helped you somewhat. UPDATED POST: Subsequent to my comments above, concerning the De Boeck publication "Néerlandais avancé", the thought came to me that this type of resource represents numerous challenges, even for the student who is resonably comfortable at the B1 level. If you refer to the extract from the preface, you will notice that the "themes" are those that one would find in the finest weekly news magazines or newspapers in your own language. So then, even if you were to complete "Assimil Néerlandais Perfectionnement", you would most likely find that absolutely every document in "Néerlandais avancé" represents a huge challenge just in terms of vocabulary. Another difficulty would be the presence of long, seemingly convoluted sentences, containing several dependant clauses; that is, the sort of sentences that one does not often encounter in most self-study language courses. So, be prepared for some initial self-disappointment when you tackle material like this. You might find yourself wondering: "hey, wait a minute, I've been studying Dutch for two years now, why can't I understand this material?" It is a normal phase of learning. I just that I would underscore this point. Viel Glück! Edited by Speakeasy on 12 August 2014 at 3:13am 1 person has voted this message useful |
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