Four little verbs unlock most of what you want to say in a day: kunnen (can), mogen (may), moeten (must/have to), and willen (want). And they all run on a single, copy-paste pattern — modal in position two, a bare infinitive at the very end, and no te in between. Ik kan zwemmen. Mag ik gaan? Ik moet werken. Ik wil slapen. Learn that one frame and slot in any verb you like. This is a drill page: it locks in the pattern with all four core modals and the everyday situations you'll actually use them in. (For the full set of six modals and the theory, see the modals overview.)
The pattern: modal second, infinitive last, no te
A modal takes a bare infinitive — the dictionary form of a verb, with no te in front of it — and pushes that infinitive to the end of the clause. The modal itself sits second, in the normal finite-verb slot; everything else piles up in the middle, between the two verbs (this is the verb bracket — see the verb bracket).
| Subject | Modal (second) | Middle | Infinitive (end) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ik | kan | goed | koken. |
| Ik | moet | morgen vroeg | werken. |
| Ik | wil | nu echt | slapen. |
Ik kan goed koken.
I can cook well. — modal 'kan' second, bare infinitive 'koken' at the end. No 'te'.
Ik moet morgen vroeg werken.
I have to work early tomorrow. — 'moet' second, 'werken' at the end.
Ik wil nu echt slapen.
I really want to sleep now. — 'wil' second, 'slapen' at the end.
kunnen — ability ("can")
Use kunnen for what you're able to do.
Ik kan een beetje Nederlands spreken.
I can speak a little Dutch. — 'kan' second, 'spreken' at the end.
Kun je zwemmen?
Can you swim? — question: modal 'kun' first, infinitive 'zwemmen' at the end.
mogen — permission ("may / be allowed to")
Use mogen to ask for or give permission. As a question it's the polite, everyday way to ask whether something is allowed.
Mag ik hier roken?
May I smoke here? — 'mag' first (question), 'roken' at the end.
Mag ik even naar de wc gaan?
Can I just go to the toilet? — 'mag' first, 'gaan' at the end.
Je mag mijn fiets wel lenen.
You're welcome to borrow my bike. — 'mag' second, 'lenen' at the end.
moeten — obligation ("must / have to")
Use moeten for what you're obliged to do.
Je moet voorzichtig zijn.
You have to be careful. — 'moet' second, 'zijn' at the end.
We moeten nu echt gaan.
We really have to go now. — 'moeten' second, 'gaan' at the end.
willen — desire ("want to")
Use willen for what you want.
Ik wil een kopje koffie bestellen.
I'd like to order a cup of coffee. — 'wil' second, 'bestellen' at the end.
Wil je vanavond mee-eten?
Do you want to eat with us tonight? — 'wil' first (question), infinitive 'mee-eten' at the end.
Saying you can't, may not, or won't: add niet
To make a modal negative, just drop niet into the middle field — before the final infinitive. The frame doesn't change: modal still second, infinitive still last, te still absent. Ik kan niet komen ("I can't come"), Je mag hier niet roken ("You may not smoke here"), Ik wil niet gaan ("I don't want to go").
Ik kan vandaag niet komen.
I can't come today. — 'niet' sits before the infinitive 'komen'.
Je mag hier niet parkeren.
You may not park here. — 'niet' before 'parkeren'.
Ik wil daar niet over praten.
I don't want to talk about that. — 'niet' in the middle, 'praten' at the end.
One trap: moet niet means "must not," not "don't have to." If you mean you're free not to do something, Dutch uses a different verb (hoeven), which you'll meet on the overview. For now, just know that Je moet niet wachten tells someone not to wait — it doesn't say waiting is optional.
When the infinitive is a separable verb
If the verb at the end is a separable verb, it shows up as a whole infinitive — the particle stays attached, because after a modal you always get the infinitive form (see separable verbs). So no splitting here: Ik wil je opbellen, not Ik wil je op bellen.
Ik wil je morgen opbellen.
I want to call you tomorrow. — separable 'opbellen' stays whole as the infinitive at the end.
Kun je het raam even dichtdoen?
Can you close the window for a sec? — 'dichtdoen' whole, at the end.
Common Mistakes
❌ Ik kan te zwemmen.
Incorrect — no 'te' after a modal. English 'able to' carries 'to'; Dutch doesn't.
✅ Ik kan zwemmen.
I can swim. — bare infinitive, no 'te'.
❌ Ik wil te slapen.
Incorrect — 'want to' tempts you to add 'te', but modals take a bare infinitive.
✅ Ik wil slapen.
I want to sleep. — no 'te'.
❌ Ik moet werken morgen vroeg.
Incorrect word order — the infinitive 'werken' must go to the very end, after 'morgen vroeg'.
✅ Ik moet morgen vroeg werken.
I have to work early tomorrow. — 'werken' closes the clause.
❌ Mag ik gaan naar huis?
Incorrect — the infinitive 'gaan' must come last, after 'naar huis'.
✅ Mag ik naar huis gaan?
May I go home? — 'gaan' at the very end.
Key Takeaways
- Four everyday modals: kunnen (can), mogen (may), moeten (must), willen (want).
- One pattern for all of them: modal second, bare infinitive at the end, no te.
- In questions, the modal moves to first position: Kun je zwemmen?, Mag ik gaan?, Wil je mee-eten?
- English habits to drop: don't insert te (Ik kan te zwemmen ❌), and don't keep the infinitive next to the modal — send it to the end.
- A separable verb after a modal stays a whole infinitive: Ik wil je opbellen.
Now practice Dutch
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Start learning Dutch→Related Topics
- Modal Verbs: OverviewA2 — A map of the six Dutch modals — kunnen, mogen, moeten, willen, zullen, hoeven — and the one pattern they share: modal + bare infinitive at the end of the clause.
- Kunnen: Can, Be Able, MayA2 — How to use and conjugate kunnen — for ability, possibility, and informal permission — including the kan/kun/kunt variation and the inversion form kun je / kan je.
- The Verb Bracket (Tangconstructie)A2 — In a Dutch main clause the finite verb stays second while infinitives, participles, and separable particles are flung to the very end, sandwiching the sentence in a 'pincer' bracket.
- Separable Verbs: OverviewA2 — What separable verbs are, how to recognise them by stress (ÓPbellen, not opBELlen), and how the particle behaves across infinitive, present, and participle — the hub for every separable-verb page.
- The Te-Infinitive: OverviewB1 — When a second verb takes the infinitive marker te and when it stays bare — modals and gaan/komen/laten/zien/horen/blijven take a bare infinitive, most other governing verbs require te.