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◊ᴺᵉˣᵃˡ ◊ᴸᵃᵗⁱⁿᵘᵐ ◊ᴰᵘᵗᶜʰ ◊ᴸᵉˢˢᵒⁿ⁴⁰ ◊ᶻᵘˡˡᵉⁿ
Welcome to Lesson 40 of the Dutch course from the Latinum Institute. This lesson focuses on the English auxiliary “will” and its Dutch equivalent zullen, whose present-tense singular is zal.
What does “will” mean in Dutch?
Lesson 37 introduced zou, the conditional. That word was the past tense of zullen, and we met it before its own present tense — an inversion this lesson now corrects. Zal and zullen supply the future in Dutch: ik zal komen, wij zullen wachten.
But a warning belongs at the front. Dutch does not use zullen nearly as often as English uses “will.” Where a time adverb already makes the future clear, Dutch normally leaves the verb in the simple present: Morgen ga ik naar Rotterdam — literally “tomorrow I go to Rotterdam” — is the ordinary way to say “tomorrow I will go to Rotterdam.” Reaching for zal in every English “will” produces Dutch that is grammatically correct and audibly foreign. Zullen is reserved for promises, predictions, suppositions, and proposals.
Course Index:
https://latinum.substack.com/p/index
Key Takeaways: -
Singular: zal (ik, jij, hij, zij, het) — Plural: zullen (wij, jullie, zij) -
Second person also admits zult: jij zult, u zult (slightly more formal) -
Past tense = zou / zouden, taught in Lesson 37 -
Dutch prefers the simple present for plain future: morgen ga ik -
Zullen we...? is the standard way to propose something: “shall we?” -
Zal wel expresses supposition, not futurity: dat zal wel = “I dare say”
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zullen /ˈzʏ.lən/ - The infinitive and plural form. The ‘u’ is the rounded front vowel /ʏ/, the same sound met in kunnen in Lesson 36. The double ‘l’ is pronounced single.
zal /zɑl/ - Singular present. Short open ‘a’, with the dark velarised ‘l’ described in Lesson 39.
zult /zʏlt/ - Second-person alternative, with the same /ʏ/ as zullen.
zou /zʌu/ - Past singular, from Lesson 37, given here for direct contrast: /zɑl/ against /zʌu/ is the whole difference between “will” and “would.”
zouden /ˈzʌu.dən/ - Past plural, contrasting with zullen /ˈzʏ.lən/.
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40.1 Ik (ɪk) I zal (zɑl) will komen (ˈkoː.mən) come
40.2 Zullen (ˈzʏ.lən) shall we (ʋə) we gaan (ɣaːn) go
40.3 Hij (hɛi) he zal (zɑl) will het (ət) it begrijpen (bəˈɣrɛi.pən) understand
40.4 Dat (dɑt) that zal (zɑl) will wel (ʋɛl) probably
40.5 Wij (ʋɛi) we zullen (ˈzʏ.lən) will morgen (ˈmɔr.ɣən) tomorrow beginnen (bəˈɣɪ.nən) begin
40.6 Zal (zɑl) shall ik (ɪk) I het (ət) the raam (raːm) window openen (ˈoː.pə.nən) open
40.7 Zij (zɛi) they zullen (ˈzʏ.lən) will er (ər) there niet (nit) not zijn (zɛin) be
40.8 Het (ət) it zal (zɑl) will wel (ʋɛl) surely goed (ɣut) well komen (ˈkoː.mən) come
40.9 Jij (jɛi) you zult (zʏlt) will het (ət) it zien (zin) see
40.10 Ik (ɪk) I zal (zɑl) will je (jə) you nooit (noːit) never vergeten (vərˈɣeː.tən) forget
40.11 Morgen (ˈmɔr.ɣən) tomorrow ga (ɣaː) go ik (ɪk) I naar (naːr) to Rotterdam (ˌrɔ.tərˈdɑm) Rotterdam
40.12 Zullen (ˈzʏ.lən) shall we (ʋə) we alles (ˈɑ.ləs) everything opruimen (ˈɔp.rœy.mən) tidy-up
40.13 Hij (hɛi) he zal (zɑl) will wel (ʋɛl) probably ziek (zik) ill zijn (zɛin) be
40.14 Wij (ʋɛi) we zouden (ˈzʌu.dən) would komen (ˈkoː.mən) come maar (maːr) but nu (ny) now zullen (ˈzʏ.lən) will we (ʋə) we wachten (ˈʋɑx.tən) wait
40.15 Gij (ɣɛi) thou zult (zʏlt) shalt niet (nit) not stelen (ˈsteː.lən) steal
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40.1 Ik zal komen. → “I will come.”
