Modality in grammar refers to the way in which a speaker expresses their attitude towards the content of their message – this can include their belief in its truth or likelihood. For example:
- “It should rain tomorrow.” Here, the speaker believes that, based on their current information (like a weather forecast), it is likely to rain tomorrow.
- “We should arrive by 6 pm.” In this case, the speaker expects that they will arrive by 6 pm, based on their current speed, traffic conditions, etc.
In both examples, “should” is used to express the speaker’s belief in the likelihood of a future event. However, it’s important to note that this doesn’t mean the event is certain to happen – it’s just what the speaker currently expects or believes is likely.
Here’s a student example of using ‘should’ with explanations:
Finally, I think people should not watch TV a lot
because that is going to affect their lives in many ways,
such as their work and their health.
PELIC Arabic male in level 3 writing class.
Profiling Research
We can give a CEFR level to the clause ‘people should not watch TV‘ in many ways.
It is A2 because:
- ‘should not‘ is a negative form of a modal verb.
- ‘should‘ is an increasing range of modal verbs.
- ‘People should not watch TV.’ Might be giving advice or suggestions. However, it might be B1 talking about ideal or desired situations.
In this post, we cover 7 points dealing with ‘should’ across A2 and B1 by examining the English Grammar Profile examples for formal similarities that might help us identify complexity in corpora. A2 can be summarised as: you|we should _VVI and the infinitives are all A1. For B1 it is more complex. We started by searching for a time word through collocations to the right of ‘should be’: should be _NNT (not successfully!) and also nouns or indefinite pronouns as subjects: _NN should and _PN should. At the end of this research, like most other overlapping points based on usage, the best way to capture higher complexity automatically is by the vocabulary it is used with
A2 NEGATION
Point 4:
negative forms of modal verbs.
The examples include should not… and won’t
A2 Verbs
point 21
increasing range of modal auxiliary verbs.
we should go
*this point also covers ‘might‘
A2 MODALITY
point 16:
affirmative form
You|we should come|go|buy
point 19:
ADVICE
You should bring|buy|take
Point 46:
SUGGESTIONS
we|you should bring|meet
B1 MODALITY
point 62
LIKELIHOOD – talk about what is likely to happen.
it|we should be …
Point 86
talk about ideal or desired situations.
people|everyone should eat|learn
Here are the most common phrases found in PlayPhrase.me for “you should” :
- well maybe you should (94) Well, maybe you should just call me when things are a little more stable?
- maybe you should take (77) I was thinking maybe you should take a break.
- don’t you think you should (75)
- I think you should leave (64)
- I really think you should (60)
- maybe you should try (60)
- I think you should come (52)
- maybe you should get (51)
- there’s something you should know (49)
- I think you should know (48)
- I think you should get (48)
- you should go back to (45)
- think you should go home (22)
- don’t think you should go (21)
- think you should go back (21)
- I think you should take (39)
- I think you should (39)
- you should know better (38)
- you should get some sleep (34)
- well I think you should (33)
- I think maybe you should (33)
For results 3-21 we had AI provide examples:
- Don’t you think that you should start studying for the exam?
- I think that you should leave the party early to catch your flight.
- I really think that you should consider applying for that job.
- Maybe you should try a different approach to solve the problem.
- I think that you should come to the meeting prepared with your ideas.
- Maybe you should get some professional advice before making a decision.
- There’s something that you should know: the deadline has been moved up to next week.
- I think that you should know that the project has been approved.
- I think that you should get a second opinion on that matter.
- You should go back to the drawing board and rethink your strategy.
- I think that you should go home if you’re not feeling well.
- I don’t think that you should go to the event if it makes you uncomfortable.
- I think that you should go back to the basics and strengthen your foundation.
- I think that you should take a break, you’ve been working too hard.
- I think that you should reconsider your options.
- You should know better than to procrastinate on your assignments.
- You should get some sleep, you have a big day tomorrow.
- Well, I think that you should express your feelings honestly.
- I think that maybe you should give it another try.
The words “think” and “maybe” are often used in these sentences because they soften the advice or recommendation being given.
When we use “think,” we’re expressing our personal opinions or beliefs. For example, in the sentence “I think that you should leave,” the speaker is expressing their belief that it would be best for the listener to leave. However, by using “think,” the speaker acknowledges that this is just their opinion, and the listener is free to make their own decision.
Similarly, “maybe” is used to suggest a possibility or a potential course of action, without asserting it strongly. For example, in the sentence “Maybe you should try a different approach,” the speaker is suggesting that trying a different approach could be beneficial, but they’re not insisting on it.
