The use of shall and will in a sentence for each word

Advanced Grammar for IELTS: Modal verbs (3): will, would, shall – Diagnose Test, Grammar Explanation & Practice Exercises

Modal verbs are the helping verbs that express ideas like ability, permission, necessity, etc. many of the modal verbs have more than one meaning and are followed by the verb’s simple form. These modal verbs are mainly used for academic writing task 2. You must know where to use these modal verbs to score a better band in the IELTS exam.

Diagnostic Test: Modal Verbs (3): Will, Would, Shall

Complete the sentences with the will, ‘ll, won’t, would, wouldn’t or shall and the correct form of the words in brackets.

Example:

• The new play on Broadway is really good, but I don’t like Sean Penn in it. Kevin Bacon__would be__(be) much better.

1. We had to hurry to get him to the hospital. We knew it___(be) too late otherwise.
2. ‘I wonder where Dad is.’ ‘He___(drive) to the airport, I should think.’
3. ‘Oh, dear. The lecture starts at nine o’clock. I’m late!’ ‘Don’t worry. This lecturer’s always late. He ___(not/start) yet.’
4. At this point in the season, the parents ____(eat) their young rather than allow a predator to attack them.
5. The doctor____(act) as a witness to your signature. She doesn’t mind doing that sort of thing.
6. The PA____(not/book) my flights. She says it isn’t in her job description.
7. Dad____(always/help) us out financially when we were at university, however difficult it was for him.
8. The police interrogated the terrorist for more than four hours, but she _____(not/reveal) the names of her co-conspirators.
9. You look tired. ____(I/make) supper this evening?
10. What_____(we/do) with Tom if he doesn’t get into university?
11. ______(you/be) so kind as to help me across the road, young man?
12. We_____(like) everyone in this room to feel comfortable with the proposal.

Circle the correct meaning or interpretation (a or b) for each sentence.

Example:

• It would be so nice to live by the sea.

1. The speaker lives by the sea.
2. The speaker doesn’t live by the sea.

1. If anyone rings in the next few minutes, I’ll be in the storeroom.

1. I’m in the storeroom now.
2. I’m going to the storeroom.

1. Ralph isn’t here right now, I’m afraid. He’ll be at the office.

1. He is at the office now.
2. He’s on his way to the office.

1. I’ve tried it again and again but the computer just won’t accept my disc. I don’t understand it.

1. I’m annoyed with the computer.
2. I am not concerned about the computer.

1. It’s a relief that Annie’s changed, class. She would argue with everything I said.

1. I didn’t mind the arguments.
2. The arguments annoyed me.

1. The secretary shall minute the proceedings of each meeting.

1. The secretary is offering to do it.
2. The secretary is instructed to do it.

1. ‘It looks as though the fuel crisis is over.’ ‘I wouldn’t be too sure.’

1. The second speaker agrees,
2. The second speaker doesn’t agree.

1. It would be so nice to have a little cottage in the country.

1. The speaker doesn’t have a cottage,
2. The speaker has a cottage.

1. I would have liked to meet the professor while he was here.

1. The speaker met the professor,
2. The speaker didn’t meet the professor.

Grammar Explanation: Modal Verbs (3): Will, Would, Shall

Learners of English often think of ‘will’ as a way of expressing the future and of ‘would’ as a word that is used mainly in conditional sentences, but we use both of these modal verbs to express several other meanings. This unit also looks at ‘shall,’ which, although it is the least-used modal in English, we can use to express a variety of meanings.

We will delve deep into will/would, shall/should,

• Learn their differences
• When, where  and how to use them.

Prediction and Certainty

Predictions About the Future

We use will/won’t to make predictions about the future:

• He’s been found guilty of murder. He’ll be in prison for a long time.
• You must work hard for this exam. It won’t be easy.

Past Predictions About the Future

Sometimes we wish to express a prediction about the future that someone made in the past. For this we often use would/wouldn’t (would is the past form of will):

• We had to hurry to get him to the hospital. We knew it would be too late otherwise.