40.2 Zullen we gaan? → “Shall we go?”
40.3 Hij zal het begrijpen. → “He will understand.”
40.4 Dat zal wel. → “I dare say.” / “Probably.”
40.5 Wij zullen morgen beginnen. → “We will begin tomorrow.”
40.6 Zal ik het raam openen? → “Shall I open the window?”
40.7 Zij zullen er niet zijn. → “They will not be there.”
40.8 Het zal wel goed komen. → “It will turn out all right.”
40.9 Jij zult het zien. → “You will see.”
40.10 Ik zal je nooit vergeten. → “I will never forget you.”
40.11 Morgen ga ik naar Rotterdam. → “Tomorrow I am going to Rotterdam.”
40.12 Zullen we alles opruimen? → “Shall we tidy everything up?”
40.13 Hij zal wel ziek zijn. → “He is probably ill.”
40.14 Wij zouden komen, maar nu zullen we wachten. → “We were going to come, but now we will wait.”
40.15 Gij zult niet stelen. → “Thou shalt not steal.”
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40.1 Ik zal komen.
40.2 Zullen we gaan?
40.3 Hij zal het begrijpen.
40.4 Dat zal wel.
40.5 Wij zullen morgen beginnen.
40.6 Zal ik het raam openen?
40.7 Zij zullen er niet zijn.
40.8 Het zal wel goed komen.
40.9 Jij zult het zien.
40.10 Ik zal je nooit vergeten.
40.11 Morgen ga ik naar Rotterdam.
40.12 Zullen we alles opruimen?
40.13 Hij zal wel ziek zijn.
40.14 Wij zouden komen, maar nu zullen we wachten.
40.15 Gij zult niet stelen.
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Grammar Rules for “will” in Dutch:
The Complete Paradigm:
Zullen is irregular. Set beside the past tense from Lesson 37, the whole system is now visible: -
ik zal — ik zou -
jij/je zult OR zal — jij zou -
u zult OR zal — u zou -
hij/zij/het zal — hij zou -
wij/we zullen — wij zouden -
jullie zullen — jullie zouden -
zij/ze zullen — zij zouden
Note on zal versus zult: both are correct in the second person singular. Zult is marginally more formal and more usual in writing; zal is common in speech and preferred after inversion, where Zal je...? sounds more natural than Zult je...?
There is no past participle in ordinary use. Perfect constructions employ the infinitive: Ik heb het zullen doen is possible but rare and stiff.
Word Order:
Zullen behaves like every Dutch auxiliary. It takes the finite verb position and its infinitive goes to the end of the clause: -
Statement: Ik zal het boek morgen lezen -
Question: Zal ik het boek lezen? -
Subordinate: ...dat ik het boek zal lezen
The Central Difficulty: Dutch Prefers the Present
English marks the future almost obligatorily. Dutch does not. When futurity is already established by an adverb of time, the plain present is the normal choice: -
Morgen ga ik naar Rotterdam (Tomorrow I will go to Rotterdam) -
Volgende week begint de cursus (The course will begin next week) -
Ik bel je vanavond (I will call you this evening)
Using zullen in these sentences is not wrong, but it adds a note of promise or emphasis that the English does not carry. Ik zal je vanavond bellen is closer to “I promise I'll call you tonight.”
