Future in the past: zou and zouden
To talk about what you were going to do, Dutch uses the past tense of zullen (will) combined with an infinitive. This creates a "future in the past" narrative. The past tense forms of zullen are zou and zouden.
| Pronoun | Form |
|---|---|
| ik, jij/je, u, hij/zij/het | zou |
| wij, jullie, zij | zouden |
You will often use this structure to describe initial plans, or an intention (de bedoeling) made before things changed. The infinitive goes at the end of the clause.
| We were originally going to work together, but the project didn't go ahead. | We zouden oorspronkelijk samenwerken, maar het project ging niet door. |
| The intention was that we would change the schedule. | Het was de bedoeling dat we de planning zouden veranderen. |
Interruptions and Rescheduling
Plans are often suddenly (opeens) interrupted or rescheduled (verzetten).
| They were going to plan the meeting, but suddenly the boss got angry. | Ze zouden de bijeenkomst plannen, maar opeens werd de baas boos. |
| Even the boss wasn't going to come, so we were going to reschedule the meeting. | Zelfs de baas zou niet komen, dus we zouden de bijeenkomst verzetten. |
Changing course: alsnog and vandaar
If a plan happens anyway despite delays, use alsnog (after all / still). To explain the consequence of an obstacle, use vandaar (dat) ("hence" or "which is why").
| I was going to cancel the appointment, but I went anyway. | Ik zou de afspraak afzeggen, maar ik ben alsnog gegaan. |
| Suddenly the train was cancelled, which is why we were going to take the bus. | Opeens viel de trein uit, vandaar dat we de bus zouden nemen. |
Reported speech and promises
Zouden is also the standard way to report what someone said, thought, or promised they would do. Because these are reported as subclauses (usually starting with dat), both zou/zouden and the infinitive are pushed to the end of the sentence.
| He said that he would call today. | Hij zei dat hij vandaag zou bellen. |
| The boss promised that he would help me. | De baas beloofde dat hij mij zou helpen. |