Dutch zou and zouden (would): form and uses

Ik zou nog even wachten. (I would wait a little longer.) Dutch often uses zou or zouden where English uses would. These forms can mark an imagined result, make a request softer, or describe a plan or later event from a past viewpoint. They are the past-tense forms of zullen (will), but their meaning depends on context: zou does not automatically place the action in the past.

Use zou with a singular subject and zouden with a plural subject. In a main-clause statement, the helper is the finite verb (the conjugated verb), and the infinitive goes to the end: Ik zou de blauwe jas kiezen. (I would choose the blue coat.) If there is another helper, the infinitives stay together: Ik zou morgen kunnen komen. (I could come tomorrow.)

With u, modern standard Dutch normally uses zou u. You may meet zoudt u in older or very formal language. For would have, use the conditional perfect: Ik zou het hebben gedaan. (I would have done it.) That is a separate pattern from plain zou + infinitive.

Als ik meer tijd had, zou ik vaker koken. (If I had more time, I would cook more often.) This common pattern uses the simple past in the als (if) clause and zou/zouden + infinitive in the result. Here had presents the situation as unreal; it does not refer to an earlier time. After als, the verbs go to the end of their clause, as explained under subordinating conjunctions.

The simple-past + zou pattern is one standard pattern. Standard Dutch can also use zou in the als clause: Als ik meer tijd zou hebben, zou ik vaker koken. (If I had more time, I would cook more often.) You may also meet a simple-past result instead of zou. These variants can express the same unreal meaning.

For advice, the pattern is zou/zouden + moeten + infinitive. Do not use it as an automatic translation of every English should. Dutch often uses plain moeten for a firm duty or an urgent question: Wat moeten we nu doen? (What should we do now?)

• Match the form to the subject: ik/jij/hij zou, but wij/jullie/zij zouden. Wij zou is not standard Dutch.
• In an active sentence, the subject performs the action. Keep would and would have apart: zou gaan means would go, while zou zijn gegaan means would have gone.
• Do not assume every past form after als describes past time. In Als ik meer tijd had..., had describes an unreal situation in the present.

Compare zou/zouden with zal/zullen on the Dutch future. For would have done, continue with the future perfect and conditional perfect. For verb placement after als and dat, review subordinating conjunctions.