Knowing some of the Dutch grammar will help you understand how the language is build up, and it will also help you to understand the
basic phrases better. The Dutch grammar guide presented at LanguageTrav.com should in no way be considered as complete, and if you would
like to acquire an in-depth understanding we recomment you to purchase books or DVDs for further learning.
The good news is that especially when you are traveling to The Netherlands, virtually everyone will speak English as a second language.
However, it is a polite gesture to ask first.
In Dutch, the future tense is expressed by using the construction
gaan (to go) + infinitive for actions which will take place
in the near (or immediate) future, and zullen (to shall, will) +
infinitive for actions which will take place in the not so near
future or when the time of the future action is unknown. In such
constructions, the verbs gaan and zullen are used in the
simple present tense. The conjugations for the two irregular verbs are
shown below.
gaan (to go)
zullen (shall, will)
Dutch
English
Ik ga.
I am going.
Jij/U gaat.
You are going.
Hij/Zij/Het gaat.
He/She/It is going.
Wij gaan.
We are going.
Jullie gaan.
You are going.
Zij gaan.
They are going.
Dutch
English
Ik zal.
I will.
Jij/U zult/zal.
You will
Hij/Zij/Het zal.
He/She/It will.
Wij zullen.
We will.
Jullie zullen.
You will.
Zij zullen.
They will.
In the second person singular of the verb zullen, there are two
alternatives which might be used. There is no specific rule as to which
form should be used. It largely depends on personal preference. Some
examples of the future tense:
Future tense with 'gaan':
Ik ga koken. = I am going to cook.
Hij gaat een beetje lezen. = He is going to read a littlebit.
Wij gaan studeren. = We are going to study.
Jullie gaan sluiten. = You are going to close.
We gaan morgen vroeg vertrekken. = We are going to leave early
tomorrow.
Future tense with 'zullen':
Ik zal je opbellen = I will call you.
Hij zal deze ervaring niet vergeten. = He will not forget this
experience.
Wij zullen voor het examen goed studeren. = We will study well
for the exam.
De volgende keer zal ik beter oppassen. = Next time I will take
more care.