Gaan for Intention:
Alongside the present and zullen, Dutch uses gaan + infinitive for planned or imminent action, much like English “going to”: -
Ik ga koken (I am going to cook) -
Het gaat regenen (It is going to rain)
The rough division: gaan for intention and immediate prospect, zullen for promise and prediction, present tense for scheduled fact.
The Four Uses of Zullen:
1. Promise and prediction — Ik zal komen; Hij zal het begrijpen.
2. Proposal and offer — This is the use English renders with “shall,” and it is extremely frequent in Dutch, far more so than “shall” in modern English: -
Zullen we gaan? (Shall we go?) -
Zal ik het raam openen? (Shall I open the window?)
3. Supposition — With the particle wel, zullen expresses probability rather than future time: -
Hij zal wel ziek zijn (He is probably ill — now, not later) -
Dat zal wel (I dare say) -
Het zal wel goed komen (It will be all right — reassurance)
This is a genuine trap. Hij zal wel ziek zijn says nothing about the future at all.
4. Solemn injunction — In the Ten Commandments and legal or ceremonial language, zullen carries obligation, exactly as English “shall” does: -
Gij zult niet stelen (Thou shalt not steal)
Common Mistakes to Avoid: -
Overusing zullen: ✗ “Morgen zal ik naar school gaan” as a neutral statement → ✓ “Morgen ga ik naar school” -
Reading zal wel as future: Hij zal wel thuis zijn means “he is probably home,” not “he will be home” -
Using willen for “will”: willen means to want, not to be going to. ✗ “Ik wil komen” for “I will come” → ✓ “Ik zal komen.” This false friend is the single commonest error, since the two words look alike. -
Forgetting the plural: ✗ “Wij zal gaan” → ✓ “Wij zullen gaan”
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Zullen We? — The Grammar of Dutch Consensus:
If one construction deserves to be called socially characteristic, it is Zullen we...? The Dutch propose rather than instruct, and the first-person plural interrogative is the standard vehicle: Zullen we beginnen? (shall we start?), Zullen we afspreken? (shall we make a date?), Zullen we het daarbij laten? (shall we leave it there?). In meetings, in shops, among friends, this form does the work that an imperative would do in many other languages. Learning to reach for it is one of the quickest ways to sound less blunt in Dutch.
The Reassuring Zal Wel:
Het zal wel goed komen — it will be all right — is a national formula of consolation, and its slight vagueness is deliberate. The particle wel softens the claim from prediction to hopeful supposition. A related and much drier use is the flat dat zal wel, which depending on tone means anything from “I suppose so” to open scepticism, roughly English “if you say so.”
Gij Zult and the Statenbijbel:
The archaic pronoun gij with zult survives almost entirely through the Statenvertaling, the 1637 Dutch Bible translation that did for Dutch roughly what the King James Version did for English. Gij zult niet stelen and its companions are known to speakers who have never opened a Bible, and the form is instantly recognisable as scriptural or mock-scriptural. In living speech gij has disappeared from the Netherlands entirely, though it survives in Belgian Dutch as an ordinary, unremarkable second-person pronoun — a difference that surprises northern speakers on first hearing it in Antwerp.
Regional Notes:
Belgian Dutch uses gij and its verb forms as everyday second-person address, where the Netherlands uses jij and je. A Fleming saying gij zult is not quoting scripture; a Dutchman saying it certainly is.
Common Expressions with Zullen: -
“Zullen we?” - Shall we? (complete in itself) -
“Dat zal wel” - I dare say / if you say so -
“Het zal wel meevallen” - It will probably not be as bad as feared -
“Ik zal je krijgen!” - I'll get you! (playful threat) -
“Dat zal je leren” - That'll teach you -
“Wat zal ik zeggen?” - What can I say?
Reminder: This lesson is designed for English speakers learning Dutch.
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From Betje Wolff and Aagje Deken, Historie van Mejuffrouw Sara Burgerhart (1782), from a letter signed Z. Hofland. The first great Dutch novel, written in letters by two women who lived and worked together, and still the standard point of origin for Dutch prose fiction. Zuster Hofland belongs to a pietist circle the authors treat with steady satire; here she writes to a fellow sister of the congregation.
