Module 3 · Modal Verbs

Shall, Will & Would

Intermediate–Advanced50 min25 questions7 sections

Step 1

Quick Look

Three modals, one family. WILL you already know from Module 1 as the future — here we meet its other faces: promises, refusals, and stubborn habits. SHALL survives in exactly two places: polite offers (Shall I...? Shall we...?) and legal documents, where it means binding obligation. WOULD is the past and polite shadow of will — and the politest request word in English.

Sentence TypeStructure + Example

Shall — offers

Shall I arrange the cab? / Shall we start the meeting? (only with I and we)

Will — beyond future

I will personally handle it. (promise) / The shutter won’t open. (refusal)

Would — polite & past

Would you share the file? / Every evening, Dadaji would water the plants.

The golden rule: SHALL in questions works only with I and WE — ‘Shall you come?’ does not exist. And in agreements and contracts, shall changes meaning entirely: ‘The Purchaser shall pay...’ is not a suggestion or a future guess — it is a binding legal obligation. Read every contract shall as MUST.

Three modals, six jobs

Shall offers (and, in contracts, obliges); will promises and refuses; would is the polite and past shadow of will. Every job takes a base verb.

Step 2

When to Use It

Use 1

SHALL — offers and suggestions (I / we only)

The polite way to volunteer or propose.

Shall I send the driver to pick you up?
Shall we take a short break before the next file?
Shall I mark the corner plot as blocked?

Use 2

SHALL — the legal workhorse

In deeds, agreements, and statutes, shall = binding duty.

The Seller shall hand over vacant possession on the date of registry.
The Second Party shall bear all transfer charges.
Either party shall give thirty days’ written notice before termination.

Use 3

WILL — promises, commitments, offers

Personal guarantee attached.

I will get the mutation done within a month — my responsibility.
We will match any genuine written offer.
Don’t worry, I’ll be there before the buyer arrives.

Use 4

WILL / WON’T — insistence and refusal

For people AND for stubborn machines.

He simply won’t listen to reason about that price.
The printer won’t connect to the new Wi-Fi.
She will keep interrupting — it’s her habit. (stressed will = annoying insistence)

Use 5

WOULD — polite requests and preferences

The politest request modal; also ‘would like’ = the professional ‘want’.

Would you send the account details, please?
I would like two sets of certified copies. (never ‘I want’ with officials)
Would you prefer the morning slot or the evening one?

Use 6

WOULD — past habits and past refusals

Module 1 Chapter 15’s would returns, plus its negative: past refusal.

Every Diwali, the whole market would decorate together.
The scooter wouldn’t start that morning, so I took an auto.
He said he would call after the hearing. (reported will)

The two lives of shall

Shall-questions work only with I and we; for any other subject use will. In a contract, shall is a binding duty – read it as must.

Step 3

Hindi Concept Note

अHindi Concept Noteहिंदी में समझिए

SHALL सिर्फ़ दो जगह ज़िंदा है: 1) offer/suggestion — क्या मैं...? क्या हम...?

Shall I...? Shall we...? (सिर्फ़ I और we के साथ!)

2) क़ानूनी कागज़ात — वहाँ shall का मतलब ‘करना बाध्य होगा’: विक्रेता क़ब्ज़ा सौंपेगा The Seller shall hand over possession. Agreement में shall दिखे तो उसे must पढ़ो।

WILL = वादा और ज़िद भी: मैं ख़ुद करवाऊँगा (वादा) I will get it done myself. वह मानता ही नहीं (ज़िद) He won’t listen.

Won’t चीज़ों की ज़िद के लिए भी: गाड़ी start ही नहीं हो रही

The car won’t start.

WOULD = सबसे विनम्र request: क्या आप... भेज देंगे? Would you send...? और ‘मुझे चाहिए’ की formal शक्ल: I would like (I want नहीं — officials के साथ कभी नहीं)।

Step 4

Common Mistakes Hindi Speakers Make

Wrong

Right

Why

Shall you attend the meeting?

Will you attend the meeting?

