should

Should is an auxiliary verb - a modal auxiliary verb. We use shouldmainly

to:

give advice or make recommendations

talk about obligation

talk about probability and expectation

express the conditional mood

replace a subjunctive structure

Structure of should
The basic structure for should is:

subject

auxiliary verb
should

main verb

Note that:

The auxiliary verb should is invariable. There is only one form:should

The main verb is usually in the base form (He should go).

Look at the basic structure again, with positive, negative and question
sentences:

subject

auxiliary
should

He

should

not

main verb
base

work.

subject

auxiliary
should

not

main verb
base

You

should

not

go.

Should

we

help?

Note that the main verb is sometimes in the form:

have + past participle (He should have gone.)

be + -ing (He should be going.)

The main verb can never be the to-infinitive. We cannot say:He should to go.
There is no short form for should, but we can shorten the negativeshould not to shouldn't.

Use of should
should for advice, opinions
We often use should when offering advice or opinions (similar to ought to):

You should see the new James Bond movie. It's great!

You should try to lose weight.

John should get a haircut.

He shouldn't smoke. And he should stop drinking too.

What should I wear?

They should make that illegal.

There should be a law against that.

People should worry more about global warming.

should have games for past advice

should games for present advice

should games for future advice

People often say "They should...do sthg." Usually, the "they" is anonymous
and means the government, or the company, or somebody else - but not us!
Here are some examples:

They should fix this road.

They should have more staff in this shop.

They should have abolished this tax years ago.

should for obligation, duty, correctness

Another use of should (also similar to ought to) is to indicate a kind of
obligation, duty or correctness, often when criticizing another person:

You should be wearing your seat belt. (obligation)

I should be at work now. (duty)

You shouldn't have said that to her. (correctness)

He should have been more careful.

Should you be driving so fast?

should have games for past obligation

should games for present obligation

should for probability, expectation

We use should to indicate that we think something is probable (we expect it
to happen):

Are you ready? The train should be here soon.

$10 is enough. It shouldn't cost more than that.

Let's call Mary. She should have finished work by now.

should have games for past probability

should games for present probability

should games for future probability

should for conditionals

We sometimes use should (instead of would) for the first person singular
and plural (I, we) of some conditionals:

If I lost my job I should have no money.

(If he lost his job he would have no money.)

We should be grateful if you could send us your latest catalogue.

This is not a very important distinction. (More about the use

of shall/willand should/would.)

should for If I were you I should...

We often use the conditional structure "If I were you I should..." to give
advice.

If I were you, I should complain to the manager.

If I were you, I shouldn't worry about it.

I shouldn't say anything if I were you.

Note that we can omit "If I were you..." and just say:

I should complain to the manager.

I shouldn't worry about it.

I shouldn't say anything.

In these cases, the phrase "I should" really means something like "you
should".

should for pseudo subjunctive

We often use a special verb form called the subjunctive when talking about
events that somebody wants to happen, hopes will happen or imagines
happening, for example:

The president insists that the prime minister attend the meeting.

However, this is much more common in American English. British English

speakers often convey the same idea using should:

The president insists that the prime minister should attend the
meeting.

Here are some more examples:

subjunctive
typically American English

using should
typically British English

The president is insisting that

pollution be reduced.

The president is insisting that

pollution should be reduced.

The manager recommended that

Mary join the company.

The manager recommended that

Mary should join the company.

It is essential that we decide

today.

It is essential that we should decide

today.

It was necessary that everyone

arrive on time.

It was necessary that everyone

should arrive on time.

should for Why should..?

If we don't understand (or agree with) something, we may use Why
should..?, like this:

Why should it be illegal to commit suicide? It's your life.

Why should..? and How should..? can also indicate anger or irritation:

A: Help me with this. B: Why should I?

A: Where are my keys? B: How should I know?

should QuizModal Verbs