Kleine praatjes op kantoor in het Nederlands

What does 'hoor' mean in Dutch?

Hoor is Dutch’s friendliest little word. Tacked onto the end of a short sentence, it softens, reassures, or signals 'don’t worry about it.' Ja, hoor (yeah, sure), nee, hoor (oh, no need), graag, hoor (gladly, really). It’s untranslatable into English in one word, and English speakers learning Dutch often skip it; native speakers spot the gap immediately.

This office-small-talk clip is hoor-heavy: « Nee, hoor. Zwart is prima » (no need, black coffee’s fine), « Ja, hoor » (sure, will do), « Ja, gezellig » with the same warmth. Hoor turns clipped coworker exchanges into something companionable. Drop it from the same dialogue and the speakers sound terse.