Tegen and om look like simple spatial words — "against" and "around" — but each fans out into uses that have nothing to do with space. Tegen turns into "to" when you speak to a person, "approximately" before a time, and "versus" in sport. Om becomes the marker for clock times (om drie uur), "for" when you ask for something, and the head of purpose clauses (om … te). This page maps both ranges and fixes the two errors English speakers make most: saying things aan a person instead of tegen them, and using the wrong preposition for "about."
Tegen — sense 1: against (physical and figurative)
The core of tegen is "against": leaning against a wall, pressing against a surface, or being opposed to something. Both the physical and the figurative "against" use tegen.
Zet de ladder maar tegen de muur.
Just put the ladder against the wall.
Ik ben tegen het plan — het kost veel te veel.
I'm against the plan — it costs far too much.
Hij leunde moe tegen de deurpost.
He leaned tiredly against the doorpost.
Tegen — sense 2: "to" a person (verbs of speaking)
Here is the single most important thing on this page. When you say, tell, or talk something to a person, Dutch uses tegen — zeggen tegen, praten tegen, liegen tegen. English "say to / talk to" tempts you toward aan (because aan often renders "to"), but with verbs of speaking that's wrong. You speak tegen someone.
Wat zei ze tegen je?
What did she say to you?
Praat niet zo tegen je moeder!
Don't talk to your mother like that!
Hij liegt altijd tegen iedereen.
He always lies to everyone.
Tegen also covers "towards" in the sense of behaviour or attitude — aardig tegen (kind to), vriendelijk tegen (friendly to), gemeen tegen (mean to).
De serveerster was heel aardig tegen de kinderen.
The waitress was very kind to the children.
Tegen — sense 3: approximately (before a time)
Before a clock time or quantity, tegen means "approaching, around, getting on for." Tegen zessen = "around six," tegen het einde = "towards the end." Note the -en ending on the hour: tegen zessen, tegen achten — a frozen old form for approximate times.
We zijn tegen zessen thuis, denk ik.
We'll be home around six, I think.
Tegen het einde van de film viel ze in slaap.
Towards the end of the film she fell asleep.
Tegen — sense 4: versus (sport and contests)
In a match or contest, tegen is "versus / against the opponent": Ajax tegen Feyenoord.
Zondag speelt Ajax tegen Feyenoord.
On Sunday Ajax plays against Feyenoord.
Om — sense 1: around (space)
The core of om is "around" — encircling something: around the table, around the corner, around the house. In everyday speech om is far more common than the slightly stiffer rond.
We zaten met het hele gezin om de tafel.
The whole family was sitting around the table.
De bakker is gewoon om de hoek.
The bakery is just around the corner.
Om — sense 2: at (clock time)
This is the headline use of om: clock times take om. Om drie uur = "at three o'clock," om half negen = "at half past eight." English "at" before a time is om in Dutch — not op, not in. (For the full time system — op maandag, in de zomer — see the Time Prepositions page.)
De film begint om kwart over acht.
The film starts at a quarter past eight.
Zullen we om twaalf uur lunchen?
Shall we have lunch at twelve?
Om — sense 3: "for" when asking, and other fixed uses
Om renders "for" with verbs of requesting — vragen om (ask for), roepen om (call for), smeken om (beg for). The thing you ask for is marked by om.
Het kind vroeg om een glaasje water.
The child asked for a glass of water.
In tijden van crisis roept iedereen om sterk leiderschap.
In times of crisis, everyone calls for strong leadership.
Om — sense 4: om … te (in order to)
Om also heads purpose clauses with te + infinitive: om … te = "in order to." The infinitive goes to the end of the clause. (Full treatment on the Prepositions-with-infinitives page.)
Ik bel je straks even om de details door te geven.
I'll call you in a bit to pass on the details.
