Practice doesn’t make perfect. Only perfect practice makes perfect.” – Vince Lombardi.
You must believe in the above quote if you have ever experienced this: You memorized Dutch vocabulary, understood grammar and sentence structure, and understood conversation. But when it’s time to open your mouth, you are blank, even after having words in your mind.
Ever happened? Welcome to the most frustrating part of learning Dutch or any language.
First, you need to understand the difference between knowing Dutch and speaking Dutch. Even after Dutch lessons online or self-study, you might feel that speaking Dutch is difficult. I’ve seen hundreds of students spend years stuck in this phenomenon. The best part? It happens for a reason that has a better solution, too. The solution isn’t more studying; it’s smarter speaking practice. What are these? Let’s understand them!
CLASSROOM DUTCH ≠ REAL-LIFE DUTCH
The primary reason why speaking Dutch is challenging is that passive knowledge or classroom Dutch doesn’t translate effectively in real-life situations. Let us understand this with an example:
In a Dutch language course, they teach “Hoe gaat het met u?” (How are you?), but natives say “Alles goed?” (Everything good?).
Also, the idioms don’t have any direct translation. It makes learning Dutch difficult. Most Dutch lessons online (not all) focus on vocabulary, grammar, sentence structure, and pronunciation rules. That’s great! However, recognizing is not the same as recalling under pressure in conversation.
While replying in a conversation, your brain has to perform multiple tasks, from recognizing to translating, and saying it back in just a second. It’s no wonder your brain freezes.
DUTCH PRONUNCIATION: THE NIGHTMARE OF NEWBIES
If you ask me the biggest reason why speaking Dutch is difficult, I would say DUTCH PRONUNCIATION. Both as a learner and tutor, I have seen 90% of students struggling because their mouths aren’t used to forming shapes and making Dutch sounds.
Sounds like “g”, “ui”, and “eu” don’t exist in English, making it tricky and difficult. Reading alone can’t solve this problem; perfection comes with repetition and speaking practice.
Have you ever heard of tongue twisters? They’re a great way to improve your speech clarity and pronunciation. If your tongue feels as though it’s doing yoga every time you try to speak Dutch, you’re not alone.
FEAR OF MISTAKES & JUDGMENT
Perfectionism kills fluency! Many learners don’t speak Dutch, not because they don’t know it, but because they are afraid of sounding silly. Ever happened to you?
A decade ago, I was also in the same position. I had a fear of making mistakes, getting laughed at, or not being understood.
This is especially if you’ve only done passive Dutch language classes online, or a list of Dutch phrases, or watched videos instead of having real conversations.
The truth? Mistakes are necessary for real progress. At The Dutch Minds, we focus on real-life conversation to boost confidence and learn from mistakes.
What is the use of input when there’s no output? (Speaking Dutch is an output skill.)
SPEED & ACCENT OF NATIVE SPEAKERS
And even if you know the words, Dutch people speak quickly and in a crazy quilt of regional accents that can throw you for a loop.
Let’s imagine you’ve already studied the typical Dutch phrase “Ik wil graag een koffie.” But in the real world, can anyone mumble “k’graag koffie?” and you freeze.
Sometimes, native speakers make speaking Dutch difficult for new learners by skipping syllables or combining words. That’s why I suggest students learn Dutch online course that offers sessions with native accent instructors or listening activities in authentic dialogues.
THE BIGGEST MISTAKE: NOT PRACTICING ENOUGH
Passive Learning ≠ Active Speaking
The biggest mistake most learners make is not speaking and practicing Dutch enough.
Watching videos on YouTube, flicking through flashcards, and listening to podcasts can all be very useful, but passive input is not going to turn you into a confident speaker.
That’s because to use words, you also need to practice them fairly often. Even in most Dutch lessons online, many students are too focused on understanding and not enough on practicing speaking.
Think about it like this: You can see 100 hours of videos of people swimming, but it won’t teach you how to swim unless you get into the pool.
Here are the Top 10 most common Dutch mistakes while learning Dutch online.
SO, HOW CAN YOU FIX THIS?
If speaking Dutch is difficult, then there must be some simple and effective solutions too. You must try these that helped 95% of my students (and will you, too):
- Join live Dutch language classes online (not pre-recorded lectures)
- Start practicing today, even if you don’t know the words yet
- Get real-time feedback from experts or native speakers
- Record yourself every day to track the progress (it may sound silly, but it is very helpful)
- Use conversation-based learning (not passive learning)
- Be confident and okay with sounding silly at first
That’s exactly what we do at The Dutch Minds! Our Dutch language course is designed for real-world, practical conversation, not for textbook theory. We create room for your mistakes, because they’re a step to learning and fluency.
How are online Dutch language classes revolutionizing language learning in 2025?
PRACTICE PERFECT TO GAIN DUTCH FLUENCY
If you’ve ever asked yourself, “Why is speaking Dutch difficult when I already know the words?” then you’re not wrong. But you are also not that far from fluency. Practice, community, and frequent feedback are what stand between knowledge and confidence.
If you have only been learning passively, then it’s time to change the gears. Pick Dutch lessons online that focus on conversation, not just comprehension.
You already have the words, use them. Make sure your Dutch voice is heard!