Zusje, wat is die Broeder Benjamin toch een groot mannetje! Nou, ik zal zien te komen, en dan zullen wy spreken van herte tot herte. Ik heb u en de broeders lief.
F-A: Interlinear Analysis
Zusje (ˈzʏs.jə) little-sister wat (ʋɑt) what is (ɪs) is die (di) that Broeder (ˈbru.dər) Brother Benjamin (ˈbɛn.jaː.mɪn) Benjamin toch (tɔx) indeed een (ən) a groot (ɣroːt) great mannetje (ˈmɑ.nə.tjə) little-man Nou (nʌu) well ik (ɪk) I zal (zɑl) will zien (zin) see te (tə) to komen (ˈkoː.mən) come en (ɛn) and dan (dɑn) then zullen (ˈzʏ.lən) will wy (ʋɛi) we spreken (ˈspreː.kən) speak van (vɑn) from herte (ˈhɛr.tə) heart tot (tɔt) to herte (ˈhɛr.tə) heart Ik (ɪk) I heb (hɛp) have u (y) you en (ɛn) and de (də) the broeders (ˈbru.dərs) brothers lief (lif) dear
F-B: Natural Text with Translation
Zusje, wat is die Broeder Benjamin toch een groot mannetje! Nou, ik zal zien te komen, en dan zullen wy spreken van herte tot herte. Ik heb u en de broeders lief. → “Sister, what a great little man that Brother Benjamin is! Well, I shall try to come, and then we shall speak heart to heart. I love you and the brothers.”
F-C: Original Dutch Text
Zusje, wat is die Broeder Benjamin toch een groot mannetje! Nou, ik zal zien te komen, en dan zullen wy spreken van herte tot herte. Ik heb u en de broeders lief.
F-D: Grammar and Vocabulary Notes
This passage was chosen because it gives the singular and the plural of zullen in adjacent clauses: ik zal followed by dan zullen wy. Nothing has changed in these forms in two hundred and forty years; a modern Dutch speaker writes them identically.
The construction zien te komen is worth noting. Literally “to see to come,” it means to try to manage it, to see whether one can get there — a modest, non-committal undertaking. Dutch still uses zien te + infinitive in exactly this sense: ik zal zien te komen remains ordinary idiom for “I'll see if I can make it.” Observe that zal governs zien, which in turn governs komen, giving a three-verb stack resolved at the clause end.
In the second clause, note that the adverb dan occupies first position, which triggers inversion: zullen wy rather than wy zullen. This is the standard Dutch verb-second rule.
The orthography is eighteenth-century. Wy is modern wij — the letter ‘y’ served for ‘ij’ well into the nineteenth century, and lingers in surnames and in Afrikaans to this day. Herte is an older form of hart. The diminutives zusje and mannetje, by contrast, are entirely modern in form.
F-E: Literary Commentary
Wolff and Deken built the novel out of voices, and Zuster Hofland's is a small masterpiece of characterisation by idiom alone. The exclamation over Broeder Benjamin as a groot mannetje — great little man — carries an unintended comedy the authors certainly intended, and the promise ik zal zien te komen is exactly as binding as it sounds, which is to say not very. Even the closing profession of love arrives in a formula. The letter is a portrait of piety worn as vocabulary, and the future auxiliary does part of the work: everything Hofland offers is deferred into a future she never quite commits to.
