Shall: forms
Affirmative form
Shallcomes first in the verb phrase (after the subject and before another verb). We use it mostly withIandwe:
I shallpostit to you tomorrow.
Shallcannot be used with another modal verb:
Ishallhave to be at the airport by 5 pm.
Not:I shall must be… orI must shall be…
Shallcan be followed byhave to, need toandbe able to:
Weshall have totell him what happened.
The good news is Ishall be able tojoin you at your meeting next week.
Negative form
The negative form ofshallisshan’t. We don’t usedon’t,doesn’t, didn’twithshall:
Ishan’tbe home tomorrow night.
Weshan’tknow the result of the tests till Tuesday.
We can use the full formshall notin formal contexts or when we want to emphasis something:
[a public notice in a restaurant]
The managementshall notbe responsible for damage to personal property.
We don’t often use the negative form.
See also:
Modal verbs
Question form
The subject andshallchange position to form questions.
We don’t usedo, does, did. The question form, withIandwe, is the most common use ofshall:
ShallI come round to the office?
Not:Do I shall come round to the office?
We useshallin question tags:
I’ll phone you later,shall I?
Shall: uses
Offers, suggestions and advice
We useshallIandshall weto make offers and suggestions, and to ask for advice.
offer |
|
suggestion |
|
seeking advice |
|
Predictions and intentions
We useshallinstead ofwillwithIandwein rather formal contexts to make predictions and to talk about intentions or decisions. It is much less common thanwill.
formal | less formal |
|
|
We useshallonly with the first person pronounsIandweto make predictions or express intentions:
The new business cardswillbe ready at the end of the month.
Not:The new business cards shall be ready at the end of the month.
Commands
In very formal contexts, we useshallto give commands:
[public notice]
This doorshallbe kept closed at all times.
See also:
Willandshall
Commands and instructions
Shall: typical error
Weuseshould, notshall, for advice and suggestions:
In my opinion, weshouldbook another hotel.
Not:In my opinion, we shall book another hotel.
See also:
Should
Suggestions