Questions & Answers about Vad skulle du rekommendera?
How does using skulle change the tone of this question?
Using skulle (would) creates a conditional sentence, which sounds much softer and more polite. Asking Vad rekommenderar du? (What do you recommend?) is grammatically fine, but Vad skulle du rekommendera? is the most natural and polite way to ask a waiter or shop assistant for their advice.
Why is the verb rekommendera used here without an -r at the end?
Because skulle is a helper verb (auxiliary). In Swedish, just like in English, helper verbs are followed by the basic dictionary form (infinitive) of the main verb. This means you use rekommendera rather than the present tense form rekommenderar.
Why does the subject du come after the verb skulle?
This is due to the Swedish V2 rule, which states that the verb must be the second piece of information in a sentence. Since the question word Vad takes the first position, the helper verb skulle must be placed second, which pushes the subject du to the third spot.
Is rekommendera related to the English word "recommend"?
Yes! They share the same root. Just pay attention to the Swedish spelling: it uses a k instead of a c, has two ms, and ends with an a just like most Swedish infinitive verbs do.