gezellig

Language: Dutch · [ɣəˈzɛləx] · Pronunciation: khuh-ZEL-ukh

Meaning

warm, cosy and convivial — good company included

The story

The root is gezel, a companion, so the warmth is social before anything else: an evening with the right people is gezellig, and leaving it early is famously not. Dutch speakers rate whole rooms and total strangers with it. English covers it with two words, cosy for the room and convivial for the company.

The four rounds

Which language is it from?

Dutch

Which feeling does it carry?

Warm and settled-in

Where would you hear it?

In a candlelit pub with old friends

What does it mean?

Warm and sociable, everyone at ease

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2026-09-06 · Next word › · All words