Problem words

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Hello! I'm Diana, an English language teacher from Ukraine ( that's not Russia . I've got some problem words which the majority of our old teachers consider to be modern, but, in fact, I doubt you Englishmen even use them nowadays. For instance, the word "pupil"- in all our English school books written by ukranian authors this word is used vastly. Do you still use it? And what about using Present "Indefenite" instead of Present "Simple"? At some schools in Ukraine it's obligatory to use Pr. Indefenite:) Moreover, how do you differenciate between "college" and "institute"? And finally, do you say " I/ WE SHALL/ SHOULD", but not WILL/ WOULD? The questions may sound awkward a bit, but I'd like to be ready for the next time I'm up in arms against the old-fashioned teachers! Thank you ever so much for your reply (in advance:)

AlpheccaStars · Accepted Answer

Hi Diana!
My brother married a lady from Ukraine, so I really know that Ukraine is NOT Russia.
They have a different language, too.

To answer your question, yes, our English language changes. New words come in and get popular, and old words fall into disuse. Sometimes their meanings change, too.

Pupil was more common in the 1950's. It is still used, but for the younger kids. It is not used in college or high school.
I have not heard "present indefinite". Grammar has a lot of different schools, and diffierent linguists or grammarians call things differently. I use "present tense", or "simple present" to contrast with present progressive.

Some colleges or universities might have "institute" in their name. I call these "institutes of higher learning". In the old schools there is a distinction between University and college. A college is a particular field of study in a university. So a university can have many colleges.

"Shall" is still used in legal documents. It has a formal legal meaning. You will not hear "shall" in casual conversation.
Should, would and will are used all the time.

All the best!
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CalifJim · Answer

I can only answer from the viewpoint of American English.
pupil is not used much anymore, no. My grandfather may have used that term, but I don't. We almost always say student instead.
____

The word should be spelled indefinite, not indefenite.

Just present alone is enough, but many grammarians do use the term present simple. I have never heard the term present indefinite. Never. If you hadn't told me, I would never have guessed its meaning.
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institute is another word that I don't hear much. I would describe it as an organization that is set up in order to promote a cause of some kind, such as an institute for the advancement of womens' rights, for example.

Occasionally, but less often, institute is also used to mean a short concentrated course of study on a single subject.

Careful. A similar word, the verb institutionalize, usually means to confine the mentally ill in a hospital or similar place.

If Uncle Larry continues to act that way in public, we'll have to institutionalize him.
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college is entirely different. It is almost synonymous with university. It is typically a four-year course of study at a university. It can mean the buildings, the location, or the period of time.

College is very expensive these days.
It took him five years to complete college.
How many colleges are there in the state of California?
Even though he is very bright, he never finished college.
After graduating from high school, Lucy will be going to college.
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Except for a few isolated usages, the word shall is dead in American English. You can live your entire life in the U.S. without ever saying shall. Virtually no one obeys the rule that shall and should must replace will and would in the first person, i.e., with I and we. (I have even heard the claim that the "rule" was invented in the seventeenth century by a grammarian who misunderstood even the usage of his own time, and that no one ever followed that rule. I don't know how true that is.)

The future, for example, is I will, you will, he will, we will, you will, they will.

CJ

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