This use of would is related to the use of would in reported speech:

• I’m sure the Lions will win the rugby series this year. ==> She was sure the Lions would win the rugby series.

Certainty About the Present

We make confident ‘predictions’ about the present based on our knowledge or previous experience (or on current expectations) with will/ won’t:

• ‘Rachel’s in Turkey at the moment.’ I hope she’s taken some winter clothes because they won’t be warm at this time of year. ‘

Compare this use of will and the present simple. We use the present simple to state a fact without expressing an opinion as to the certainty or otherwise of the event:

• Janet isn’t here at the moment. She’s in France. (Fact – the speaker knows it’s true.)

To say that we believe something is certain, we use will/won’t:

• It’s at five o’clock. Janet will be in Paris now. (Certainty – the speaker believes it’s true.)

To express certainty about something ongoing (i.e. where we would use the present continuous for a fact), we use will/won’t + be + -ing form:

• Jason is sympathetic because he knows his successor will be having a hard time at the moment.

Certainty About the Past

To refer to something which we feel certain has happened (but do not actually know), we use will have + past participle:

• We sent the invitations on Monday, so they will have received them by now. Why hasn’t anyone replied?

This is similar to must have + past participle:

• We sent the invitations on Monday, so they must have received them by now.

We use won’t have + past participle to refer to something which we feel certain has not happened:

• We sent the invitations by second-class post. They won’t have received them yet.

Note: We do not use mustn’t have + past participle in this way, but we can use can’t have:

 X We sent the invitations by second-class post. They mustn’t have received them yet.

 ✓ We sent the invitations by second-class post. They can’t have received them yet.

See also:

• IELTS Grammar
• IELTS Grammar books
• English Pronunciation in use Intermediate pdf

Characteristics, Habits, and Routines

Present

We often use will/won’t talk about actions that have become so routine that they are predictable:

• Every lesson is the same: he’ll sit down, get his books out and then he’ll start giving us instructions. He won’t greet us or show any interest in us.

We can extend this use of will to talk about habits and characteristics:

• The public will always side with the nurses in any dispute.
• The dominant male of the group will not tolerate the presence of other males.

We can also use the present simple to describe characteristics and habits:

• The public always sides with the nurses in any dispute.
• The dominant male of the group does not tolerate the presence of other males.

We often use will when talking about the characteristics of capacity or ability:

• The Olympic stadium in Sydney will hold 110.000 people.
• This model will do 0 to 100 kilometres per hour in eight seconds.

It is also possible to use can and the present simple for these last two uses with no change in meaning:

• The Olympic stadium in Sydney can hold/ holds 110.000 people.
• This model can do/ does 0 to 100 kilometres per hour in eight seconds.

We use will (not the present simple) to describe an annoying habit or to make a criticism:

• We enjoy going out with Frank and Carol, but they will argue in public!

Note: We do not contract well when we use it to describe an annoying habit – we stress it:

X Geoff ’ll leave the lights on when he’s last out of the office.

✓ Geoff will leave the lights on when he’s last out of the office!

We often use will/won’t criticize inanimate objects in this way:

• Whatever I do, my car won’t start the first time on cold mornings.

To state a simple fact with no (or little) annoyance, we use the present simple:

• My car doesn’t start/never starts the first time on cold mornings.

Past

We use would/wouldn’t talk about habits in the past:

• Every lesson was the same: he’d sit down and get his books out, then he’d start giving us instructions. He wouldn’t greet us or show any interest in us.

We can use would/wouldn’t criticize or talk about annoying habits in the past:

• I miss Dad, even though he would always tell me how to run my life!

Note: We do not usually contract would to when we use it in this way; we stress it:

• When Alan was a toddler he would cling on to me whenever a stranger came in.

