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Old 22-Mar-2004, 20:35
Anonymous
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Default question about the use of will and shall at the future tense

hello

when i was young i was taught to use shall at the future tense with I and We.
My son is now leraning English at school and the teacher told him "shall" was not used at all?
What can you tell me about it, because I feel like using will is not very
logical.
  #2  
Old 22-Mar-2004, 21:02
MikeNewYork's Avatar
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Default Re: question about the use of will and shall at the future t

Quote:
Originally Posted by tlopez1
hello

when i was young i was taught to use shall at the future tense with I and We.
My son is now leraning English at school and the teacher told him "shall" was not used at all?
What can you tell me about it, because I feel like using will is not very
logical.
In American English, the distinction between "will" and "shall" for future/volition has just about faded away. "Will" is used far more commonly than "shall" in all persons. We still do use "shall" in some questions and sometimes as a replacement for "will". :)
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Old 22-Mar-2004, 22:19
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Default

Fewer people use it in British English than before. It's still used in questions (asking for advice, offering help and making suggestions). Other than that it is mainly found in more formal contexts.
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Old 30-Sep-2009, 19:56
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Exclamation Re: question about the use of will and shall at the future tense

No wonder I see so many grammar errors these days. "No future" tense, using only "will" to indicate future tense, no difference between will and shall .... what has the world come to?

Q.
Do people distinguish will and shall at all now?
Q.
Is it fair to write that adding the word "will" to the basic form of a regular or irregular verb (e.g. lie, sit, laugh) forms a simple future tense?
  #5  
Old 01-Oct-2009, 03:34
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Default Re: question about the use of will and shall at the future tense

Just out of curiosity, what do you suggest the simple future looks like?
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