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what is the difference between shall and will?
for example, how to understand these: "they shall tell him" or "this shall be brought to me". I understand them like they must tell and this must/has to be brought to me. But sometimes I think, maybe better "they will tell him" and "will be brought". Advise me, how to understand?? It really confuses me.
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Hi, in American English 'will' is used in most cases instead of 'shall', eg,
- I will be there.
instead of
- I shall be there.
Shall is for the
- 1st person singular: 'I'
and
- 1st person plural: 'We'
In the examples you gave above, 'Will' should be used instead of 'Shall'.
An important not is that 'shall' is indispensable for friendly questions where you would like to suggest to do something, eg:
- Shall I help you?
- Shall we come earlier?
Hope that answers your question.
- I will be there.
instead of
- I shall be there.
Shall is for the
- 1st person singular: 'I'
and
- 1st person plural: 'We'
In the examples you gave above, 'Will' should be used instead of 'Shall'.
An important not is that 'shall' is indispensable for friendly questions where you would like to suggest to do something, eg:
- Shall I help you?
- Shall we come earlier?
Hope that answers your question.
The simple answer is that you don't need shall since it is not commonly used, except in a few idiomatic situations, and actually sounds very stiff in spoken English (at least American English). You will do fine just using 'will' and not even thinking about 'shall.'
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