Breakdown of Volgens mij zouden we de natuur moeten beschermen.
moeten
to have to, must
zullen
shall / will
mij
me
we
we (unstressed form of wij)
beschermen
to protect
volgens
according to
de natuur
nature
Questions & Answers about Volgens mij zouden we de natuur moeten beschermen.
How does zouden moeten translate to "should" here?
Why are both moeten and beschermen at the end of the sentence?
Because zouden is the conjugated verb in the second position, all other verbs are pushed to the end of the sentence as infinitives. When you have a modal verb like moeten and a main verb like beschermen at the end, the modal verb typically comes first in the cluster.
Why is the word order zouden we instead of we zouden?
Because the sentence starts with the phrase volgens mij (in my opinion). In Dutch main clauses, the conjugated verb must always be in the second position. To keep zouden in position two, the subject we is pushed after the verb. This is a classic example of inversion.
Why does the Dutch sentence use de natuur when the English translation is just "nature"?
When talking about general, abstract concepts like nature, time, or life, English usually drops the article. Dutch, however, requires the definite article for these broad concepts, so you must say de natuur.
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