Shall (noun) Definition, Meaning & Examples

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auxiliary verb, present singular 1st person shall,2nd shall or (Archaic) shalt,3rd shall,present plural shall;past singular 1st person should,2nd should or (Archaic) shouldst or should·est,3rd should,past plural should;imperative, infinitive, and participles lacking.
  1. plan to, intend to, or expect to: I shall go later.
  2. will have to, is determined to, or definitely will: You shall do it. He shall do it.
  3. (in laws, directives, etc.) must; is or are obliged to: The meetings of the council shall be public.
  4. (used interrogatively in questions, often in invitations): Shall we go?
verb past should (takes an infinitive without to or an implied infinitive)
  1. used as an auxiliary to make the future tense
  2. (with you, he, she, it, they, or a noun as subject)
    • used as an auxiliary to indicate determination on the part of the speaker, as in issuing a threat
    • used as an auxiliary to indicate compulsion, now esp in official documents
    • used as an auxiliary to indicate certainty or inevitability
  3. used as an auxiliary to indicate nonspecific futurity
Shall (noun) Definition, Meaning & Examples

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