Example: We zijn onderweg naar het park voor een picknick.
Definition
"Onderweg zijn" means to be in the process of traveling or moving from one place to another. It describes the state of being on a journey, often implying that the destination is not yet reached, as in the phrase, 'We zijn onderweg naar het park voor een picknick.'
The phrase "onderweg zijn" originates from Dutch, where "onder" means 'under' or 'among,' and "weg" means 'way' or 'road.' Combined, it literally means 'to be on the way,' capturing the idea of being in transit. Did you know that this expression perfectly conveys the sense of movement embedded in its components?
Learn to use this expression actively
"Onderweg zijn" appears in the Vocaplus list "Dutch - General - Idioms and Proverbs - (A2) - set 1", containing 106 commonly used expressions.
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to be on the way