However, we do not always stress would when it is followed by an adverb:

• My boss was awful: he’d invariably find something for me to do at five o’clock.

We can use would/wouldn’t talk about inanimate objects:

• The car would never start on winter mornings when we were in Sweden.

Willingness and Refusal

Present/Future Willingness and Refusal

We use will to express willingness to do something:

• The doctor will act as a witness to your signature. She doesn’t mind doing that sort of thing.

We can use it to express be willing to. In this sense, we can use will/ won’t in the if-clause of a first conditional:

• If you’ll take a seat for a moment, Mr. Franks will be with you soon. (If you are willing to take a seat for a moment,…)

We use won’t/ shan’t to express unwillingness or refusal to do something:

• The PA won’t book my flights. She says it isn’t in her job description.
• ‘Go and buy some milk, will you, love?’ ‘No, I shan’t. I’m busy.’

Past Willingness and Refusal

We use would/wouldn’t to show willingness or refusal In the past. We use would in the affirmative only to refer to general willingness (i.e. a habit):

• Dad would always help us with our maths homework.

Note: We do not use would in the affirmative to express willingness to do something on a single occasion in the past:

X The tour guide was very helpful. She would contact the Consulate for me when I lost my passport.

✓ The tour guide was very helpful. She contacted I offered to contact the Consulate for me when I lost my passport.

We can use would not for refusal on a single occasion in the past:

• The shop assistant wouldn’t change this jumper for me, even though I hadn’t worn it.

Other Uses Of Will/Shall/Would

Offers and Promises

We can use both will and shall to make offers. We use will in the affirmative, both to make offers to do something ourselves and on behalf of other people:

• Sit down. I’ll wash up this evening.
• Your car sounds a bit rough. Harry will take a quick look at it if you like.

We use shall in questions to make more tentative offers than with will in the affirmative:

• Shall I wash up this evening?

We use will to make promises:

• My government will turn round the economy and reduce unemployment.

We can use would, will or won’t when we offer something to another person:

• Would you have/ like some more of the pie? (neutral)
• Will you have some more of the pie? (neutral)
• Won’t you have some more of the pie? (more encouraging)

Suggestions

We use shall in questions with us to make suggestions:

• Shall we go out for a curry tonight? (= Why don’t we …?/How about …?)

To ask for suggestions or advice, we can use shall with a question word:

• What shall we do about Tom if he doesn’t get into a university?

US English uses should in preference to shall for suggestions:

• Let’s decide what to do this evening. Should we go bowling?

Note: We use shall in question tags after let’s.

• Let’s forget about it now and talk about something else, shall we?

Note: We use would in suggestions or responding to invitations if we want to be more tentative or distant:

• It would be a good idea to get together one evening.
• ‘Come to dinner on Sunday. ’ ‘That would be nice. I’ll let you know.’

Requests

We often make requests with a will. These requests are informal and we usually use them only with people we know quite well:

• Will you give me a call when you get to the hotel?

We use would make requests more tentative or polite, or to request things of people we do not know so well:

• Would you lend me the car tomorrow night? Dad?
• Would you fill in this form, please, sir?

We can make a request more insistent by using will you as a question tag:

• Come and look at this, will you?

If we request this way, we do not expect the answer to be ‘no’:

• Pick up my suit from the cleaner’s when you’re out, will you?

Orders and Instructions

We use will and shall for orders and formal instructions. We use shall for more formal instructions, especially in official documents:

• You will/shall all stay behind for thirty minutes and clean this room.
• The secretary shall minute the proceedings of each meeting.

We also use shall/ will for rules, for example of examinations and competitions:

• The judge’s decision shall be final.

Disagreeing

We can use would/ wouldn’t show disagreement politely:

• I wouldn’t say that.
• I wouldn’t go that far.

Expressing Desires and Preferences

We often use would with verbs of liking and preference (like. love, prefer, etc.) to express desires and preferences which we think we can realize:

• We’d love to come to your wedding on 6th September. Thank you for the invitation.
• I’d prefer to lose weight by a tried and tested method than by a new trendy diet.

