A FIVE-MINUTE CRASH COURSE IN FLEMISH

25/09/2025

🖋:

One of the fun challenges of studying abroad is learning the local language. In Flanders, people speak their own variant of Dutch called Flemish. It can’t be learned on Duolingo, but who needs Duolingo when you have dwars? This quick guide will teach you four Flemish words that will instantly make you sound like a local from Antwerp – or from ‘t Stad, as you should call it from now on. Let’s get started, or as they would say in Flemish: vooruit met de geit (‘forward with the goat’)!

't Stad

Instead of calling Antwerp by its name, locals call it ‘t Stad. It’s the equivalent of referring to your city as The City, capital letters included. People from Antwerp are stereotypically known to have nen dikke nek (‘a thick neck’), meaning they can be quite arrogant or conceited. It’s no coincidence that they refer to the rest of Flanders as their parking lot, as the expression Antwerpen is ‘t Stad en de rest is parking denotes. Despite their superiority complex, there’s no denying that Antwerp really is a great city – dare I say, the greatest.

merci

I can already hear you thinking: isn’t that French? Oui, certainement. Knowing some French words – even those as basic as ‘thank you’ – is an easy hack to sound more like a local. Since French is one of Belgium’s three official languages, many French words have found their way into Flemish dialects. You’ll often hear students say merci alongside other (slightly more formal) expressions of thanks like dank u and dankjewel. If you want to up your game further, you can try using mercikes instead. The diminutive suffix ‘-ke(s)’ is typical of the Antwerp dialect and makes the word sound cuter, since you’re literally saying ‘many little merci’s’.

kot

You might have already encountered this word while searching for accommodation near the campus, and chances are you now have one yourself. Kot is the typical Flemish word for a student dorm. If people ask you where you live, you can answer with ik zit op kot. The literal translation is a bit awkward (‘I sit on dorm’), but it simply means that you live in student accommodation. If you have a kot, you might find your building completely deserted during the weekends. This is because many Flemish students who live in a kot go back home at the weekend – together with their dirty laundry, to be washed by de mama at home.

amai

This little four-letter word is like a magical interjection: you can use it wherever and whenever you want, and you’ll sound the most Flemish you ever have. You could call amai a more versatile version of ‘wow’, but that comparison doesn’t quite cut it. Amai can be used to indicate surprise, frustration, delight or disappointment. You might say: “Amai, I’m tired today” or “Amai, where did all my housemates go?” And hopefully, you can now say: “Amai, I already know some Flemish!"