Shall or should

Question

Shall we go or should we go?What shall we do today or what should we do tday?Which is correct and why?

BarbaraPA · Accepted Answer

Shall we go? - this is more of a suggestion or a statement that says "come on, let's get going" than a question.

Should we go? -- this is an actual question.

I don't find much difference in the other two although "should" could have a meaning of "what are we expected to do today?" while "shall" is just saying "What are we going to do?"

Please don't bump your question when it's only been an hour or two since you posted the first one. Some people see a question has been "answered" and just go on by.

Pleasehelp · Answer

I thought should is also the past tense of shall?

Anonymous · Answer

The usage of "Shall" is rather difficult to explain as its meaning varies with context, and its degree of certainty or probability often varies from person to person. Except for a few idomatic expression, like:

Shall we go/dance, we shall over come, I shall return etc..it's usage in everyday life is limited.

Should we go to the party? It's an actual question to a decision.

Shall we go? This is something probaly your spouse would ask when you are still having fun at the class reunion at 11:30pm.
The subtlety is difficult to explain in a few words. Unless you live in an English environment for a while, I would say the distinction is rather blurry and takes time to live it out. Personally, I'd suggest that you stick with "should" for all intents and purposes for now.

BarbaraPA · Answer

What do YOU think the differences are?

CalifJim · Answer

pleasehelpShall we go or should we go?

What shall we do today or what should we do tday?

Like most Americans, I rarely use shall. I often substitute should or phrase the idea differently.

Shall we go? and Should we go? strike me as practically identical in the sense of "Let's go", or in the sense of "Would you like to go?", or in the sense of "Is it advisable to go?" though I think that perhaps the shall version is more closely related to the first two senses above, and the should version is more closely related to the third, although the boundaries are rather flexible.

The same remarks apply in general to What [shall / should] we do today?

Historically, should is the past of shall, but in modern English this is not the case, shall being used, like will, to form the future (for those few people who use the word at all), and should being used to connote advisability or expectation (in the present).

CJ

Anonymous · Answer

A master is never to be duplicated!

Anonimous one · Answer

It depends. Shal is a little bit more imperative. Shoulf ia a complete doubt.

Shall or should

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