We can use would with rather to express a preference:

• Our delegates would rather not stay at the conference centre.

Note: Note that we can use an object with these forms:

• I would like you to listen to me when I‘m talking!

Hypothetical Would

Hypothetical Desires About the Present/Future

We use would with be or verbs of liking and wishing to express a desire for the present or future. Fulfilment of the desire is impossible or improbable:

• It would be so nice to live by the sea. (The speaker doesn’t live by the sea.)
• I would prefer to be a man. (The speaker is a woman.)

To state a simple fact, we use the present simple:

• It is nice to live by the sea.

We can use the present simple (like) to talk about something we currently like and do, but we use would like to talk about an unfulfilled desire:

• I like to stay in five-star hotels. (I do stay in five-star hotels and enjoy it.)
• I would like to stay in five-star hotels. (I don’t stay in them, but it’s my desire.)

Wish + would express a desire for another person (not) to do something:

• I wish you wouldn’t talk with your mouth full!

Hypothetical desires about the past

If we want to comment on a hypothetical situation in the past, we use would/ wouldn’t + have + past participle:

• It would have been a good idea to notify us in advance of your intentions. (= The person did not notify anyone in advance.)

Note: British English often uses the perfect infinitive here:

• (It would have been a good idea to have notified us in advance ….)

Practice Exercise

Q 1.

Complete these dialogues with a will, won’t, would, wouldn’t, + have if necessary, and a form of the verbs in the box. The first one is given as an example (0).

• ‘Sue says she’s enjoying the job but she’s putting on weight.’
• ‘Yes, that__will be__because of all those long business lunches.’
• ‘Are you having problems with your new camera?’

1. ‘Yes, the flash____in semi-darkness, only when it’s fully dark.’

• ‘Shop assistants used to be more polite, didn’t they?’

2. ‘Yes, a few years ago they____always____”please” and “thank you” and smile.’

• ‘Surely there are too many people here to get on one plane?’

3. ‘No, a jumbo jet____easily____over 300 people.’

• ‘I hope Josh is OK at that summer camp. He might be homesick.’

4. Don’t worry about him. He____a great time!’

• ‘Do you think that the jury will acquit Nick?’

5. ‘I hope so. I’m sure that his lawyer____a solid defence.’

• ‘I don’t think this new secretary is as good as Janice was.’

6. ‘I don’t know. Janice___always____whenever you pointed out errors in her typing.’

• ‘The new horse at the riding stables seems to be working out very well.’

7. Quite well, but he____and eat whenever he gets the opportunity!’

• ‘Oh no, I’ve just noticed a mistake in the headline for the front page article!’

8. ‘Phone the printers. They____printing it yet – they don’t print until early morning.’

• ‘What happened after the car broke down?’

9. Well, we knew that traffic____along that road so late, so we slept in the car.’

• Why are you and Jack arguing so much these days?’

10. ‘He takes me for granted. He____TV every evening and ignore me completely.’

Q 2.

Rewrite the underlined parts of this phone conversation, using a will, won’t, would and wouldn’t.

JAKE: 020 7543 9216.

ALICE: Hi, Jake. It’s Alice here.

JAKE:  Alice, how nice to hear from you!

ALICE: Actually, Jake, I’m phoning to ask you for some advice.

JAKE: (0) I’m willing to help you if I can, of course. __I’ll help you___

ALICE: Your mother receives help from the Council, doesn’t she? Can you tell me what (1) they agree to do and what (2) they don’t agree to do for older people?

JAKE: Yes, of course. Mum has a home help. She comes three times a week. (3) She’s perfectly happy to do light cleaning and (4) she’s willing to get the shopping, but (5) she refuses to do anything heavy.

ALICE: That’s fair enough. What about cooking?

JAKE: Well, when she first started (6) she was happy to prepare supper when she came, but she stopped that after a few weeks.

