Advice and

recommendation:

shall, should, had

better
 Question formulated "Shall I?" is
stronger than "Should I?".

It represents a request on the part of

the speaker to know the opinion of the
person he is talking to.
 shall can mean the same as
will but only used after I or we:

I shall be on holiday next week.

We shall be on holiday next
week.
When used with other pronouns,
shall is not interchangable with
will. It appears to have the same
meaning as should:

He shall do it again.
You shall know tomorrow.
 shall =/= shan't

In spoken English it appears rarely, often with

have -> He shall have it as soon as I've finished
with it.

In formal English, legal texts and contracts shall

appears often and is used to articulate
assumptions -> The Company shall maintain
quality standards.
 Should and ought to express advice and
recommendation. The advice or
recommendation may relate to everyday
or practical matters, or to what is morally
desirable.

You should/ought to read that book.

He shouldn't/ought not to tell lies.
 Had better ('d better) is used to suggest
the wisest course of action in a particular
situation.

You'd better see a doctor if you're still

feeling ill tomorrow.
The negative particle not comes
after the whole phrase: You'd
better not make a mistake next
time.

Question: Hadn't you better see

who is at that door?
 Had better is used exclusively in
Present tenses and refers to present
or future.

Should is used with perfect infinitive to

refer to past time (should have done
sth)
In the situation when should is used
in reference to past time, the
sentences always imply that the
opposite is in fact true:

He should have been more tactful

(i.e. but he wasn't tactful).
 Should is often used in a "that" clause after
verbs like recommend, suggest, require, decide
etc.

In such sentences, should is often omitted,

leaving only the bare infinivite without "to".

I suggested that he should take legal advice.

I suggested (that) he take legal advice.