Yes you' re right they are quite striking at times, the similarities between these two languages. In fact Dutch vocabulary isn' t a problem for English speaking natives - they have a lot more problems with word order, which - like in German - can be crucial to the meaning because you may end up saying something very different just by switching words, especially when dealing with composite verbs. Also there can be a big difference between conjugations with 'to have' (hebben) and to be ('zijn').
E.g.
' Ik heb hem opgetrokken' - I have pulled him up.
' Ik ben met hem opgetrokken' - I have hung around with him
' Het is voorgekomen ' - It has happened.
' Hij kwam voor' - He appeared before the judge
' Hij voorkwam het/ Hij heeft het voorkomen' - He (has) prevented it
Thanks for the expression in Spanish!
No, we don' t day it' s raining bricks, but something quite similar:
' De regen komt met bakstenen uit de lucht vallen'
('The rain is falling from the sky like bricks')
You could also say :
'Het regent pijpestelen' or
' Het regent dat het giet' (It rains that it pours, it' s pouring rain) or
' Het komt met bakken uit de lucht' (it' s falling from the sky with trays (of water)'