Fijn

Fijn is a Dutch adjective and adverb with several closely related senses centered on quality, delicacy, and degree. When describing quality, fijn denotes high quality, refinement, or precision—a fijn product, fine craftsmanship, or a fijn stuk werk. When describing texture or granularity, it means fine or small-grained, as in fijn zand (fine sand) or fijnkorrelig. In everyday speech it can express pleasantness or ease: Dat is fijn means That’s nice or That’s good to hear. As an adverb, fijn often emphasizes a positive condition: Het gaat fijn, meaning It’s going well.

Etymology and cognates: Fijn derives from older Germanic roots and is related to the German fein and the English sense of fine in certain contexts. In Dutch, the sense of delicacy, refinement, and high quality developed alongside the more literal meanings of fineness or smallness, and the word appears in many compounds and fixed phrases across centuries.

Usage and derivation: Fijn is highly versatile and common in both written and spoken Dutch, including Flemish usage. It forms several productive compounds, such as fijnstof (fine dust), fijnmazig (finely meshed), and fijngehakt (finely chopped). The comparative form is fijner and the standard superlative is het fijnst, though in some registers het fijnste may also be encountered.

Translations and nuance: In English, fijn can be rendered as fine, delicate, nice, pleasant, or fine-grained, depending on context. The word ranges from neutral description of quality or texture to evaluative praise. Its flexibility makes it a core term in everyday Dutch, Dutch literature, and colloquial Flemish.