Martial Arts

1. Kan ik één keer meetrainen zonder abonnement?

   Can I train once without a membership?

   Usage

   A Dutch combat sports gym is called a "sportschool" and normally runs on a monthly "abonnement". Almost all of them offer one free trial lesson ("proefles"), which is the usual route for a visitor. Where pay-as-you-go exists it is a "losse les", and some gyms sell a ten-session "strippenkaart"

   Grammar Note

   "Meetrainen" is separable: in a finite clause "mee" moves to the end ("Ik train mee"). Here the modal "kan" keeps it as an infinitive at the end. The accents on "één" mark it as the numeral one, distinguishing it from the article "een"

2. Mag ik eerst een training bekijken?

   May I watch a training session first?

   Usage

   You will hardly ever be refused. Dutch gyms are busiest on weekday evenings between 19:00 and 21:00, the best time to read the room. At a kickboxing gym stay at the edge — the space around the ring belongs to the fighters. Never walk onto a judo or jiu-jitsu mat in shoes

   Grammar Note

   "Mogen" expresses permission while "kunnen" expresses ability, so a request for permission uses "mag ik". "Bekijken" is "kijken" with the prefix "be-", which makes it transitive and adds the sense of examining something closely, unlike "kijken naar"

3. Kan ik handschoenen en scheenbeschermers huren?

   Can I rent gloves and shin guards?

   Usage

   Gloves are "(boks)handschoenen", shin guards "scheenbeschermers", wraps "bandages" and a mouthguard a "gebitsbeschermer". Many gyms keep loaner gloves for trial lessons, but wraps and mouthguards are almost always your own for hygiene reasons. Dutch gyms often have a shop on site where you can buy the lot

   Grammar Note

   "Scheenbeschermer" compounds "scheen" (shin) with "beschermer" (protector), a pattern Dutch uses freely for gear — "kniebeschermer" (knee pad), "hoofdbeschermer" (headgear). Note that "huren" means to rent for money while "lenen" means to borrow for free

4. Ik ben beginner, ik heb nog nooit gekickbokst.

   I am a beginner; I have never kickboxed.

   Usage

   Tell both the front desk and the coach on duty and you will be put on a fundamentals track. Dutch kickboxing has a reputation for hard sparring, so it is genuinely safer to flag your lack of experience early. For other sports it is simpler to say "Ik heb nog nooit judo gedaan" rather than hunting for a matching verb

   Grammar Note

   Dutch drops the article when stating a role or status ("Ik ben beginner"). Borrowed compound verbs like "kickboksen" form the past participle with "ge-" at the front and "-t" at the end

5. Kunnen we het rustig aan doen?

   Can we take it easy?

   Usage

   Say this before you touch gloves. "Het rustig aan doen" is the everyday idiom for taking it slow and easy. More specifically you can say "licht sparren" (spar light) or "niet vol doorgaan" (don't go full contact). To ask for the opposite, "we mogen wel harder"

   Grammar Note

   "Het rustig aan doen" is a fixed idiom whose internal order never changes: object "het", adverb "rustig", particle "aan", then the verb "doen". In a main clause the whole infinitive group simply sits at the end

6. Mijn knie is geblesseerd, ik sla de trappen over.

   My knee is injured, so I will skip the kicks.

   Usage

   Say it to the coach before the session starts. Dutch gyms rarely use an intake form, so speaking up is the only way to flag an injury. Replace "knie" (knee) with "schouder" (shoulder), "rug" (back), "pols" (wrist) or "enkel" (ankle)

   Grammar Note

   "Overslaan" is separable, so "over" jumps to the end in a finite clause ("ik sla … over"). "Geblesseerd" is a French-derived sports term; for injuries in general Dutch uses "gewond" instead

7. Wat kost een losse les en wat kost een maandabonnement?

   What does a single lesson cost, and what does a monthly membership cost?

   Usage

   A Dutch sportschool typically charges 45-80 euros a month on a rolling contract. Most impose a one-month notice period ("opzegtermijn") to cancel, so for a short stay a "losse les" or a "strippenkaart" is the safer buy. Student discounts ("studentenkorting") are common

   Grammar Note

   "Los" means loose or sold singly. Dutch adjectives take the ending "-e" except before an indefinite singular neuter noun; "les" is a "de" word, so it becomes "losse les"

8. Hebben jullie een les alleen voor vrouwen?

   Do you have a women-only class?

   Usage

   Women-only classes are thoroughly mainstream in the Netherlands, and kickboxing and boxing in particular draw plenty of women. Self-defence is "zelfverdediging", and municipalities and community centres often run short women's courses in it

   Grammar Note

   "Jullie" is the plural "you" and, addressed to a business, means "you people / your place". Dutch does distinguish a polite form, "u", but in a sports gym "je" and "jullie" are normal even on a first meeting

9. Waar kan ik het lesrooster vinden?

   Where can I find the class timetable?

