wees stil
/ʋeːs stɪl/word by word
To say "be quiet" in Dutch, use wees stil.
The phrase is used as a request or a command for someone to stop making noise.
How do you pronounce it?
/ʋeːs stɪl/
Did you know?
- If you want to tell someone to 'shut up' more aggressively, you might say houd je kop, which literally translates to 'hold your head'.
- The word wees is the imperative form of zijn (to be), but in other contexts, wees can refer to an orphan.
- In Dutch, adding the diminutive suffix to make sstje makes the request for silence sound softer and more affectionate, often used when speaking to children.
Examples in context
- Wees stil en luister.Be quiet and listen.This example shows how to use wees stil when asking someone to listen.Tatoeba #6623454 by Micsmithel, translation #3442289 by CK
- "Wees stil!" drong hij aan."Be quiet!" he urged.This example demonstrates wees stil used as an urgent command.Tatoeba #10732797 by megamanenm, translation #10510961 by sundown
- Wees stil tijdens de cursus.Be quiet during the course.This example shows the use of wees stil to request silence during a specific event.Tatoeba #12854162 by Tom9358, translation #2826290 by Tom9358
- Wilt u alstublieft stil zijnWould you please be quiet
- Wees stilBe quiet
- 7 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
Levi and Lisa are in a library.
- LeviLisa, wees stil alsjeblieft.Lisa, be quiet please.
- LisaSorry, ik praatte te hard.Sorry, I was talking too loud.
- LeviJa, want we moeten hier rustig zijn.Yes, because we have to be quiet here.
- LisaIk zal nu wezen stil.I will be quiet now.
Sources
- IPA marked “word by word” joins the Wiktionary pronunciations of each word (wees, stil) and can differ in connected speech.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
