B2 Expression Formal

een balans opmaken

to take stock

Significado

To evaluate a situation.

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Contexto cultural

The Dutch 'Oudejaarsconference' (New Year's Eve comedy special) is essentially a comedian 'de balans opmakend' of the entire year for the nation. Dutch business culture values 'transparantie'. Making the balance up is not just a task, it's a moral requirement to show where resources went. The historical influence of Calvinism encourages self-reflection and 'accounting' for one's life before God, which translated into this secular idiom. Dutch students are often asked to 'de balans opmaken' of their own learning process in 'reflectieverslagen' (reflection reports).

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Use it in Interviews

When asked 'How was your last job?', start with 'Als ik de balans opmaak...'. It sounds professional and analytical.

⚠️

Separable Verb Alert

Don't forget to put 'op' at the end in main clauses: 'Ik maak de balans NU op.'

Significado

To evaluate a situation.

🎯

Use it in Interviews

When asked 'How was your last job?', start with 'Als ik de balans opmaak...'. It sounds professional and analytical.

⚠️

Separable Verb Alert

Don't forget to put 'op' at the end in main clauses: 'Ik maak de balans NU op.'

💬

Year-end usage

This phrase is everywhere in December. Use it then to sound like a native.

Teste-se

Vul de juiste vorm van het werkwoord 'opmaken' in.

Gisteren _______ de directeur de balans _______ van het afgelopen jaar.

✓ Correto! ✗ Quase. Resposta certa: maakte ... op

The sentence is in the past tense ('gisteren') and 'opmaken' is a separable verb.

Welke zin is correct?

Kies de juiste zin:

✓ Correto! ✗ Quase. Resposta certa: Na de vakantie maakten we de balans op van onze uitgaven.

This is the correct figurative/financial use. The others use the wrong article, wrong context (physical weight), or wrong meaning of 'opmaken'.

Match de situatie met de beste zin.

Situatie: Je stopt na 10 jaar met je hobby.

✓ Correto! ✗ Quase. Resposta certa: Ik maak de balans op van mijn tijd bij de club.

This correctly uses the phrase to reflect on a long period of time.

🎉 Pontuação: /3

Recursos visuais

Banco de exercicios

3 exercicios
Vul de juiste vorm van het werkwoord 'opmaken' in. Fill Blank B1

Gisteren _______ de directeur de balans _______ van het afgelopen jaar.

✓ Correto! ✗ Quase. Resposta certa: maakte ... op

The sentence is in the past tense ('gisteren') and 'opmaken' is a separable verb.

Welke zin is correct? Choose B2

Kies de juiste zin:

✓ Correto! ✗ Quase. Resposta certa: Na de vakantie maakten we de balans op van onze uitgaven.

This is the correct figurative/financial use. The others use the wrong article, wrong context (physical weight), or wrong meaning of 'opmaken'.

Match de situatie met de beste zin. situation_matching B2

Situatie: Je stopt na 10 jaar met je hobby.

✓ Correto! ✗ Quase. Resposta certa: Ik maak de balans op van mijn tijd bij de club.

This correctly uses the phrase to reflect on a long period of time.

🎉 Pontuação: /3

Perguntas frequentes

10 perguntas

Yes, but 'de balans' is much more common as it refers to 'the' specific balance of the situation you are discussing.

No, it's neutral. You can make up the balance of a very successful project too.

Not quite. Summarizing is just repeating points; 'de balans opmaken' implies weighing them to reach a conclusion.

No, for that use 'me wegen' or 'op de weegschaal staan'.

It's a bit serious, but fine if you're talking about something important like a move or a breakup.

There isn't a direct opposite idiom, but 'blind doorgaan' (going on blindly) would be the opposite behavior.

Yes, in this sense it is always a separable prefix verb.

No, that's a literal translation from German 'Bilanz ziehen'. In Dutch, we 'make' (opmaken) it.

Yes, it is standard Dutch used in both the Netherlands and Flanders.

Yes, literally, to see your final balance.

Frases relacionadas

🔗

de balans doorslaan

similar

To tip the scales

🔗

in balans zijn

similar

To be in equilibrium

🔗

de stand van zaken

similar

The state of affairs

🔗

terugblikken

builds on

To look back

🔄

evalueren

synonym

To evaluate

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