[The Face of Dutch]

Silent 'w' in Dutch?

Is the 'w' ever silent in Dutch? I thought not, but had to reconsider

U/Uw
'U' is the polite 'you,' 'Uw' is its possessive.
Heeft Uw hond U gebeten? (Did your dog bite you?)
Bent U gebeten door Uw hond? (Were you bitten by your dog?)
hear

huwelijk - gruwelijk
leeuw - leeuwin
eeuw - eeuwig
nieuw - nieuwe
hear 		vereren - verweren (to worship - 1. to fight back 2. to wear off)
verachten - verwachten (to despise - to expect)
tinkelen - twinkelen(to tinkle - to twinkle)
hear
gauw - gauwigheid
vrouw - vrouwelijk
trouw - vertrouwelijk
hear 		dwarsbomen
dwepen
verdwazing
verwikkelen
woningbouwvereniging
hear

I think I say a 'w' in all the previous w-words on this page, but then there was this word with a 'w' that my correspondent asked about, and when I said it I realized that its 'w' was not pronounced, and that is rare, because (unlike English) Dutch says almost all written letters,.

erwt, erwten (pea, peas)
ertegen (against it)
hear

I think 'ert-' in 'ertegen' sounds exactly the same as 'erwt,' so here is a silent 'w' in Dutch.

More Dutch W

damwand
afweren
lachwekkend
alwetend
hear - 2
kalkwater
opwinden
bezwaar
Witwatersrand
hear - 2
inwoner
verwijt
viswagen
wissewasje
hear
welwillend
lawaai
bedwelmen
spierwit
hear
Note: murw - this 'F' pronunciation is an exception. (Thank you Eddie Gillette.)

This page was suggested by a question from John King of Newport News

Dutch Pronunciation Main Page

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Don't be a dief (thief) - dievegge (female thief) - diefstal (theft) - stelen (to steal) - heler (dealer in stolen goods) - hear Dutch - 2