"About" — tegen vs over
A frequent confusion: tegen never means "about (a topic)." If you're talking about a subject, that's over (or sometimes praten over). Tegen is the person you address; over is the topic you address. You can have both in one sentence:
Ze praatte de hele avond tegen mij over haar nieuwe baan.
She talked to me all evening about her new job. (tegen = to whom, over = about what)
Common Mistakes
❌ Wat zei hij aan jou?
Incorrect — 'say to a person' is 'tegen', not 'aan': 'Wat zei hij tegen jou?'
✅ Wat zei hij tegen jou?
What did he say to you?
❌ Ik wil even met je praten aan het probleem.
Incorrect — you talk 'tegen/met' a person and 'over' a topic, not 'aan'.
✅ Ik wil even met je praten over het probleem.
I want to have a quick word with you about the problem.
❌ De vergadering begint op negen uur.
Incorrect — clock time takes 'om', not 'op': 'om negen uur'.
✅ De vergadering begint om negen uur.
The meeting starts at nine o'clock.
❌ Het kind vroeg voor een glas water.
Incorrect — 'ask for' is 'vragen om', not 'vragen voor'.
✅ Het kind vroeg om een glas water.
The child asked for a glass of water.
❌ We hebben de hele avond tegen de politiek gepraat.
Incorrect — 'about a topic' is 'over', not 'tegen': 'over de politiek gepraat'.
✅ We hebben de hele avond over de politiek gepraat.
We talked about politics all evening.
Key Takeaways
- tegen = against (wall, opinion), "to" a person with verbs of speaking (zeggen/praten tegen), approximately before a time (tegen zessen), and versus in sport (Ajax tegen Feyenoord).
- Say things tegen someone, never aan them; praten aan is always wrong.
- om = around (om de tafel, om de hoek), the marker for clock times (om drie uur), "for" when asking (vragen om), and the head of om … te purpose clauses.
- "About a topic" is over, not tegen: tegen is whom you address, over is what you address.
Now practice Dutch
Reading grammar gets you part of the way. The exercises are where it sticks — free, no signup needed.
Start learning Dutch→Related Topics
- Dutch Prepositions: OverviewA1 — The big picture before the details: Dutch prepositions are largely idiomatic and almost never map one-to-one onto English, one Dutch preposition often covers several English ones (and vice versa), many verbs lock onto a fixed preposition (wachten op, denken aan), and a preposition plus er fuses into erop / eraan. Why word-for-word translation from English fails.
- Prepositions of Time: Om, Op, In, TijdensA2 — Dutch slices time across four main prepositions — om for clock times (om drie uur), op for days and dates (op maandag, op 5 mei), in for months, years, seasons and parts of the day (in mei, in 2025, in de zomer), and tijdens for events (tijdens de vergadering) — plus met for holidays and the genitive 's-forms (’s ochtends, ’s avonds). The biggest trap for English speakers is reaching for op or in with a clock time, where Dutch requires om.
- Prepositions with Infinitives: om te, door te, zonder te, na teB2 — Dutch builds whole subordinate clauses out of a preposition plus te plus an infinitive — om te (in order to), door te (by …ing), zonder te (without …ing), na te (after …ing) — and the infinitive always lands at the very end of the clause, a bracketing structure English has no exact equivalent for.
- Over and Langs: Across/About and Along/PastB1 — Two motion-and-topic prepositions English keeps apart but Dutch reuses widely: over covers across (over de brug), about (praten over, nadenken over), and — the one that ambushes English speakers — future time (over een week = in a week); langs covers along (langs de rivier), past (langs het huis), and the everyday 'drop by' (even langs, langskomen).
- Spatial Relations: Boven, Onder, Naast, Tussen, TegenoverA2 — The Dutch location grid — boven (above), onder (under), voor/achter (in front of/behind), naast (next to), tussen (between/among), tegenover (opposite), binnen/buiten (inside/outside) — with the two traps for English speakers: tussen covers both 'between' and 'among', and boven is not the same as over.