Would\Should

[Tdol]

[RonBee]

I don't think that in AE we would even use should in that context.

:(

[Tdol]

In BE, you see 'shall' replace 'will' and 'should' replace 'would', but it is almost exclusively found in very formal writing.

Originally Posted by tdol

In BE, you see 'shall' replace 'will' and 'should' replace 'would', but it is almost exclusively found in very formal writing.

hi Tdol teacher:
so are you saying that both should and would are the same in the context?

[RonBee]

I think he means that they mean the same thing, but they are used in different contexts.

:)

Originally Posted by RonBee

I think he means that they mean the same thing, but they are used in different contexts.

:)

thanks Ronbee. :o :o

[RonBee]

You're quite welcome.

:D

[Tdol]

Ron's right- 'I should like' would usuallly be formal.

Originally Posted by tdol

Ron's right- 'I should like' would usuallly be formal.

thanks Tdol too. :o

[riverkid]

RonBee is right that 'should' is not used much in NaE for this type of situation.

But for BrE, I'd say that 'should' is the more polite collocation of the two but that 'would' is also used in this fashion.

Googled, Uk sites only, we get,

Results 1 - 10 of about 919 for "I should be very grateful if".

Results 1 - 10 of about 44,100 for "I would be very grateful if".

Of course, when we do a Google.com search, 'would' blows the doors off 'should' for frequency of use.

Results 1 - 10 of about 208,000 English pages for "I would be very grateful if"

Results 1 - 10 of about 924 English pages for "I should be very grateful if".