Breakdown of Zou u de klacht alstublieft kunnen oplossen?
u
you (formal)
alstublieft
please
kunnen
can
zullen
shall / will
Questions & Answers about Zou u de klacht alstublieft kunnen oplossen?
Why use both zou and kunnen to mean 'could'?
Zou is used for polite requests, meaning 'would'. Kunnen means 'can' or 'to be able to'. Together, zou... kunnen literally means 'would... be able to', which is the standard Dutch way to say 'could' when asking someone for a favor.
Why are there two verbs, kunnen and oplossen, at the end of the sentence?
In Dutch questions, the conjugated verb (zou) goes at the start, and any other verbs are pushed to the very end. Since this sentence has two extra verbs (the infinitives kunnen and oplossen), they stack together at the end of the sentence.
How would I ask this same question to a friend instead of using the formal u?
I remember separable verbs split apart. Why doesn't oplossen split into los... op here?