   Usage

   Dutch gyms post the "lesrooster" on their website and on a board inside, and many also run it through a booking app such as Eversports or Virtuagym. Popular classes can require booking in advance, so check before simply turning up

   Grammar Note

   Dutch main clauses are verb-second: with "waar" in first position the finite verb "kan" comes next and the subject "ik" follows it. The main verb "vinden" goes to the very end after the modal

10. Kunt u die techniek nog een keer langzaam voordoen?

    Could you demonstrate that technique once more, slowly?

    Usage

    Even if the verbal explanation is beyond you, this gets the movement broken down. A technique is a "techniek", a combination a "combinatie", a throw a "worp" and ground work "grondwerk". Dutch gyms mostly use "je" from the outset, but "u" with an older coach reads as polite

    Grammar Note

    "U" is the polite "you" and takes third-person singular agreement ("u kunt"). Unlike "je", it keeps the "-t" even when the subject follows the verb in a question — compare "kun je" with "kunt u"

11. Vanaf wanneer mag ik meedoen met het sparren?

    From when am I allowed to join the sparring?

    Usage

    Sparring is gated behind the coach's approval, and being told it will take a few months to build a solid stance and guard is normal. Dutch kickboxing is known for hard sparring, but most gyms keep a separate "light sparren" slot for newcomers. A mouthguard is mandatory

    Grammar Note

    Putting the article "het" in front of a verb like "sparren" nominalises it into "the act of sparring". Dutch does this very freely — "het trainen", "het vechten" and so on

12. Zijn er kleedkamers en douches?

    Are there changing rooms and showers?

    Usage

    Most sportscholen have changing rooms and showers, but bring your own towel — a loaner, if offered, costs a euro or two. Lockers may take a coin ("muntje") or require your own padlock ("hangslot"), so carrying a one-euro coin saves trouble

    Grammar Note

    The existential construction agrees in number: "is er" for singular, "zijn er" for plural. "Er" corresponds to English "there" and cannot be dropped in Dutch

13. Waar kan ik hier een kickboksgala zien?

    Where can I watch a kickboxing event around here?

    Usage

    In the Netherlands a kickboxing event is called a "gala", and amateur-to-professional cards run frequently even in provincial sports halls. Big arenas in Amsterdam and Rotterdam also host large promotions such as GLORY. Tickets turn up on gym noticeboards and event sites

    Grammar Note

    "Zien" is to see or catch sight of while "kijken" is to look deliberately; either works for watching an event, but "zien" is the more natural choice. "Gala" comes from French and in Dutch has come to mean a combat sports event of any size

14. Trainen jullie hier de Nederlandse stijl kickboksen?

    Do you train Dutch-style kickboxing here?

    Usage

    From the 1970s onward the Netherlands built its own kickboxing on foundations of Kyokushin karate and Muay Thai, and "Dutch style" became a recognised school worldwide. The lineage running through gyms such as Amsterdam's Mejiro Gym produced a long line of K-1 competitors. It is characterised by long boxing combinations flowing into low kicks, and by training built around realistic sparring

    Grammar Note

    "Nederlands" is an adjective and takes the ending "-e" before the "de" word "stijl". Dutch spelling keeps adjectives derived from country names capitalised even mid-sentence

15. Handen omhoog, kijk hem in de ogen!

    Hands up, look him in the eyes!

    Usage

    Said by the coach. One of the most frequent calls during pad work and sparring; "Handen omhoog!" stands alone as a command with no verb at all. Dutch coaches give instructions bluntly and briefly, and none of it is meant as rudeness

    Grammar Note

    The Dutch imperative is simply the verb stem ("kijken" → "kijk"). "Iemand in de ogen kijken" is the set idiom for looking someone in the eye: the person is the plain object and the eyes come in a prepositional phrase

16. Trap vol door, hou je niet in!

    Kick all the way through, do not hold back!

    Usage

    Said by the coach. The standard call when the trainer on the pads wants a real strike. "Doortrappen" is also a technical instruction: swing the kick right through the target rather than stopping on contact

    Grammar Note

    Both "doortrappen" and "inhouden" are separable, so the particle lands at the end in the imperative ("trap … door", "hou … in"). "Zich inhouden" is reflexive: "je" follows the verb immediately, and the negation "niet" comes after it

17. Vijf minuten pauze, drink wat water!

    Five-minute break, drink some water!

    Usage

    Said by the coach to the whole group. Dutch tap water ("kraanwater") is fine to drink, so people simply refill a bottle ("bidon"). Sitting on the floor during the break is normal, but keep to the no-shoes rule on the mat

    Grammar Note

    Besides meaning "what", "wat" also works as a quantifier with uncountable nouns: "wat water" (some water), "wat tijd" (some time). In speech it sounds lighter and more natural than "een beetje"

18. Voor vandaag is het genoeg. Goed gedaan!

    That is enough for today. Well done!

    Usage

    The coach's closing line. What follows varies by gym — a circle and a few words, or in judo kneeling and bowing — so just follow everyone else. Answering with "Bedankt voor de training!" always goes down well

    Grammar Note

    Fronting the adverbial "voor vandaag" triggers verb-second order, so "is" follows and the subject "het" comes after it. "Goed gedaan" is a fixed compliment made of nothing but a past participle — no subject or auxiliary required

Browse all TravelPhrases languages