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Part A: Interlinear Construed Text
40.16 Op (ɔp) on de (də) the laatste (ˈlaːt.stə) last dag (dɑx) day van (vɑn) of augustus (ʌuˈɣʏs.tʏs) August stond (stɔnt) stood Willem (ˈʋɪ.ləm) Willem op (ɔp) on de (də) the kade (ˈkaː.də) quay
40.17 Ik (ɪk) I zal (zɑl) will schrijven (ˈsxrɛi.vən) write zei (zɛi) said hij (hɛi) he
40.18 Dat (dɑt) that zal (zɑl) will je (jə) you vergeten (vərˈɣeː.tən) forget lachte (ˈlɑx.tə) laughed Marieke (maːˈri.kə) Marieke
40.19 Nee (neː) no ik (ɪk) I zal (zɑl) will elke (ˈɛl.kə) every week (ʋeːk) week een (ən) a brief (brif) letter sturen (ˈsty.rən) send
40.20 Het (ət) the schip (sxɪp) ship zou (zʌu) would om (ɔm) at zeven (ˈzeː.vən) seven uur (yr) hour vertrekken (vərˈtrɛ.kən) depart
40.21 Zullen (ˈzʏ.lən) shall we (ʋə) we hier (hir) here afscheid (ˈɑf.sxɛit) farewell nemen (ˈneː.mən) take vroeg (vrux) asked hij (hɛi) he
40.22 Straks (strɑks) presently zal (zɑl) will ik (ɪk) I huilen (ˈhœy.lən) cry zei (zɛi) said ze (zə) she
40.23 Zij (zɛi) she wist (ʋɪst) knew dat (dɑt) that het (ət) it lang (lɑŋ) long zou (zʌu) would duren (ˈdy.rən) last
40.24 Over (ˈoː.vər) in een (ən) a jaar (jaːr) year zal (zɑl) will alles (ˈɑ.ləs) everything anders (ˈɑn.dərs) different zijn (zɛin) be
40.25 Misschien (mɪˈsxin) perhaps zul (zʏl) will je (jə) you me (mə) me niet (nit) not meer (meːr) anymore herkennen (hɛrˈkɛ.nən) recognise
40.26 Het (ət) it zal (zɑl) will wel (ʋɛl) probably meevallen (ˈmeː.vɑ.lən) turn-out-better dacht (dɑxt) thought Marieke (maːˈri.kə) Marieke
40.27 In (ɪn) in november (noːˈvɛm.bər) November kwam (kʋɑm) came er (ər) there een (ən) a brief (brif) letter
40.28 En (ɛn) and in (ɪn) in december (deːˈsɛm.bər) December kwamen (ˈkʋaː.mən) came er (ər) there twee (tʋeː) two
40.29 Willem (ˈʋɪ.ləm) Willem zou (zʌu) would woord (ʋoːrt) word houden (ˈhʌu.dən) hold
40.30 In (ɪn) in het (ət) the voorjaar (ˈvoːr.jaːr) spring zal (zɑl) will hij (hɛi) he thuiskomen (ˈtœys.koː.mən) come-home
Part B: Natural Sentences
40.16 Op de laatste dag van augustus stond Willem op de kade. → “On the last day of August Willem stood on the quay.”
40.17 “Ik zal schrijven,” zei hij. → “‘I will write,' he said.”
40.18 “Dat zal je vergeten,” lachte Marieke. → “‘You'll forget that,' laughed Marieke.”
40.19 “Nee, ik zal elke week een brief sturen.” → “‘No, I will send a letter every week.'”
40.20 Het schip zou om zeven uur vertrekken. → “The ship was to depart at seven o'clock.”
40.21 “Zullen we hier afscheid nemen?” vroeg hij. → “‘Shall we say goodbye here?' he asked.”
40.22 “Straks zal ik huilen,” zei ze. → “‘I'm going to cry in a minute,' she said.”
40.23 Zij wist dat het lang zou duren. → “She knew it would be a long time.”
40.24 “Over een jaar zal alles anders zijn.” → “‘In a year everything will be different.'”
40.25 “Misschien zul je me niet meer herkennen.” → “‘Perhaps you won't recognise me any more.'”
40.26 Het zal wel meevallen, dacht Marieke. → “It probably won't be so bad, thought Marieke.”
40.27 In november kwam er een brief. → “In November a letter came.”
40.28 En in december kwamen er twee. → “And in December two came.”
40.29 Willem zou woord houden. → “Willem would keep his word.”
40.30 In het voorjaar zal hij thuiskomen. → “In the spring he will come home.”
Part C: Target Language Only
40.16 Op de laatste dag van augustus stond Willem op de kade.
40.17 “Ik zal schrijven,” zei hij.
