Emotie en geruststellingEmotion and reassurance
What this unit teaches
zou — one step more polite
zou is the conditional you already have in your language, and it does the same job: it turns a request into an offer the other person may decline. In an emotional conversation that difference is the whole point — the patient keeps control of something at a moment when they control nothing.
Zou u willen dat ik iemand bel?
Ik zou u graag meer vertellen.
Zou u hier willen wachten?als — a condition, not a promise
The als-clause from unit 13 comes back here for a different job: it lets you commit to what you control — being reachable, coming back, looking at the result together — without promising an outcome you do not know. Say what you will do, not what will happen.
Als er iets verandert, belt u ons.
Als u wilt, kom ik morgen weer langs.
Als de uitslag er is, bespreken wij hem samen.What to say when there is nothing to say
Five sentences, learned whole. The task in this unit is not to solve the problem — you often cannot — but to respond in a way that is not empty. Note the last one: never reassure with a fact you do not have. Saying I do not know yet, and staying, works; a false promise ends the trust for good.
Ik begrijp dat u bang bent.
Dat is heel begrijpelijk.
Wij hebben geen haast.
U staat er niet alleen voor.
Ik weet het nog niet zeker.From the text
Ik ben bang, dokter.
I am frightened, doctor.
Vocabulary in this unit (47 words)
| Dutch | Meaning |
|---|---|
| bang | afraid |
| de angst | fear |
| ongerust | worried |
| geruststellen | to reassure |
| gerust | reassured, at ease |
| de geruststelling | reassurance |
| meeleven | to sympathise |
| het medeleven | sympathy, condolences |
| begrijpelijk | understandable |
| huilen | to cry |
| de traan | tear |
| verdrietig | sad |
| het verdriet | grief, sorrow |
| troosten | to comfort |
| boos | angry |
| kwaad | angry, cross |
| zich schamen | to be ashamed |
| schrikken | to be startled, shocked |
| de schrik | shock, fright |
| sterven | to die |
| overlijden | to pass away |
| het nieuws | news |
| slecht nieuws | bad news |
| eerlijk | honest |
| de waarheid | truth |
| de haast | hurry |
| opluchten | to be a relief |
| opgelucht | relieved |
| houden | to hold; to keep |
| volhouden | to hold on, endure |
| steunen | to support |
| de steun | support |
| erbij zijn | to be present |
| alleen | alone |
| samen | together |
| halen | to fetch |
| zou | would |
| zullen | shall |
| hoeven | to need to |
| mogen | to be allowed |
| meer | more |
| de dochter | daughter |
| de zoon | son |
| donderdag | Thursday |
| dag en nacht | day and night |
| langskomen | to come by |
| veranderen | to change |
The first unit is free — no account needed.
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