should

Meaning

Verb

simple past of shall

Noun

Something that ought to be the case as opposed to already being the case.

shall

1. (auxiliary, defective, modal, no-past-participle, no-present-participle) Used before a verb to indicate the simple future tense in the first person singular or plural.
2. (auxiliary, defective, modal, no-past-participle, no-present-participle) Used similarly to indicate determination or obligation in the second and third persons singular or plural.
3. (auxiliary, defective, modal, no-past-participle, no-present-participle) Used in questions with the first person singular or plural to suggest a possible future action.
4. (auxiliary, defective, modal, no-past-participle, no-present-participle, obsolete) To owe.

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Synonyms

must

ought to

ought

have to

need to

have

might

would

shall

will

could

may

in the event that

if

fit

supposed to

had better

I hope

want to

it is fitting that

have better

would rather

must '' ''

ought '' ''

good

👍

why don’t

appropriate

better

deserve

enough

have to do

it is necessary

let

necessary

of course

please

rather

require

sufficient

gram. imperative

be necessary

Translations

sollen

devoir

sollte

deber

moeten

horen

dienen

behoren

müssen

dovere

see shall

dürfen

πρέπει

il faut

Pronounced as (IPA)

/ʃʊd/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: scholde

Inherited from Old English: sċolde

Cognate with English: shall

Cognate with German: sollen

Cognate with Gothic: 𐍃𐌺𐌿𐌻𐌰𐌽

Cognate with Middle English: shild

In summary

From Middle English scholde, from Old English sċolde, first and third person preterite form of sċulan (“should,” “have to,” “to owe”), the ancestor of English shall. By surface analysis, shall + -ed. Cognate with German sollte, Gothic 𐍃𐌺𐌿𐌻𐌳𐌰 (skulda), Swedish skulle. Related to Middle English shild and shildy.
The loss of /l/ in this word is probably due to weak stress, as in would and could (though in the latter, the /l/ was due to the analogy of the former two).

Sentences

Temper is so good a thing that we should never lose it .

A shepherd may like to travel , but he should never forget about his sheep .

In What should we Greeks do in the Present Circumstances ?

She expects that her birthday cake should be pink , not purple .

The ideas should be presented in a more concise and direct manner .

Librarians should be aware of these issues so that planning for improvement can begin .