ALICE: Why was that?

JAKE: You know my mum. (7) She insists on saying exactly what she thinks. Apparently, the home help used to make Italian food and Mum didn’t like it. (8) She refused to eat it. Why are you asking, anyway?

ALICE: It’s Dad. He can’t move around very easily now. The neighbours are great, they (9) make a habit of popping in now and again but (10) he’s unwilling to ask them for help if he’s in trouble.

JAKE: Mmm. You can understand that.

ALICE: Oh, but he’s so impatient. I take him to the shops once a week, but yesterday (11) the car refused to start and I was about half an hour late. (12) Was he willing to wait for me? No, (13) he insists on trying to cope by himself! He went to the shops and collapsed on the way there.

JAKE: Oh, dear. It’s a worry, isn’t it? Look, (14) if you don’t mind waiting for a few minutes. I’ll look out the phone number for the right person at social services.

Q 3.

Complete the dialogues below the pictures. Use will, shall or would.

Student 1: Will you pass me the dictionary, please?

Student 2: Yes, here you go.

1.

• Woman: ________
• Friend: I won’t, thanks. I’m trying to lose weight

2.

• Teacher: _________
• Student: Oh, Miss, not another essay for homework! We’ve already written two this week.

3.

• Man: _________
• Women: Oh, yes, please! We always need someone to take the minutes.

4.

• Police Officer: ________
• Thief: Come with you? No, why should I?

5.

• Man: I don’t understand what you want from me!
• Women: ________
• Man: But I do respect you!

Q 4.

Read the article and then decide which word or phrase A, B or C below best fills each space. Circle the letter you choose for each question. The exercise begins with an example (0).

Words, Words, Words

The words that caught the mood of the decade are all there in a book published yesterday – clone, concentration camp, gene, depression – except that was not the 1990s; these words (0)__current in the 1900s.

The Guinness Book of the Twentieth Century cites lists of buzzwords for each decade of the last century. At the outset of the 20th century, few people would have guessed that it (1)___more language change than ever before. Of course, before the days of the communications revolution language evolved much more slowly. Many people today (2)____language not to change at all, but that is an unrealistic dream in the age of the global village.

Words you(3)____every day, such as chatline and trainers, (4)____only thirty years ago. And a word as universal as teenager gained common currency only in the l940s. Words change in meaning too: a scientist in the 1960s (5)____clone to refer only to plants. And anyone who asked ‘(6)____we watch the soap tonight?’ would have encountered total incomprehension before the Second World War. (Soap was what you washed with.)

There is a more worrying side to this if you consider that new coinage reflects the society it comes from. Only twenty years ago few people (7)____stalking, ethnic cleansing or road rage – concepts that the world (8)____perhaps be better without. It (9)____nice to think that the 21st century (10)____us happier words, but don’t hold your breath!

Q 5.

Read the statements from people who have or have had a disadvantaged life. Complete the sentences, expressing the people’s desires and regrets about the past. Use the word in brackets.

• (0) We don’t have running water in our homes. We have to collect water from the stream or from a pipe in the village. (like)
• Aisha __would like to have running water in her homes___
• We live in a wooden shack outside the city. It’s very small but eight of us live in it. It’s my dream to live in a real house. (prefer)

1. Pedro________

• In my country, we have to pay for medicine and a lot of people can’t afford it. The government should provide free medicine. (like)

2. Esther ______

• Every day I go into the town and I begin the streets for money. Obviously I don’t like going begging, but we need the money. (rather)

3. Sun-Li _______

• I wear the same clothes every day. I look at models in magazines and I’m very envious of their beautiful clothes. (be nice)

4. Hana thinks it______

• I live in a village just outside a big city. The village is OK. but rich people from the city come and dump their rubbish in our village. It’s dreadful! (wishes)

5. Sunil _________

• I didn’t go to school. My family couldn’t afford to send me. So now I can only get a badly-paid job. It’s such a pity because I enjoy learning new things. (been good)

6. Maria thinks it __________

Q 6.

