To make a polite request or express a hypothetical situation in Dutch, use zouden (would) along with an infinitive at the end of the clause.
Conjugation of zouden:
- Ik / jij / u / hij / zij / het zou (singular)
- Wij / jullie / zij zouden (plural)
Here are a few examples of hypotheticals (what would happen):
| They would appreciate our fast service. | Zij zouden onze snelle service waarderen. |
| That is the problem that we would solve. | Dat is het probleem dat wij zouden oplossen. |
| I would not recommend that hotel. | Ik zou dat hotel niet aanraden. |
Polite Requests You will often hear zouden used to ask for things politely, especially in customer service. It is frequently combined with the infinitive kunnen (to be able to) to mean "Could you...?".
| Could you confirm the reservation? | Zou u de reservering kunnen bevestigen? |
| Could you please resolve the complaint? | Zou u de klacht alstublieft kunnen oplossen? |
To make a request sound even softer, you can add words like eventueel (possibly).
| Could you possibly cancel the reservation? | Zou u de reservering eventueel kunnen annuleren? |
| I would really appreciate that. | Ik zou dat erg waarderen. |
Your questions are stored by us to improve Elon.io
