Skip to main content

Future: will and shall

Will and shall: form​

Will and shall are modal verbs. They are used with the base form of the main verb (They will go; I shall ask her). Shall is only used for future time reference with I and we, and is more formal than will.


singular and plural

+I, weshe, he, it, you, they(full form)will or shallwillwork
I, she, he, it, you, we, they(short form)’ll
−I, weshe, he, it, you, they(full form)will not or shall notwill notwork
I, weshe, he, it, you, they(short form)won’t or shan’twon’t
? +Will or ShallWillI, weshe, he, it, you, they
work?
? −Won’t or Shan’tWon’tI, weshe, he, it, you, they

’ll: short forms of shall and will​

Spoken English:

In speaking, shall and will are usually contracted to ’ll, especially after subject pronouns (I, we, you, they, she, he, it):

  • We*’ll** meet you outside the coffee shop.* (more common in speaking than We will meet you outside the coffee shop)

Will and shall: uses​

Predictions​

We use will and shall to make predictions and to state facts about the future:

  • There will be strong winds tomorrow in the south of the country.
  • The year 2025 will be the four-hundredth anniversary of the founding of the university.
  • We shall need an extra bedroom when the new baby arrives.

Decisions and offers​

Will and shall (usually in the short form ’ll) are used to announce decisions and to make offers:

  • [a salesperson in a clothes shop is talking to a customer]
  • A: Which size do you want? Medium or large?
  • B: I*’ll** have large*. (decision)
  • Wait. I*’ll** open the door for you.* (offer)
  • Not: Wait. I open the door for you.
  • I shall contact you again when I have further information.
See also
  • Offers

Shall with I and we​

We can use shall instead of will with I and we in statements. Its use is more formal:

  • We shall never forget the holiday we had in Vietnam.

When we use shall I and shall we in questions it is usually to make suggestions rather than to refer to future time:

  • It’s getting late. Shall we go home?
  • Shall I invite Louisa and Jill to the party?
See also
  • Be going to or will?
  • Will
  • Shall
  • Suggestions