Breakdown of Jullie moeten in de bibliotheek stil zijn.
zijn
to be
jullie
you (plural)
in
in
de bibliotheek
the library
moeten
to have to, must
stil
quiet
Questions & Answers about Jullie moeten in de bibliotheek stil zijn.
Why is the verb zijn (to be) at the very end of the sentence?
This is a key rule for modal verbs in Dutch! When you use a modal verb like moeten (must/have to), it takes the normal second position in the sentence. The main action verb, which is zijn (to be) here, gets pushed to the very end in its full dictionary form.
Why is the verb moeten exactly the same as its dictionary form?
Because the subject is jullie (you, plural). In Dutch, all plural subjects (wij, jullie, zij) use the full plural form of the verb, which looks identical to the dictionary form. If the subject was singular, like jij, it would be jij moet.
Could I use mogen instead of moeten here?
The English translation just says 'You'. How do we know to use jullie?
The English word 'you' can be singular or plural. The Dutch sentence uses jullie, which specifically means the plural 'you' (like 'you all' or 'you guys'). If the speaker was talking to just one person, they would say Je moet or Jij moet.
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