holandés
/olanˈdes/
The phrase for 'dutch language' in Spanish is holandés.
The term holandés refers to the language spoken by people in the Netherlands and Belgium. When referring to the language itself as a noun, it is common to use the definite article el holandés.
How does it change in a sentence?
The adjective changes to holandesa when it modifies a feminine noun, such as lengua (language).
How do you pronounce it?
/olanˈdes/
Did you know?
- Unlike in English where 'Dutch' is always capitalized, holandés is written with a lowercase letter in Spanish when used as an adjective.
- If you want to be more geographically precise in Spanish, you might use the term neerlandés instead of holandés to include all Dutch-speaking regions, including Flanders in Belgium.
- The suffix -és in holandés is a common way in Spanish to turn a place name into an adjective or demonym, similar to how 'francés' comes from 'Francia'.
Examples in context
- Aprender holandés es de gran utilidadLearning Dutch is very useful
- El idioma holandés abre muchas puertasThe Dutch language opens many doors
- Ella estudia el holandés en la universidad.She studies Dutch at the university.
- El holandés es un idioma interesante.Dutch is an interesting language.
- ¿Sabes hablar holandés?Do you know how to speak Dutch?
Example conversation
Elena and Mateo are talking about their language classes.
- ElenaMateo, ¿qué clase vas a tomar?Mateo, which class are you going to take?
- MateoVoy a estudiar el holandés este semestre.I am going to study Dutch this semester.
- Elena¡Qué bien! Yo prefiero el francés.That's great! I prefer French.
- MateoEl francés también es muy bonito.French is also very beautiful.
Sources
- Pronunciation: Wiktionary entry holandés, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- Word origins: Wiktionary entries holandés, CC BY-SA 4.0.