Shall-questions exist only with I and we. For you/he/they will.

The Purchaser will pays the balance at registry. (contract)

The Purchaser shall pay the balance at registry.

Two fixes: contracts take shall for obligations, and modals take base verbs.

I want three copies of the khasra. (to an official)

I would like three copies of the khasra, please.

Would you to confirm the slot?

Would you confirm the slot?

No ‘to’ after would.

The lift won’t opened yesterday.

The lift wouldn’t open yesterday.

Past refusal = wouldn’t + base verb.

Shall we starts with the pending files?

Shall we start with the pending files?

Base verb after shall — frozen rule, no exceptions.

Step 5

Signal Words

Choosing among the three:

Offering/proposing (I/we) Shall I...? / Shall we...?

Contract or deed obligation shall (read it as must)

Promise or instant commitment will; stubbornness/refusal won’t

Polite request or preference would you...? / I would like...

Past habit or past refusal would / wouldn’t

Step 6

Practice

Set A

Fill in the blanks

0 / 10

1
(shall) I book the 11 o’clock slot at the sub-registrar’s?
2
The Lessee (shall/pay) the maintenance charges directly to the RWA. (agreement)
3
Don’t worry about the follow-up — I (will/handle) it personally.
4
The borewell motor (will/not/start) since yesterday evening.
5
(would) you (share) the soft copy of the layout, please?
6
I (would/like) an appointment with the Tehsildar, if possible.
7
As kids, we (would/fly) kites from this very roof every August.
8
He promised he (will?) revert by Friday. (reported)
9
(shall) we (move) to the next item on the agenda?
10
She (would/not/sign) without her lawyer present — we waited two hours. (past refusal)

Set B

Correct the mistake

0 / 8

11
Shall he join us for the site visit?
12
The Seller will hands over the original chain documents. (contract clause)
13
Would you to keep both units on hold till Monday?
14
I want to meet the SDM. (formal request — improve it)
15
The gate won’t opened during the storm last night.
16
Shall we begins the puja at 9?
17
He said he will transfer the token the same day. (reported last week)
18
Every Sunday, my father will take us to the mandi in those days.

Set C

Translate into English

0 / 7

19
क्या मैं आपके लिए चाय मँगवाऊँ?
20
क्या हम शुरू करें?
21
मैं वादा करता हूँ, काम समय पर पूरा होगा... मतलब, मैं समय पर पूरा करवाऊँगा।
22
क्या आप कल दोबारा आ सकेंगे? (सबसे विनम्र)
23
मुझे दो certified copies चाहिए। (formal)
24
गाड़ी start ही नहीं हो रही।
25
बचपन में हम हर शाम इसी मैदान में खेला करते थे।

Step 7

Answer Key

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Answers · Set A

Shall

shall pay

will handle

will not (won’t) start

Would you share

would like

would fly

would

Shall we move

would not (wouldn’t) sign

Answers · Set B

Will he join us for the site visit? (Shall-questions: I/we only.)

The Seller shall hand over the original chain documents. (Contract shall + base verb.)

Would you keep both units on hold till Monday? (No ‘to’.)

I would like to meet the SDM, please. (Would like — the formal want.)

The gate wouldn’t open during the storm last night. (Past refusal wouldn’t + base.)

Shall we begin the puja at 9? (Base verb.)

He said he would transfer the token the same day. (Will would after said.)

Every Sunday, my father would take us to the mandi in those days. (Past habit would.)

Answers · Set C

Shall I order tea for you? / Shall I get some tea sent up for you?

Shall we begin? / Shall we start?

I promise the work will be completed on time. / I will get it completed on time — that’s my promise.

Would you be able to come again tomorrow? / Would you come again tomorrow, please?

I would like two certified copies, please.

The car won’t start. / The car just won’t start.

As children, we would play on this very ground every evening. / In our childhood, we used to play here every evening.

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Next up · Chapter 8Modals in the Past — Must Have, Should Have, Could Have

Must have, should have, could have — the machinery of hindsight: he must have missed the exit, we should have left earlier.