Are you ready to go shopping in The Netherlands? Even if the prospect of shopping doesn’t excite you, it’s still useful to know names for clothes in Dutch.
You may be travelling and realize it’s a bit chillier than you expected to be, so how do you ask where to buy a sweater or a jacket?
Knowing how to say clothes in the Dutch language will make it easier to speak with store merchants to find what you’re looking for more quickly.
So let’s take a look at how to talk about clothes like a native speaker. We’ll include clothing vocabulary, translations and sentences too!
Let’s go!
Traditional Dutch Clothing
First, let’s take a trip back in time. What kinds of clothes did the Dutch wear in the past?
One thing is known for sure, clothing was well looked after and outfits lasted for years. Pieces were either handmade by Dutch women or made to order from local seamstresses. It was a passage of life for young girls to learn needlework which was an expected skill for a future caregiver.
Traditional Clothing For Dutch Women
The typical pieces of a women’s daily dressing attire would be:
- a bonnet (een motorkap)
- a blouse (Een Bloes)
- a long ankle length skirt (een lange enkellange rok)
- an apron (een schort)
- closed toed shoes (schoenen met gesloten tenen)
These pieces would vary in color and material across the different regions of the Netherlands. Little girls would wear the same kind of outfits.
Traditional Clothing For Dutch Men
The typical pieces of a men’s daily dressing attire would be:
- wool pants with silver buttons (wollen broek met zilveren knopen)
- wooden clogs (houten klompen)
- a double button up shirt (een overhemd met dubbele knoopsluiting)
- a jacket (een jas)
- a hat (een hoed)
The color of the material would differ across the different regions of the Netherlands and little boys would wear the same outfits as their fathers.
Dutch Words For Clothes
These are the common types of clothing that exist today. We’ve separated the clothing into seasons and other categories so you can more easily learn Dutch clothes names to find what you’re looking for at the shop or mall.
Spring Clothing In Dutch
This is a list of typical clothes you might wear in springtime.
| English | Dutch Translation | Pronunciation |
| Cargo pants | Cargobroeken | |
| Dress shirt | Overhemd | |
| Jeans | Jeans | |
| Leggings | Leggings | |
| Raincoat | Regenjas | |
| Shirts | Overhemden | |
| Socks | Sokken |
Summer Clothing In Dutch
Summertime clothes are the best! Here are the more popular clothing items for hot weather.
| English | Dutch Translation | Pronunciation |
| Belt | Riem | |
| Bikini | Bikini | |
| Croptop | Bijgesneden | |
| Dress | Jurk | |
| Shorts | Korte broek | |
| Skirt | Rok | |
| Swimsuit | Zwempak | |
| T-shirt | t-shirt | |
| Tanktop | Tanktop |
Fall Clothing In Dutch
When things start to get cool the sweaters come out! Here are some common fall clothes.
| English | Dutch Translation | Pronunciation |
| Blazer | Blazer | |
| Coat | Jas | |
| Hoodie | Capuchon | |
| Jacket | Jasje | |
| Polo shirt | Poloshirt | |
| Sweater | Trui |
Winter Clothing In Dutch
Brrrr! What are the names of winter clothes? You’re definitely going to need a jacket.
| English | Dutch Translation | Pronunciation |
| Button-down shirt | Overhemd met knopen | |
| Hat | Hoed | |
| Long sleeve shirt | Shirt met lange mouwen | |
| Pants | Broek | |
| Scarf | Sjaal | |
| Gloves | Handschoenen | |
| Sweatshirt | Sweatshirt | |
| Trousers | Broek | |
| Vest | Hesje |
Business Wear In Dutch
What kinds of clothes do you wear to work? Sometimes formal clothing is still required. Here are the names of business clothing in Dutch.
Under Garments And Pyjamas
What we wear underneath is important! What is underwear called in Dutch?
| English | Dutch Translation | Pronunciation |
| Boxers | boksers | |
| Bra | Beha | |
| Briefs | slip | |
| Lingerie | Lingerie | |
| Pyjamas | Pyjama | |
| Sports bra | Sport bh | |
| Thong | String | |
| Underwear | Ondergoed |
Shoes In Dutch
Shoes, shoes, shoes! There are so many different types of shoes. These are the more common kinds.
| English | Dutch Translation | Pronunciation |
| Boots | Laarzen | |
| Flip flops | Slippers | |
| Heels | Hakken | |
| Hiking boots | Wandelschoenen | |
| Slippers | Slippers | |
| Sneakers | sportschoenen | |
| Trainers | Sneakers |
Different Fabrics In Dutch
You might care what your clothes are made out of so here’s a list!
Additional Terms Related To Clothes In Dutch
Here are some words and phrases you may find you need when out looking for clothes.
| English | Dutch Translation | Pronunciation |
| Clothing | Kleding | |
| Men’s Clothing | Herenkleding | |
| Size small | Kleine maat | |
| Size medium | Maat medium | |
| Size Large | Grote maat | |
| To try on | Passen | |
| Women’s Clothing | Vrouwenkleding |
Phrases To Use When Shopping In Dutch
Of course, when you’re actually out shopping, you may need some help! Here are some questions you can ask in Dutch when shopping for clothes.
There you go! We hope this vocabulary has helped you learn Dutch!
Study More With The Ling App!
If you enjoyed this lesson about clothes in Dutch why not continue to learn with Ling App? We can teach you how to express how beautiful clothes are. Ling can also teach you how to thank the people in the store for helping you.
Ling is a language learning app and awesome blog that’s been specifically designed to make your learning process as easy as possible. This is why we offer audio recordings from native speakers, fun quizzes, a progress tracker, writing exercises, and AI tools that assess your pronunciation!
Whether you want to learn Dutch or a different language entirely (Ling has over 60 languages to choose from), you can start your language-learning journey with Ling today on iOS or Android.