In both cases, the use of “think” and “maybe” makes the advice or recommendation less direct and more polite. It shows respect for the listener’s autonomy and freedom to make their own decisions.
Here are the results of a search in iWeb corpus for you|we + should + lexical verb:
1 YOU SHOULD SEE 56402
2 YOU SHOULD KNOW 50190
3 YOU SHOULD CONSIDER 43714
You should consider yourself lucky.
This is a common idiom that is used to express that someone has had a fortunate outcome, or that their situation could have been worse. It is often used in a reprimanding or warning tone, to suggest that the person should be grateful for their good fortune and not take it for granted.
4 YOU SHOULD USE 38991
5 YOU SHOULD GET 34945
6 YOU SHOULD TAKE 34210
7 YOU SHOULD TRY 30688
8 YOU SHOULD CHECK 29413
9 YOU SHOULD MAKE 24712
10 YOU SHOULD GO 19880
11 YOU SHOULD LOOK 19764
12 YOU SHOULD CONTACT 18285
13 YOU SHOULD KEEP 15968
14 YOU SHOULD START 14817
15 YOU SHOULD FIND 14431
16 YOU SHOULD AVOID 14093
17 YOU SHOULD EXPECT 13727
18 YOU SHOULD ASK 13222
19 YOU SHOULD READ 11803
20 YOU SHOULD GIVE 9547
21 YOU SHOULD CONSULT 9393
22 YOU SHOULD FEEL 8997
23 YOU SHOULD CHOOSE 8579
24 YOU SHOULD THINK 8475
25 YOU SHOULD BUY 7561
26 YOU SHOULD RECEIVE 7559
27 YOU SHOULD FOLLOW 7426
28 WE SHOULD TAKE 7242
29 WE SHOULD EXPECT 7208
We should expect heavy rain into the early evening.
30 YOU SHOULD SEEK 6980
31 YOU SHOULD ADD 6838
32 WE SHOULD SEE 6439
33 YOU SHOULD PUT 6426
34 WE SHOULD GET 6365
35 YOU SHOULD PAY 5940
36 YOU SHOULD CALL 5927
37 YOU SHOULD STOP 5791
38 YOU SHOULD FOCUS 5573
39 YOU SHOULD INCLUDE 5494
40 WE SHOULD GO 5376
41 YOU SHOULD APPLY 5292
42 YOU SHOULD TALK 5028
43 YOU SHOULD SET 5013
44 WE SHOULD MAKE 5002
45 YOU SHOULD ENSURE 4936
46 YOU SHOULD VISIT 4886
47 YOU SHOULD UNDERSTAND 4715
48 WE SHOULD LOOK 4696
49 WE SHOULD TRY 4694
50 WE SHOULD USE 4563
51 YOU SHOULD AIM 4522
52 WE SHOULD KNOW 4521
53 YOU SHOULD CHANGE 4387
54 YOU SHOULD LEARN 4353
55 YOU SHOULD WRITE 4327
56 YOU SHOULD NOTE 4194
57 YOU SHOULD EAT 4133
58 YOU SHOULD LEAVE 4084
59 YOU SHOULD PLAN 4021
60 YOU SHOULD REVIEW 4010
61 YOU SHOULD NOTICE 3887
62 WE SHOULD START 3844
63 YOU SHOULD SPEND 3838
64 YOU SHOULD COME 3829
65 WE SHOULD CONSIDER 3772
66 YOU SHOULD CREATE 3769
67 YOU SHOULD WATCH 3750
68 YOU SHOULD LET 3733
69 YOU SHOULD BRING 3652
70 YOU SHOULD DISCUSS 3637
71 YOU SHOULD REMEMBER 3634
72 YOU SHOULD CONTINUE 3556
73 YOU SHOULD WORK 3552
74 YOU SHOULD WAIT 3482
75 YOU SHOULD RUN 3453
76 YOU SHOULD STAY 3371
77 WE SHOULD KEEP 3365
78 YOU SHOULD HEAR 3320
79 YOU SHOULD TELL 3311
80 YOU SHOULD SELECT 3232
81 WE SHOULD GIVE 3199
82 YOU SHOULD BEGIN 3003
83 YOU SHOULD SPEAK 2993
84 YOU SHOULD SEND 2939
85 YOU SHOULD WEAR 2887
86 YOU SHOULD PROVIDE 2833
87 WE SHOULD REMEMBER 2806
88 YOU SHOULD PICK 2798
89 YOU SHOULD SAY 2793
90 WE SHOULD NOTE 2741
91 YOU SHOULD ALLOW 2641
92 YOU SHOULD REMOVE 2598
93 YOU SHOULD END 2552
94 WE SHOULD ASK 2448
95 WE SHOULD THINK 2428
96 YOU SHOULD DRINK 2419
97 WE SHOULD STOP 2349
98 YOU SHOULD REPLACE 2348
99 YOU SHOULD MOVE 2292
100 YOU SHOULD INVEST 2287
Unfortunately, iWeb does not allow a search for time tokens to ‘should be’ directly, so here we again copy our EGP examples to be more specific:
should be _A *
1 SHOULD BE THE SAME 10285
_NNT collocates up to 5 spaces to the right:
