Modal auxiliary verb
Should and Ought to
Both of these modal verbs have a very similar meaning and one can replace the other. They can be considered not to be as strong as must.
However, should is used much more often and it is less formal than ought to. Ought to is almost never used in interrogative and negative form.
Should
Should is a type of auxiliary modal verb used to express obligation and duty through advice or recommendations.
Affirmative
Its structure, in the affirmative form, is:
Subject + should + verb + …
- I/You should work
- He/She/It should work
- We/You/They should work
For example:
“You should do your homework to understand the subject.” = Should is used to give advice in a friendly manner.
Negative
Its structure, in the negative form, is:
Subject + should + not + verb + …
- I/You should not work
- He/She/It should not work
- We/You/They should not work
Short version of the negative form is: shouldn’t.
For example:
“You shouldn’t do your homework to understand the subject.” = Shouldn’t is used to give advice in a friendly manner.
Interrogative
Its structure, in the interrogative form, is:
Should + subject + verb + …?
Should Subject Verb Question
Mark Should I/you work …? Should he/she/it work …? Should we/you/they work …?
For example:
“Should you do your homework to understand the subject?” = Should…? is used to ask for a confirmation of advice.
Ought to
Ought to is a type of auxiliary modal verb used to express obligation and duty through advice or recommendations.
Affirmative
Its structure, in the affirmative form, is:
Subject + ought to + verb + …
- I/You ought to work
- He/She/It ought to work
- We/You/They ought to work
For example:
“You ought to do your homework to understand the subject.” = Ought to is used to give a recommendation.
Negative
Its structure, in the negative form, is:
Subject + ought + not + to + verb + …
- I/You ought not to work
- He/She/It ought not to work
- We/You/They ought not to work
Short version of the negative form is: oughtn’t.
For example:
“You oughtn’t to do your homework to understand the subject.” = Oughtn’t is used to give a recommendation.
Interrogative
Its structure, in the interrogative form, is:
Ought + subject + to + verb + …?
- Mark Ought I/you to work …?
- Ought he/she/it to work …?
- Ought we/you/they to work …?
NOTE: Should or did is used in some places instead. To is not used in question tags.
For example:
Ought you to do your homework to understand the subject?” = Ought…? is used to ask for a confirmation of a recommendation.
