Should: How and When to Use in English
Quick and simple lesson to help you understand grammar better.
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Should
The auxiliary verb should, used as a conditional, expresses recommendations or suggestions:
You should talk to him. I recommend that you talk to him.
The employees shouldn't behave like this. It's my opinion that the employees behaving like this is not a good idea.
Should I bring something to eat? Would it be a good idea for me to bring something to eat?
Should sometimes expresses probability:
Horatio should be in his lab right now. It's probable, expected or likely that Horatio is in his lab right now.
The results of the vote should satisfy everyone. The results of the vote will probably satisfy everyone.
Should can express duty and obligation, but is less strong than have to and must:
You should be wearing your seat belt. You are obliged to wear your seat belt.
For a past action, we use should + 'have' + past participle:
Kalvin Krime should have hired Horatio while he was available.
Should like to allows us to express a wish in a polite way. In informal English, would is more commonly used.
I should like to visit Uganda one day. I would like to visit Uganda one day.
Note: The auxiliary verb ought to is a synonym of should:
I ought to go = I should go.
Exercise 1
Use the following words to fill in the blanks in the text. Be careful! Words may be used more than once:
should | would | could
Horatio not be drinking so much whiskey before work.
Every Tuesday, Bruno clips his toenails, even though he like to do it more often than that.
Susie thought Kevin like a new wallet for his birthday.
When he was just a boy, Bruno not distinguish between a rose and a tulip.
Kevin is out driving in his Porsche, but really he be in his office.
Icarus has been feeling really sick. He probably go to the doctor.
should | would | could
Horatio not be drinking so much whiskey before work.
Every Tuesday, Bruno clips his toenails, even though he like to do it more often than that.
Susie thought Kevin like a new wallet for his birthday.
When he was just a boy, Bruno not distinguish between a rose and a tulip.
Kevin is out driving in his Porsche, but really he be in his office.
Icarus has been feeling really sick. He probably go to the doctor.
Use the following words to fill in the blanks in the text. Be careful! Words may be used more than once:
should | would | could
Horatio should 1 not be drinking so much whiskey before work.
Every Tuesday, Bruno clips his toenails, even though he would 2 like to do it more often than that.
Susie thought Kevin would 3 like a new wallet for his birthday.
When he was just a boy, Bruno could 4 not distinguish between a rose and a tulip.
Kevin is out driving in his Porsche, but really he should 5 be in his office.
Icarus has been feeling really sick. He should 6 probably go to the doctor.
should | would | could
Horatio should 1 not be drinking so much whiskey before work.
Every Tuesday, Bruno clips his toenails, even though he would 2 like to do it more often than that.
Susie thought Kevin would 3 like a new wallet for his birthday.
When he was just a boy, Bruno could 4 not distinguish between a rose and a tulip.
Kevin is out driving in his Porsche, but really he should 5 be in his office.
Icarus has been feeling really sick. He should 6 probably go to the doctor.
1 should: 'Should' expresses the notion of duty or obligation. Neither of the other choices (would or could) fits in this sentence.
2 would: 'Would' expresses the idea of willingness or wish. We use it to form the conditional tense.
3 would: 'Would' expresses the idea of willingness or wish. We use it to form the conditional tense.
4 could: 'Could' is the past tense form of the verb 'to be able to'.
5 should: 'Should' expresses the notion of duty or obligation: Kevin is supposed to be in his office (not driving his Porsche). Neither of the other choices (would or could) fits in this sentence.
6 should: 'Should' expresses the notion of duty or obligation. Neither of the other choices (would or could) fits in this sentence.
Exercise 2
Horatio be more careful when lighting his cigars in the laboratory.
Horatio should be more careful when lighting his cigars in the laboratory.
should: 'Should' expresses a strong suggestion or advice. Here the speaker is expressing that Horatio needs to be more careful in the laboratory.
would: 'Would be more careful' has no place in this sentence. 'Would' is used to form the conditional tense or to indicate habitual actions in the past. Using 'would' here is grammatically incorrect.
had: The auxiliary 'had' must be followed by the past participle of a verb when used to form a perfect tense. We might say 'Horatio had been careful in the past.'
Exercise 3
Kevin have bought more bio-tech stocks when he had the chance.
Kevin should have bought more bio-tech stocks when he had the chance.
should: 'Should' expresses the strong suggestion or advice. This sentence expresses a regret that Kevin didn't buy more bio-tech stocks when he had the opportunity.
would: 'Would' can be used to express a wish that is conditional. As this sentence isn't conditional, it doesn't make sense to use it here.
Exercise 4
Polly and Philip thought that they never find the test monkey again.
Polly and Philip thought that they would never find the test monkey again.
would: 'Will' becomes 'would' when direct speech ('I will be late') becomes reported speech (He said he would be late). It is exactly the same when we report what someone thought. At the moment of losing the monkey, Polly and Philip think that they will never find the test monkey again. When reporting this past thought, this statement becomes: Polly and Philip thought that they would never find the test monkey again.
should: 'Should' expresses a strong suggestion or advice. It does not make sense to use it in this sentence.
Exercise 5
Philip not talk so much about his infidelity.
Philip should not talk so much about his infidelity.
should: 'Should' expresses a strong suggestion or advice. This sentence expresses that Philip is making a mistake by speaking of his infidelity so frequently.
would: 'Would' can be used to express the idea of willingness or wish. We use it to form the conditional tense. It does not make sense to use it in this sentence.
had: The auxiliary 'had' must be followed by the past participle of a verb when used to form a perfect tense. We might say 'Philip had boasted about his infidelity before his wife discovered him'.
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