# Dutch: "maar" (but and other meanings)



## olives

Hello,

Here is a short passage from a conversation:
A : Zo. Gaat u maar zitten.

Could you give me the translation of the sentence please?
I guess we don't really translate "maar" and you just say that out of politeness. It would sound kinda strange if you do not use it, wouldn't it? So is there other contexts in which you would use "maar" in a particular way like here? Could you give me other examples maybe to make things clearer.

Thanks in advance,
Goodbye.


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## jippie

*Here is a short passage from a conversation:*
_*A : Zo. Gaat u maar zitten.*_

That's not an easy one but I will try...

Maar: You can leave out *maar* in the sentence, the meaning is the same but then it sounds more 'severe', could even be more imperative but that depends on the tone of the voice. *Maar* sort of softens the message, gives it a friendly touch.

Zo: Could be translated here as OK (though that's not pure Dutch) or Goed. Literally it means 'this way' but that makes no sense here.

Hopes this helps...


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## olives

Thanks.

So we could just say "Please, do sit down". But in the sentence, you have the verb "gaan". So could I just say "Zit u maar".
Well, actually, what does the sentence mean? "Please, go and sit down" or just "Please, sit down"?

In order to make things easier, could it just all boild down to the fact that we use "maar" instead of "please" when it comes to the imperative sentences?


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## sound shift

When a customer walks into a shop in the Netherlands, the assistant often says:
_*Zegt U het maar*_.

As explained above, this "maar" softens the phrase. It does not really mean "but". The whole phrase means _*What will it be, then? *_(i.e. _*What would you like?*_)


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## olives

wow! that's strange. "zegt u het maar", literally, it would mean : "tell me please". That's cool. Thanks.


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## John-Paul

olives said:


> Hello,
> 
> Here is a short passage from a conversation:
> A : Zo. Gaat u maar zitten.



Interesting to see a simple phrase like this in the context of an international language forum. This is not an ordinary sentence. This represents a situation. I imagine a doctor who brings his patient into his office. The "zo" is a word we'd use to make people feel at ease, or at home. "Gaat u maar zitten" implies an advise, not a demand: I'd rather have it you sit because that'll be easier for the conversation.

Thanks for bringing this up.


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## jippie

olives said:


> Thanks.
> 
> So we could just say "Please, do sit down". But in the sentence, you have the verb "gaan". So could I just say "Zit u maar".
> Well, actually, what does the sentence mean? "Please, go and sit down" or just "Please, sit down"?
> 
> In order to make things easier, could it just all boild down to the fact that we use "maar" instead of "please" when it comes to the imperative sentences?


 
*Gaan zitten: *in this combination 'gaan' indicates the movement from standing up to sit down), and can't be left out in the translation. "Zit u maar" therefore is definitely wrong.  I prefer the translation "please, sit down", because in English the movement is expressed by the word 'down'. "Go and sit down" is not wrong, but suggests a horizontal movement (go) and a vertical movement (down), while the Dutch is ambiguous here: in any case vertical, but horizontal movement is not excluded. 

I will think a bit more about your second question


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## olives

It's ok, don't put yourself out. Thanks to everyone for everything. That was just great.


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