There are nine more mistakes in this text connected with the language in this unit. Underline the mistakes and correct them.

1. I’ll never forget the day my life changed. It was a normal day – in those days I
2. shall do my homework straight after school so that I could go and listen to pop => would
3. music at Janice’s after dinner. So I was sitting in front of the fire, trying to keep
4. warm. Mum was ironing. I looked at the clock.
5. Dad’s late,’ I remarked to Mum.
6. It’s Thursday. He’d be visiting Granny.’
7. My grandmother lived in a cold, draughty cottage on the moors. Mum and
8. Dad wanted her to move in with us, but our house was very small, and she won’t
9. They knew that the cold winter months would have hastened her death – she
10. already suffered from chronic bronchitis – but she was a stubborn old woman
11. who will insist on her independence?
12. Won’t it be nice if we had some money? We could buy a big house and
13. Granny could have a flat of her own in it. I hate being poor.’
14. Oh. pet, I shan’t say we’re poor. We’re not as well off as some, but we’ve
15. got a roof over our heads and food in our bellies.’ Mum would always see
16. the best in every situation. It really annoyed me! ‘Will I make a nice cup of tea?
17. Your Dad would be frozen when he gets in. He’ll want to save the bus fare so
18. I’m sure he’s walked all the way from your grandmother’s.’
19. At that moment, the door opened and Dad walked in, waving a slip of paper.
20. ‘Forget the tea, Mary. We’re going out tonight. First prize in the lottery.
21. We’re rich!’

Answer Key for Diagnostic Test

1. would be
2. I’ll be driving
3. won’t have started
4. will eat/eat
5. will act 18
6. won’t book
7. would always help
8. would not reveal
9. Shall I make
10. shall we do
11. Would you be
12. would like
13. b
14. a
15. a
16. b
17. b
18. b
19. a
20. b

Answer Key for Practice Exercise

Q 1.

1. won’t work
2. would always say
3. will easily hold
4. will be having
5. will have prepared
6. would always argue
7. will stop
8. won’t have started
9. wouldn’t come
10. will watch

Q 2.

1. they will do
2. they won’t do
3. She’ll do light cleaning
4. she’ll get the shopping
5. she won’t do anything heavy
6. she would prepare supper
7. She will say (exactly) what she thinks.
8. She wouldn’t eat it.
9. will pop in
10. he won’t ask them for help
11. the car wouldn’t start
12. Would he wait for me?
13. he will try to cope by himself
14. if you’ll wait for a few minutes

Q 3. Suggested Answers:

1. Will you/Won’t you have another piece/some more cake?
2. You will all write the/this essay for homework.
3. Shall I take the minutes?
4. Will/Would you come with us, please (Sir)?
5. I would like you to respect me.

Q 4.

1. C
2. B
3. A
4. A
5. C
6. C
7. B
8. A
9. B
10. C

Q 5.

1. Pedro would prefer to live in a real house.
2. Esther would like the government to provide free medicine.
3. Sun-Li would rather not go begging in the streets.
4. Hana thinks it would be nice to have some beautiful clothes.
5. Sunil wishes that rich people from the city wouldn’t dump their rubbish in the village.
6. Maria thinks it would have been good to go to school.

Q 6.

1. Line 6 He’d be visiting ==> He’ll be visiting
2. Line 8 she won’t ==> she wouldn’t
3. Line 9 would have hastened ==> would hasten
4. Line 11 will insist ==> would insist
5. Line 12 Won’t it be ==> Wouldn’t it be
6. Line 14 I shan’t say ==> I wouldn’t say
7. Line 16 Will I make ==> Shall I make
8. Line 17 would be frozen ==> will be frozen
9. Line 18 he’s walked ==> he’ll have walked

Round up: Modal Verbs