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should

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

English

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Alternative forms

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Etymology

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FromMiddle Englishscholde, fromOld Englishsċolde, first and third person preterite form ofsċulan(“should,” “have to,” “to owe”), the ancestor ofEnglishshall. Bysurface analysis,shall +‎-ed. Cognate withGermansollte,Gothic𐍃𐌺𐌿𐌻𐌳𐌰(skulda). Related toMiddle Englishshild andshildy.

Pronunciation

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Verb

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should

  1. (auxiliary)Ought to;indicating opinion, advice, or instruction, about what is required or desirable.
    1. Used to issue an instruction (traditionally seen as carrying less force of authority than alternatives such as 'shall' or 'must').
      Youshould never drink and drive.
      The law is clear that youshould always wear a seat belt.
      The manual says that this switchshould be in the 'off' position.
    2. Used to give advice or opinion that an action is, or would have been, beneficial or desirable.
      Youshould go and see that film. I think you'll enjoy it.
      Ishould exercise more often, but I’m too lazy.
      Sheshould not have been so rude.
    3. (informal)With verbs such as 'see' or 'hear', usually in the second person, used to point out something remarkable in either a good or bad way.
      Youshould see his new apartment. It's like a palace!
      If you think her piano playing is bad, youshould hear her sing!
    4. In questions, asks what is correct, proper, desirable, etc.
      What do you think? Whatshould I do?
      • 2012 August 21, Ed Pilkington, “Death penalty on trial: should Reggie Clemons live or die?”, inThe Guardian‎[1]:
        Next month, Clemons will be brought before a court presided over by a "special master", who will review the case one last time. The hearing will be unprecedented in its remit, but at its core will be a simple issue:should Reggie Clemons live or die?
  2. (auxiliary)Ought to;expressing expectation.
    1. Indicates that something is expected to have happened or to be the case now.
      Theyshould have finished by now; I'll call them to check.
      My fruit treesshould be in flower, but the cold spring has set them back.
    2. Will belikely to (become or do something);indicates a degree of possibility or probability that the stated thing will happen or be true in the future.
      Theyshould have it finished by Friday.
      When you press this button, the pilot flameshould ignite.
      Youshould be warm enough with that coat.
  4. (auxiliary, subjunctive)Used to form a variant of the presentsubjunctive, expressing a state or action that is hypothetical, potential, mandated, etc.
    If Ishould be late, Ishould hope that you are prepared to go on without me.
    Should you need extra blankets, you will find them in the closet.
    The man demanded that heshould be allowed entry.
    I'm surprised that heshould say that.
    • 1906 August,Alfred Noyes, “The Highwayman”, inPoems, New York, N.Y.:The Macmillan Company; London:Macmillan & Co., published October 1906,→OCLC, part 1, stanza V,page47:
      'One kiss, my bonny sweetheart, I'm after a prize to-night, / But I shall be back with the yellow gold before the morning light; / Yet, if they press me sharply, and harry me through the day, / Then look for me by moonlight, / Watch for me by moonlight, / I'll come to thee by moonlight, though Hellshould bar the way.'
    • 1921 June, Margery Williams, “The Velveteen Rabbit: Or How Toys Become Real”, inHarper’s Bazar, volume LVI, number6 (2504 overall), New York, N.Y.: International Magazine Company,→ISSN,→OCLC:
      It was a long weary time, for the Boy was too ill to play, and the little Rabbit found it rather dull with nothing to do all day long. But he snuggled down patiently, and looked forward to the time when the Boyshould be well again, and they would go out in the garden amongst the flowers and the butterflies and play splendid games in the raspberry thicket like they used to.
    • 1968 December 8,Henry Cosby,Sylvia Moy,Stevie Wonder, “I’d Be a Fool Right Now”, inFor Once in My Life, performed by Stevie Wonder:
      And I'd be a fool right now
      If Ishould hurt you girl
      And I'd be a fool right now
      If Ishould leave you girl
    • 2008, Peter Michael Higgins,Number Story: From Counting to Cryptography,page 141 (Google Books view):
      He is noted for coming up with his 'wager', in which he argued that he was prepared to believe in God on the grounds that he had nothing to lose if he was wrong, and everything to gainshould he be right.
  5. (auxiliary)simplepast ofshall
    I told him that Ishould be busy tomorrow.
    • 1833, [Frederick Marryat], chapter IV, inPeter Simple. […], volume I, London: Saunders and Otley, […], published1834,→OCLC,page42:
      I was astonished at this polite offer, which my modesty induced me to ascribe more to my uniform than to my own merits, and, as I felt no inclination to refuse the compliment, I said that Ishould be most happy.
  7. (auxiliary)An alternative towould with first person subjects.
    1. (formal or literary)Used to express a conditional outcome.
      If I had not been so tired, Ishould have laughed heartily.
    2. (formal or literary outside certain combinations such as with 'imagine' or 'think')Used to impart a tentative, conjectural or polite nuance.
      Ishould imagine that they have arrived by now.
      Ishould think you would apologize.
      Ishould be very grateful to receive your prompt reply.(formal or old-fashioned)
      Weshould very much like to meet her.(formal or old-fashioned)
      • 1817, Jane Austen,Northanger Abbey:
        Ishould like to dine with him. I dare say he gives famous dinners.
    3. Used to express what the speaker would do in another person's situation, as a means of giving a suggestion or recommendation.
      It's disgraceful the way that they've treated you. Ishould write and complain.

