Dutch social life runs on a tight set of fixed well-wishing formulas, and the striking thing for English speakers is not how to say them but that you are expected to say them at all. You congratulate not just the birthday person but their whole family. You wish a stranger a good meal. You say something after someone sneezes. Get the formula slightly wrong — drop the met in gefeliciteerd met, or use a Flemish word in Amsterdam — and you sound off. This page gives you the genuine, current formulas, marks each for register and region, and drills the one piece of grammar that English speakers always miss: the preposition met.
Gefeliciteerd: the core congratulation
The all-purpose congratulation is Gefeliciteerd! ("Congratulations!"). It is the past participle of feliciteren ("to congratulate"), used as a standalone exclamation. For extra warmth, add hartelijk ("heartily"): Hartelijk gefeliciteerd! is the standard fuller form, neither stiff nor casual — it works on a birthday card and to a colleague alike.
Gefeliciteerd! Hoe oud ben je nu geworden?
Congratulations! How old have you turned now? (Gefeliciteerd = the all-purpose congratulation)
Hartelijk gefeliciteerd met de geboorte van jullie dochter.
Heartfelt congratulations on the birth of your daughter. (hartelijk gefeliciteerd = the warmer standard form)
The obligatory preposition: gefeliciteerd MET
Here is the grammar point that catches every English speaker. English congratulates someone on something: "congratulations on your birthday." Dutch uses met ("with"): gefeliciteerd met je verjaardag — literally "congratulated with your birthday." The met is not optional. If you name what you are congratulating someone for, it must be introduced by met.
| Dutch | Literal | English |
|---|---|---|
| Gefeliciteerd met je verjaardag! | congratulated with your birthday | Happy birthday! (lit. congrats on your birthday) |
| Gefeliciteerd met je nieuwe baan! | congratulated with your new job | Congratulations on your new job! |
| Gefeliciteerd met je diploma! | congratulated with your diploma | Congratulations on graduating! |
Gefeliciteerd met je verjaardag! Ik hoop dat je een mooie dag hebt.
Happy birthday! I hope you have a lovely day. (gefeliciteerd MET — never 'op' or 'voor')
Gefeliciteerd met jullie huwelijk, wat een mooi feest.
Congratulations on your wedding, what a lovely party. (gefeliciteerd met + the occasion)
There is also a charming Dutch custom: at a birthday party (a verjaardagsvisite), guests congratulate not only the birthday person but each close family member too — Gefeliciteerd met je vrouw, Gefeliciteerd met je vader. To an outsider it sounds odd ("congratulations on your wife"), but it is completely standard and you will be congratulated this way too.
Gefeliciteerd met je zoon! Wat is hij groot geworden.
Congratulations on your son('s birthday)! Hasn't he grown. (the Dutch custom of congratulating the whole family)
Fijne verjaardag and the fijn/prettig family
Alongside gefeliciteerd, the other common birthday wish uses fijn ("nice, pleasant"): Fijne verjaardag! ("Happy birthday!" — literally "nice birthday"). The pattern fijne / prettige + occasion is the all-purpose Dutch way to wish someone a good anything. Fijn is a touch warmer and more casual; prettig is slightly more neutral and is the standard on the holidays.
| Dutch | English | Note |
|---|---|---|
| Fijne verjaardag! | Happy birthday! | warm, very common |
| Fijne dag (verder)! | Have a nice day! | everyday, on parting |
| Fijn weekend! | Have a good weekend! | said on a Friday |
| Prettige vakantie! | Have a good holiday! | slightly more neutral |
| Goede reis! / Fijne reis! | Have a good trip! | on departure |
Fijne verjaardag, en geniet er lekker van vandaag!
Happy birthday, and really enjoy it today! (Fijne verjaardag = the warm everyday birthday wish)
Dank je, jij ook een fijn weekend!
Thanks, have a good weekend yourself too! (Fijn weekend = standard Friday parting)
Proficiat: the regional one
You will also meet Proficiat! for "Congratulations!" This is genuine standard Dutch, but it is markedly (regional: Belgium/Flanders and the southern Netherlands). In the northern and western Netherlands — Amsterdam, Utrecht, Rotterdam — proficiat sounds southern or slightly old-fashioned, and people default to gefeliciteerd. It is never wrong to understand, but match the region: say gefeliciteerd in the north, and you will hear proficiat in the south and in Flanders.
