Breakdown of Die Spieler sollen nett zueinander sein.
sein
to be
sollen
should / ought to
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
nett
nice
der Spieler
the player
zueinander
to each other
Questions & Answers about Die Spieler sollen nett zueinander sein.
Why is zueinander written as one word instead of two?
In German, when a preposition like zu (to) comes right before the reciprocal pronoun einander (each other), they always fuse together into a single word. So 'zu einander' becomes the single word zueinander.
How do I know which preposition to attach to einander here?
You look at the adjective or verb being used in the sentence! The adjective nett (nice) always takes the preposition zu when you are nice to someone (nett zu jemandem sein). Because the phrase requires zu, we combine it with einander to get zueinander.
The English translation says 'should', so why does the sentence use sollen instead of the Konjunktiv II form sollten?
While sollten is used for polite advice or suggestions, the present tense sollen often means 'are supposed to' and expresses a firmer expectation, instruction, or rule. Here, it sounds like an official rule for the players rather than just a friendly tip.
Why does sein go at the very end of the sentence?
This is the standard word order when using a modal verb. The modal verb sollen takes the second position in the sentence, and it pushes the main verb sein (to be) in its infinitive form to the very end of the clause.
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