vajadzētu

Should: Vajadzētu

Level 4

Dative + vajadzētu + infinitive = "should": Tev vajadzētu atpūsties. (You should rest.) Vilcienam jau vajadzētu būt klāt. (The train should be here already.)

How It Works

1. Advice. The most common use is saying what would be a good idea:

  • Tev vajadzētu atpūsties. (You should rest.)
  • Jums vajadzētu aiziet pie ārsta. (You should go to see a doctor.)
  • Man vajadzētu vairāk lasīt latviski. (I should read more in Latvian.)

It also works in questions: Ko man vajadzētu darīt? (What should I do?)

2. Shouldn't. Add ne-: Tev nevajadzētu tik daudz strādāt. (You should not work so much.)

3. Expectation. With būt or another verb, vajadzētu says what you expect to be true: Vilcienam jau vajadzētu būt klāt. (The train should be here already.) This is a softer guess than jābūt (must be).

4. Should have. For the past, the past form vajadzēja often means "should have": Tev vajadzēja man piezvanīt! (You should have called me!)

5. Three levels. From softest to strongest: man vajadzētu (I should) → man vajag (I need to) → man jā- (I have to). For "ought to" with a duty, see also būtu jā-.

Examples (6)

  1. Tev vajadzētu atpūsties.

    You should rest.

    Tev (dative) + vajadzētu + infinitive.

  2. Jums vajadzētu aiziet pie ārsta.

    You should go to see a doctor.

    Polite jums works the same way.

  3. Vilcienam jau vajadzētu būt klāt.

    The train should be here already.

    An expectation, not advice.

  4. Tev nevajadzētu tik daudz strādāt.

    You should not work so much.

    Ne- makes it "should not".

  5. Ko man vajadzētu darīt?

    What should I do?

    Asking for advice.

  6. Tev vajadzēja man piezvanīt!

    You should have called me!

    The past form vajadzēja often means "should have".

Common Mistakes

  • Putting the person in the nominative.

    Tu vajadzētu atpūsties.
    Tev vajadzētu atpūsties.

    Vajadzētu takes the person in the dative: tu → tev, es → man.

  • Combining vajadzētu with a jā- form.

    Tev vajadzētu jāiet.
    Tev vajadzētu iet.

    Vajadzētu is followed by a plain infinitive. The jā- form is a separate way to say "have to".

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

vajadzētuLevel 4Should: Vajadzētu

Learn This First

Vajadzētu is the conditional of vajag.

Words in This Pattern

vajadzēt