Modal Verbs
Modal Verbs
Dutch modal verbs like kunnen ('can') and moeten ('must') behave like English modals in meaning, but they push the main verb all the way to the end of the sentence — a word-order habit English speakers need to build deliberately, just as with German.
Grammar Comparison
Grammar Comparison
Modal verb in position 2, infinitive at the very end
Ik kan Nederlands spreken. (I can speak Dutch — spreken goes last)
I can speak Dutch.
English keeps its modal and main verb next to each other: 'I can speak Dutch.' Dutch splits them apart — the conjugated modal verb (kan) takes the normal verb-second position, while the main verb, in its plain infinitive form, gets shoved all the way to the end of the clause: Ik kan Nederlands spreken, literally 'I can Dutch speak.' This verb-bracket shape is one of the most fundamental patterns of a Dutch sentence, and the infinitive lands at the very end no matter how much you pack in between.
Vocabulary
Vocabulary
| Dutch | Pronunciation | English |
|---|---|---|
| ik kan | ik kahn | I can |
| ik moet | ik moot | I must |
| ik wil | ik vil | I want to |
| ik mag | ik mahkh | I may / am allowed to |
| ik zou willen | ik zow VIL-en | I would like to |