40.18 “Dat zal je vergeten,” lachte Marieke.
40.19 “Nee, ik zal elke week een brief sturen.”
40.20 Het schip zou om zeven uur vertrekken.
40.21 “Zullen we hier afscheid nemen?” vroeg hij.
40.22 “Straks zal ik huilen,” zei ze.
40.23 Zij wist dat het lang zou duren.
40.24 “Over een jaar zal alles anders zijn.”
40.25 “Misschien zul je me niet meer herkennen.”
40.26 Het zal wel meevallen, dacht Marieke.
40.27 In november kwam er een brief.
40.28 En in december kwamen er twee.
40.29 Willem zou woord houden.
40.30 In het voorjaar zal hij thuiskomen.
Part D: Grammar Notes for Genre Section
This narrative sets zal against zou deliberately, so that the two halves of the paradigm can be seen doing different work in one story:
Direct Speech Takes Zal: Everything Willem and Marieke actually say uses the present-tense zal (40.17, 40.19, 40.22, 40.24, 40.25) — they are speaking about their own future, from inside it.
Narration Takes Zou: Everything the narrator reports uses zou (40.20, 40.23, 40.29) — the future seen from a past vantage point, the construction taught in Lesson 37. Het schip zou vertrekken and Willem zou woord houden are not conditionals; they are futures-in-the-past.
The Final Shift: Sentence 40.30 returns to zal, moving out of the narrative past into a future still open at the moment of telling. The change of auxiliary alone carries that shift in vantage.
Zul Before Je: Sentence 40.25 has zul je, not zult je. Dutch drops the ‑t of zult before an inverted je, exactly as it does with other verbs (je hebt but heb je). This is a fixed rule of inversion, not an informality.
The Supposition Use: Sentence 40.26, het zal wel meevallen, is the zal wel of Section D — probability, not future. Meevallen, to turn out better than expected, has no single English equivalent and is one of the most characteristic verbs in the language.
Recycled Structures: 40.24 carries alles from Lesson 39; 40.27 and 40.28 use the existential er of Lesson 38, with 40.28 adding the quantitative er before twee.
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Key Sounds in This Lesson:
The /ʏ/ versus /ɑ/ contrast: zullen /ˈzʏ.lən/ against zal /zɑl/. The plural and singular of the same verb differ in vowel quality, not merely in ending. Practise them as a pair.
The /ɑ/ versus /ʌu/ contrast: zal /zɑl/ against zou /zʌu/ is the entire difference between “will” and “would.” Since both are function words and unstressed in rapid speech, this minimal pair repays drilling more than almost any other in the course.
The ‘sch’ cluster /sx/: In schip, schrijven, afscheid. Dutch ‘sch’ is not English “sh” but a sequence of /s/ followed by the guttural /x/. At the end of a word, however, ‘sch’ is simply /s/ — a relic of the old spelling, as in the nineteenth-century zondagschen met in Lesson 38.
Inversion and the Dropped ‑t: zul je, heb je, kun je. When je follows the verb directly, the second-person ‑t disappears. Before je in normal order the ‑t returns: je zult, je hebt, je kunt.
Eighteenth-Century Spelling: The Wolff and Deken passage writes wy for wij and herte for hart. The letter ‘y’ stood for ‘ij’ in Dutch printing for centuries and survives in Dutch surnames and in Afrikaans orthography.
Audio Practice Suggestion: Dutch weather forecasts are built almost entirely on future constructions and offer a clean sample of when zullen is used and when the simple present suffices. Note how often the forecaster says morgen wordt het rather than morgen zal het worden.
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◊ᴺᵉˣᵃˡ ◊ᴸᵃᵗⁱⁿᵘᵐ ◊ᴰᵘᵗᶜʰ ◊ᴸᵉˢˢᵒⁿ⁴⁰ ◊ᶻᵘˡˡᵉⁿ ◊ᶜᵒᵐᵖˡᵉᵗᵉ
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