Besteden or Doorbrengen?

[rhino514]

Would it be correct to say "ik heb de vorige maanden in amsterdam doorgebracht?" to say "i have spent the last few months in amsterdam"?

What confused me is that i went onto a translator´s website and typed in "spend a few months" and i get back "een paar maanden besteden"

i thought besteden was used more for spending money, but it seems it can also be used in some cases like doorbrengen?

Apart from this, if i want to say i have been "staying a few months in Amsterdam" can you use "blijven" (apart from using "ik zit al een paar maanden" or "ik ben al ? And i often come across "verblijven"...what is the difference between the two??

bedankt!

[Joke]

Would it be correct to say "ik heb de vorige maanden in amsterdam doorgebracht?" to say "i have spent the last few months in amsterdam"?

Doorgebracht is correct here, but vorige is not. Vorige is usually used with singular words.
De vorige keer dat ik in Amsterdam was, heeft het alleen maar geregend.
Hij is vorige maand vader geworden.

Correct is:
Ik heb de afgelopen maanden in Amsterdam doorgebracht.
Or a more literal translation from English:
Ik heb de laatste paar maanden in Amsterdam doorgebracht.
If you lived there, you can say:
Ik heb de afgelopen maanden in Amsterdam gewoond.
If it was a just long holiday, you can say:
Ik ben de afgelopen maanden in Amsterdam geweest.

What confused me is that i went onto a translator´s website and typed in "spend a few months" and i get back "een paar maanden besteden"

i thought besteden was used more for spending money, but it seems it can also be used in some cases like doorbrengen?

You can use besteden with time in combination with aan, "spend time on something":
Ik heb enkele maanden besteed aan het leren van de Nederlandse taal.
Als je ergens echt goed in wilt worden, zul je er veel tijd aan moeten besteden.

Apart from this, if i want to say i have been "staying a few months in Amsterdam" can you use "blijven" (apart from using "ik zit al een paar maanden" or "ik ben al ? And i often come across "verblijven"...what is the difference between the two??!

Blijven is stay in the sense of "not going away".
If you say "ik ben een paar maanden in Amsterdam gebleven" it means that you didn't leave Amsterdam for a few months (at least, not for long).
For example:
Ik wilde een wereldreis maken, maar ik voelde me zo thuis in Amsterdam, dat ik daar een paar maanden ben gebleven.

"Ik verblijf in Amsterdam" is a rather formal way to say that you're in Amsterdam. It sounds like you're there only temporally, probably in a hotel or so.

Joke

[Quetzal]

What confused me is that i went onto a translator´s website and typed in "spend a few months" and i get back "een paar maanden besteden"

I think as a general rule, if you go onto a translator's website and get something that seems odd, it's probably safe to assume it isn't in fact correct.

[Bert]

Quetzal is right. I only use online translators when I want to LOL.

Here's an example:

Suleymanov was arrested on suspicion of aggravated murder and illegal possession of a weapon.

Google Translate: Suleymanov werd gearresteerd op verdenking van moord en verergerd illegaal bezit van een wapen.

The real (i.e. my ) translation: Suleymanov werd gearresteerd op verdenking van gekwalificeerde doodslag en illegaal wapenbezit.