Breakdown of Ich hätte den Zopf nicht abschneiden sollen.
ich
I
haben
to have
nicht
not
sollen
should / ought to
der
who, which, that (relative pronoun; die, das)
der Zopf
the braid
abschneiden
to cut off
Questions & Answers about Ich hätte den Zopf nicht abschneiden sollen.
Why are there two infinitives at the end (abschneiden sollen) instead of a past participle?
This is the double infinitive rule. When you use a modal verb like sollen in the past tense of the Konjunktiv II (to express a past regret), you don't use its past participle (gesollt). Instead, both the main verb (abschneiden) and the modal verb (sollen) stay in their dictionary infinitive forms and go to the very end.
Why is the conjugated verb hätte in the second position instead of at the end?
Because this is a main clause, the conjugated helper verb (hätte) takes the standard second position. Only the double infinitive block (abschneiden sollen) is pushed to the very end of the sentence.
abschneiden is a separable verb. Why doesn't the prefix ab separate here?
Separable prefixes only detach when the verb is actually conjugated and acting as the main action in the sentence. Because the double infinitive rule keeps abschneiden in its raw infinitive form, the prefix stays firmly attached.
Why does nicht come right before the verbs at the end?
When negating an entire action or verb phrase, nicht is placed as close to the end of the clause as possible, right before any verbs that are pushed to the end. Here, it sits just before the infinitive block abschneiden sollen to negate the act of cutting.
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