Should have

We can use 'should have' to talk about past events that did not happen.

I should have let her know what was happening but I forgot. He should have sent everybody a reminder by email. They should have remembered that their guests don't eat pork.

We can also use 'should have' to speculate about events that may or may not have happened.

She should have got the letter this morning. I expect she'll give us a call about it later. He should have arrived at his office by now. Let's try ringing him. They should have all read that first email by this stage. It's time to send the next one.

We can use ' should not have' to speculate negatively about what may or may not have happened.

She shouldn't have left work yet. I'll call her office. He shouldn't have boarded his plane yet. We can probably still get hold of him. They shouldn't have sent the report off for printing yet. There is still time to make changes.

We can also use 'should not have' to regret past actions.

I shouldn't have shouted at you. I apologise. We shouldn't have left the office so late. We should have anticipated this bad traffic. They shouldn't have sacked him. He was the most creative person on their team.

Gramtica Should Se utiliza para dar consejos. Se indica que algo es bueno y por lo tanto se debera hacer. Es una recomendacin, no una obligacin. Tiene menos fuerza impositiva que "must" y que "have to". If you feel bad you should go to the doctor Tambin se utiliza para dar una orden pero de forma muy educada. Anyone who wants to enter the conference should show his credentials (Se trata realmente de una obligacin -es obligatorio mostrar las credenciales para entrar en la conferencia-, pero est expresada de forma poco coercitiva) Construccin: este verbo modal va seguido del infinitivo del verbo principal sin la partcula "to". Se utiliza en pasado, presente y futuro. I should have finished my report yesterday (pasado) You should help me, I can not do it alone (presente) Tomorrow you should call your parents (futuro) El pasado se utiliza para indicar algo que se debera haber hecho y no se hizo. La forma negativa es: shouldn't You shouldn't smoke Y la forma interrogativa: Should + sujeto...? Should I wear a dark suit for the party? Must / Have to Expresan una obligacin, algo que hay que hacer. You must come here immediately (es una orden) If you want to make a career in a company you have to speak English (No hay alternativa: o hablas ingls o no hay carrera posible)

Comprueba la diferencia con la siguiente oracin: Nowdays it is very important to speak English. You should do it. Aqu se trata de un consejo, mientras que en la anterior era una obligacin. Por otra parte, cuando se utiliza "must" / "have to" el emisor tiene la conviccin de que la obligacin va a ser cumplida, mientras que cuando se utiliza "should" no se sabe si el consejo se va a seguir o no. We should buy a new car (es un deseo; no hay seguridad de que vayamos a hacerlo) We must buy a new car (hay muchas probabilidades de que lo hagamos)

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