Breakdown of Wat zou u doen als u de loterij won?
u
you (formal)
wat
what
doen
to do
zullen
shall / will
winnen
to win
als
if / when (condition)
de loterij
the lottery
Questions & Answers about Wat zou u doen als u de loterij won?
Why do we use the past tense won and the word zou if this is about a future possibility?
This is a hypothetical conditional sentence, which means it describes an imaginary situation. Just like in English ('What would you do if you won?'), Dutch uses the past tense won in the als (if) clause, and a form of zouden (would) with the infinitive doen in the main clause.
Why is the verb won at the very end of the sentence?
The word als introduces a subordinate clause. In Dutch, subordinate clauses push the conjugated verb to the end of their clause. That is why it is als u de loterij won instead of als u won de loterij.
Wait, shouldn't the verb for the formal u be zoudt instead of zou?
For the pronoun u, both zou and zoudt are grammatically correct. However, zou is much more natural and common in modern Dutch. You will almost always hear Wat zou u doen? instead of Wat zoudt u doen?.
What is the infinitive of won again?
The infinitive is winnen (to win). It is a strong (irregular) verb, so the simple past for singular subjects like u is won, and the plural is wonnen.
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