1 TIME 101 *these examples didn’t match the ‘B1 likelihood’.
2 DAY 37
3 YEAR 17
4 YEARS 14
5 WEEK 12
This is an example of how ambiguous it is to try to locate ‘likelihood’ for this grammar point. This is from a PELIC student:
To my next ELI semester mates:
First of all, you must be very curio[u]s of the English Language Institute classes here, and may want to know how the student life is. For me, in [the] summer term here, I have had a lot of fun of studying with my classmates and teachers and got many experience[s] in Pittsburgh. The important thing is I ought to speak English more instead of speaking my native language, Mandarin. For you guys, that should be the same thing. I guess you might want to promote your speaking skill in English. Please try to speak more English with the native speakers in America. As a result of months later, you will have acquired more than what you want.
Chinese, Female, level 4, grammar class.
2 SHOULD BE THE FIRST 5528
3 SHOULD BE A GOOD 5208
4 SHOULD BE NO MORE 3457
5 SHOULD BE YOUR FIRST 3046
6 SHOULD BE NO SURPRISE 3038
7 SHOULD BE A PRIORITY 2926
8 SHOULD BE THE ONE 2871
9 SHOULD BE A PART 2850
10 SHOULD BE NO PROBLEM 2844
should be _J *
1 SHOULD BE ABLE TO 233167
2 SHOULD BE AWARE OF 23786
3 SHOULD BE AWARE THAT 17711
4 SHOULD BE FINE . 13487
5 SHOULD BE EASY TO 8211
6 SHOULD BE POSSIBLE TO 5870
7 SHOULD BE FAMILIAR WITH 5395
8 SHOULD BE READY TO 5395
9 SHOULD BE GOOD TO 4698
10 SHOULD BE PROUD OF 4219
_PN should _VVI
1 EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW 2222
2 WHO SHOULD KNOW 1843
3 WHO SHOULD ATTEND 1816
4 WHO SHOULD GET 1456
5 ONE SHOULD TAKE 1415
6 WHO SHOULD TAKE 1198
7 ONE SHOULD EXPECT 1175
8 ONE SHOULD USE 1111
9 EVERYONE SHOULD TRY 1064
10 WHO SHOULD USE 859
11 EVERYONE SHOULD TAKE 857
12 EVERYONE SHOULD GET 852
13 WHO SHOULD RECEIVE 811
14 EVERYONE SHOULD READ 782
15 WHO SHOULD PAY 781
16 ONE SHOULD CONSIDER 741
17 ONE SHOULD GO 721
18 SOMETHING SHOULD HAPPEN 646
19 ONE SHOULD KEEP 632
20 ONE SHOULD MAKE 598
What are the most common noun subjects and lexical verbs used with ‘should’?
_NN should _VVI + completed by AI:
- Students should contact their professors if they have any doubts about the assignment.
- People should know their rights to be able to protect themselves in any situation.
- Credit should read to the original author when using their work as a reference.
- Students should consult with their academic advisors before choosing their courses.
- Students should know the university’s policies and regulations.
- The plan should include a detailed timeline of the project.
- Applicants should submit their applications before the deadline.
- Students should check their emails regularly for any updates from the university.
- Students should take advantage of the resources available at the university.
- People should take precautions to stay safe during the pandemic.
- The process should take about two weeks to complete.
- Students should expect to spend several hours a week studying outside of class.
- Students should complete all assignments on time to avoid late penalties.
- People should get regular exercise to maintain their health.
- Investors should consider the risks before investing in a new venture.
- Students should apply early for scholarships and grants.
- Women should avoid using products with harmful chemicals.
- Students should submit their thesis proposals by the end of the semester.
- Students should consider studying abroad to broaden their horizons.
- Students should use the library’s resources to aid their research.