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Usage Entry 1047 / 1350 60-second read

Shall vs. Will

Old first-person future versus modern general future.

The comparisoni

✗ Wrong

I will shall be there by seven.

✓ Correct

I shall be there by seven. / I will be there by seven.

The ruleii

Modern English: WILL everywhere.

Historically, SHALL was used with I and WE for the plain future (I shall go). In modern English, WILL has replaced it almost entirely — except in legal and emphatic contexts.

Memory aidiii

Remember it like this

Legal or emphatic: shall. Everyday: will.

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