Proficiat met je nieuwe huis! (Flanders/southern register)
Congratulations on your new house! (proficiat = regional southern/Flemish synonym of gefeliciteerd)
Holiday wishes
The December holidays have their own fixed formulas. The neutral umbrella wish — covering Christmas and New Year together, and avoiding assumptions about religion — is Prettige feestdagen ("Happy holidays," literally "pleasant festival-days"). For Christmas specifically: Fijne kerst or the fuller Vrolijk kerstfeest. For New Year: Gelukkig nieuwjaar ("Happy New Year").
| Dutch | English |
|---|---|
| Prettige feestdagen! | Happy holidays! (Christmas + New Year umbrella) |
| Fijne kerst! / Fijne kerstdagen! | Merry Christmas! |
| Vrolijk kerstfeest! | Merry Christmas! (fuller, more formal/festive) |
| Gelukkig nieuwjaar! | Happy New Year! |
| De beste wensen! | Best wishes (for the new year)! |
Alvast prettige feestdagen en een gelukkig nieuwjaar!
Happy holidays in advance and a happy New Year! (Prettige feestdagen = the neutral December umbrella wish)
Fijne kerst, geniet van de vrije dagen!
Merry Christmas, enjoy the days off! (Fijne kerst = everyday Christmas wish)
Around New Year you will also hear De beste wensen! ("Best wishes!") and the short toast Op het nieuwe jaar! ("To the new year!") when glasses are raised at midnight.
Encouragements: veel succes, veel plezier, het beste
For sending someone off into something — an exam, a job interview, a trip — Dutch uses veel ("much, lots of") + a noun. Veel succes! ("Good luck!" / "Lots of success!") is for effort and challenges; Veel plezier! ("Have fun!") is for enjoyment. They are not interchangeable: you wish succes before an exam, plezier before a party.
| Dutch | Literal | When to use it |
|---|---|---|
| Veel succes! | much success | before an exam, interview, challenge |
| Veel plezier! | much pleasure | before something fun (party, trip, film) |
| Sterkte! | strength | during something hard (illness, grief, stress) |
| Beterschap! | betterment | get well soon (to someone ill) |
| Het beste! | the best | all the best (warm goodbye) |
Veel succes met je examen morgen! Je kunt het.
Good luck with your exam tomorrow! You can do it. (Veel succes = for a challenge; note 'met' again)
Veel plezier vanavond, groetjes aan de rest!
Have fun tonight, say hi to the others! (Veel plezier = for something enjoyable)
Sterkte met alles, en het beste voor jou en je familie.
Stay strong with everything, and all the best to you and your family. (Sterkte = during something hard; Het beste = all the best)
At the table and after a sneeze
Two reflexes you must build. Before eating, Dutch speakers wish each other a good meal: Eet smakelijk! or Smakelijk eten! ("Enjoy your meal!" — literally "eat tastily"). English has no real equivalent, so English speakers stay silent and it is noticed. And when someone sneezes, you say Gezondheid! ("Health!" — the equivalent of "Bless you").
Het eten staat klaar — eet smakelijk allemaal!
The food is ready — enjoy your meal, everyone! (Eet smakelijk / Smakelijk eten before a meal)
Hatsjoe! — Gezondheid! — Dank je.
Achoo! — Bless you! — Thanks. (Gezondheid = what you say after a sneeze, lit. 'health')
Common Mistakes
❌ Gefeliciteerd op je verjaardag.
Incorrect — a calque of English 'congratulations ON'. Dutch uses 'met'.
✅ Gefeliciteerd met je verjaardag.
Happy birthday! (congratulations on your birthday)
❌ Gefeliciteerd voor je nieuwe baan.
Incorrect — 'voor' is wrong here too; the fixed preposition is 'met'.
✅ Gefeliciteerd met je nieuwe baan.
Congratulations on your new job.
❌ Veel succes vanavond op het feest!
Wrong wish — a party isn't a challenge. Wish enjoyment, not success.
✅ Veel plezier vanavond op het feest!
Have fun at the party tonight!
❌ Gelukkige nieuwjaar!
Incorrect — the fixed phrase is uninflected: 'Gelukkig nieuwjaar', no -e on 'gelukkig'.
✅ Gelukkig nieuwjaar!
Happy New Year!
❌ (saying nothing before a meal or after a sneeze)
Incorrect socially — in Dutch the silence is conspicuous. Use the fixed formula.
✅ Eet smakelijk! / Gezondheid!
Enjoy your meal! / Bless you!
Key Takeaways
- Gefeliciteerd! is the all-purpose congratulation; Hartelijk gefeliciteerd is the warmer standard form.
- The preposition is always met, never "op" or "voor": gefeliciteerd met je verjaardag. This is the single most common mistake.
- Fijne verjaardag is the warm birthday wish; the fijne / prettige + occasion pattern works for almost anything.
- Proficiat is genuine but (regional: Flanders / southern Netherlands) — say gefeliciteerd in the north.
- Holidays: Prettige feestdagen (umbrella), Fijne kerst, Gelukkig nieuwjaar (uninflected).
- Encouragements split by purpose: Veel succes (challenge), Veel plezier (fun), Sterkte (hardship), Beterschap (illness).
- Build the reflexes: Eet smakelijk! before a meal, Gezondheid! after a sneeze.
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