Should

Should
Should is an auxiliary verb, a modal auxiliary verb. We use should mainly to:
 give advice or make recommendations

 talk about obligation
 talk about probability and expectation
 express the conditional mood
 replace a subjunctive structure
Structure of Should
subject + should + main verb
The main verb is always the bare infinitive (infinitive without "to").
subject auxiliary verb main verb
+ He should go.
- He should not go.
shouldn't
? Should he go?
Notice that:
 Should is invariable. There is only one form of should.

 The main verb is always the bare infinitive.
The main verb is always the bare infinitive. We cannot say:
He should to go.

There is no short form for should. The negative should not can be shortened
to shouldn't.
Use of Should
should: Giving advice, opinions

We often use should when offering advice or opinions (similar to ought to):
 You should see the new James Bond movie. It's great!
 You should try to lose weight.
 John should get a haircut.
 He shouldn't smoke. And he should stop drinking too.
 What should I wear?
 They should make that illegal.
 There should be a law against that.
 People should worry more about global warming.
SHOULD HAVE for Past Advice Games

SHOULD for Present Advice Games
SHOULD for Future Advice games
People often say "They should..." Usually, the "they" is anonymous and means
the government, or the company, or somebody else - but not us!
should: Obligation, duty, correctness
Another use of should (also similar to ought to) is to indicate a kind of

obligation, duty or correctness, often when criticizing another person:
 You should be wearing your seat belt. (obligation)

 I should be at work now. (duty)
 You shouldn't have said that to her. (correctness)
 He should have been more careful.
 Should you be driving so fast?
SHOULD HAVE for Past Obligation Games

SHOULD for Present Obligation Games
should: Probability, expectation
We use should to indicate that we think something is probable (we expect it to

happen):
 Are you ready? The train should be here soon.

 $10 is enough. It shouldn't cost more than that.
 Let's call Mary. She should have finished work by now.
SHOULD HAVE for Past Expectation/Probability Games

SHOULD for Present Expectation/Probability Games
SHOULD for Future Expectation/Probability Games
should: Conditionals
We sometimes use should (instead of would) for the first person singular (I) and
first person plural (we) of some conditionals:
 If I lost my job I should have no money.

(If he lost his job he would have no money.)
 We should be grateful if you could send us your latest catalogue.
This is not a very important distinction. (More about the use

of shall/will and should/would.)
should: (If I were you I should...)
We often use the conditional structure "If I were you I should..." to give advice.
 If I were you, I should complain to the manager.

 If I were you I shouldn't worry about it.
 I shouldn't say anything if I were you.
Note that we can omit "If I were you..." and just say:
 I should complain to the manager.

 I shouldn't worry about it.
 I shouldn't say anything.
In these cases, the phrase "I should" really means something like "you should".
should: Pseudo subjunctive
We often use a special verb form called the subjunctive when talking about

events that somebody wants to happen, hopes will happen or imagines
happening, for example:
 The president insists that the prime minister attend the meeting.
However, this is much more common in American English. British English

speakers would probably convey the same idea using should:
 The president insists that the prime minister should attend the meeting.
Here are some more examples:
Subjunctive Using should
typically American English typically British English
The president is insisting that The president is insisting that pollution

pollution be reduced. should be reduced.
The manager recommended that The manager recommended that Mary

Mary join the company. should join the company.
It is essential that we decide today. It is essential that we should decide

today.
It was necessary that everyone arrive It was necessary that everyone should
on time. arrive on time.
should: Why should..? | How should..?
If we don't understand (or agree with) something, we may use "Why should..?":
 Why should it be illegal to commit suicide? It's your life.
"Why should..?" and "How should..?" can also indicate anger or irritation:
 "Help me with this." | "Why should I?"

 "Where are my keys?" | "How should I know?"

Should

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Should

Uploaded by

Document Information

Copyright

Available Formats

Share this document

Share or Embed Document

Sharing Options

Did you find this document useful?

Is this content inappropriate?

Copyright:

Available Formats

Should

Uploaded by

Copyright:

Available Formats

Should

Should is an auxiliary verb, a modal auxiliary verb. We use should mainly to:

 give advice or make recommendations

 talk about probability and expectation

 express the conditional mood

 replace a subjunctive structure

subject + should + main verb

subject auxiliary verb main verb

- He should not go.

 Should is invariable. There is only one form of should.

The main verb is always the bare infinitive. We cannot say:

should: Giving advice, opinions

 John should get a haircut.

 He shouldn't smoke. And he should stop drinking too.

 What should I wear?

 They should make that illegal.

 There should be a law against that.

 People should worry more about global warming.

SHOULD HAVE for Past Advice Games

should: Obligation, duty, correctness

Another use of should (also similar to ought to) is to indicate a kind of

 You should be wearing your seat belt. (obligation)

 You shouldn't have said that to her. (correctness)

 He should have been more careful.

 Should you be driving so fast?

SHOULD HAVE for Past Obligation Games

should: Probability, expectation

We use should to indicate that we think something is probable (we expect it to

 Are you ready? The train should be here soon.

SHOULD HAVE for Past Expectation/Probability Games

 If I lost my job I should have no money.

This is not a very important distinction. (More about the use

should: (If I were you I should...)

 If I were you, I should complain to the manager.

 I shouldn't say anything if I were you.

 I should complain to the manager.

 I shouldn't say anything.

should: Pseudo subjunctive

We often use a special verb form called the subjunctive when talking about

However, this is much more common in American English. British English

Here are some more examples:

The president is insisting that The president is insisting that pollution

The manager recommended that The manager recommended that Mary

It is essential that we decide today. It is essential that we should decide

should: Why should..? | How should..?

 Why should it be illegal to commit suicide? It's your life.

 "Help me with this." | "Why should I?"

You might also like

Pfad - The Proxy pFad of © 2024 Garber Painting. All rights reserved.