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What Is Their Main Difference?
The main difference between the modal verb 'would' and 'should' is that 'would' talks about willingness while 'should' talks about obligations.
Modal Verb Would
'Would' is a modal verb that talks about prediction, willingness, habits, offers, and requests. It is the past tense of modal verb 'will.' For instance:
I
You
Modal Verb Should
'Should' is a modal verb used to talk about assumptions, and give advice. It is the past tense of modal verb 'shall.' For example:
I
You
Similarities
Talking about Possibilities
We can use 'would' and 'should' to talk about possibilities. However, there is a small distinction that requires your attention.
- 'Would' expresses situations that you can imagine happening.
- 'Should' expresses a likely action or event in the present or the future.
I
She
Requests and Offers
We use 'would' and 'should' to make offers and requests.
Making Offers
We use 'would' with 'like' as the main verb to politely offer things:
We also use 'should' in formal contexts (mainly British English) to politely offer others to do something:
I
Making Requests
'Would' can be used in indirect questions to politely request something:
In formal contexts (especially British English), 'should' can be used to politely ask for something:
I
Interchangeability
Past Tense
'Would' and 'should' are both past tenses of 'will' and 'shall' respectively. Watch:
You
We
Negation and Question
Modal verbs 'would' and 'should' can be used to make negative sentences. To do so, we add 'not' to them as illustrated below:
- Would → Would not → Wouldn't
- Should → Should not → Shouldn't
Here are some examples:
I
You
To create interrogative forms, we invert the modal verb. Check out the following examples for clarity:
She
He
Differences
Talking about Obligations
We can use 'should' to express obligations. Obligations are moral and legal actions that one must undertake. Take a look at these examples:
You
All passengers
Talking about Willingness
When we want to show that we want to do something, we can use 'would.' For example:
I
I
With Conditionals
| Would | Should | |
|---|---|---|
| Conditionals Type 1 | ✗ | ✗ |
| Conditionals Type 2 | ✓ | ✓ |
| Conditionals Type 3 | ✓ | ✗ |
| Zero Conditionals | ✗ | ✗ |
Conditional Type 2
In this type of conditionals, we talk about hypothetical situations in the present and the future. We can use both 'would' and 'should' to refer to these situations. Have a look:
If I ever establish a company, I
If I ever establish a company, I
Conditional Type 3
In this type of conditional, we are talking about an imaginary past that could have happened but never did. In other words, we are talking about what-ifs and lost causes. 'Would' is used in this type of conditionals but we cannot use 'should.' For instance:
I
She
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