Usage notes

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  • Should has, as its most common meaning in modern English, the senseought as inI should go, but I don't see how I can. However, the older sense as the subjunctive of the future indicative auxiliary,shall, is often used withI orwe to indicate a more polite form thanwould:I should like to go, but I can't; Were he to arrive, I should be pleased. In much speech and writing,should has been replaced bywould in contexts of this kind, but it remains in conditional subjunctives:should (neverwould)I go, I should wear my new dress; should he remain, he would be granted asylum.
  • (obligation): Contrast with stronger auxiliary verbmust, which indicates that the speaker believes the subject isrequired to execute the predicate, orhave to which indicates that the speaker believes the subject is required to execute, although speaker might disagree with the principle, andshould which is merelyadvice – take it or leave it.
  • (likely): Possibility, or probability. Contrast with stronger auxiliary verb in the affirmativemust, and negative sensecan't, which indicate that there is a logical imperativecertainty that the subject will (or will not) execute the predicate. Also compare with the weakermight, which indicates at most a 50/50 possibility, or probability.
  • (subjunctive): In American English, the present subjunctive is commonly used instead ofshould (e.g., "suggest that hestay"), while in British English,should is commoner (e.g., "suggest that heshould stay"). Both forms of English, however, sometimes useshould in certain conditionals (e.g., "If Ishould be in trouble, I shall call you"). Furthermore,should is not used in independent clauses with the present subjunctive, many of which clauses are now fossilized expressions (e.g., "Peacebe with you", "suffice it to say"; nevershould be orshould suffice).
  • See the usage notes atshall.

Synonyms

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Antonyms

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Derived terms

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Related terms

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Translations

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expressing obligation
expressing opinion
expressing likelihood
as a variant of the present subjunctive
if; in case of
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions atWiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked

Noun

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should (pluralshoulds)

  1. Something that ought to be the case as opposed to already being the case.
    • 1996, Fred Shoemaker,Extraordinary Golf: The Art of the Possible, page88:
      When the golf ball is there, the whole self-interference package — the hopes, worries, and fears; the thoughts on how-to and how-not-to; the woulds, the coulds, and theshoulds — is there too.
    • 2003, Robert L. Leahy,Overcoming Resistance in Cognitive Therapy‎[2]:
      However, we can address maladaptiveshoulds by examining the differences between prior events, causes, proximate causes, and moral responsibility.
    • 2008,Working Mother, volume31, number 8, page20:
      Being a list-o-maniac, I suggested we make a list of the "shoulds" and "shouldn'ts." So in the darkness of hazy sleep, I began to mentally prepare mine. The first item on the "should" side was easy: a sibling for our 3-year-old daughter.
A user suggests that this English entry be cleaned up, giving the reason:“double pos titles ... two verb headers”.
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Verb

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should (third-person singular simple presentshoulds,present participleshoulding,simple past and past participleshoulded)

  1. To make a statement of what ought to be true, as opposed to reality.(Can we add anexample for this sense?)

See also

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