should in the Oxford Spanish Dictionary

Translations for should in the English»Spanish Dictionary

should¹ [Am ʃʊd, ʃəd, Brit ʃʊd] past shall

See also shall

shall <pt should> [Am ʃæl, ʃəl, Brit ʃal, ʃ(ə)l] VB mod

1.1. shall with 1st person (in statements about the future):

I/we shall be very interested to see what happens

tendré/tendremos mucho interés en ver qué sucede

I said we should have to economize

dije que tendríamos que economizar

we shan't be able to come Brit

no podremos or no vamos a poder venir

Jenny, pick up your toys — shan't! Brit

Jenny, recoge los juguetes — ¡no quiero!

1.2. shall with 1st person (making suggestions, asking for assent) The present tense is used in this type of question in Spanish:

shall I open/close the window?

¿abro/cierro la ventana?

shall I open/close the window?

¿quieres (or quiere etc.) que abra/cierre la ventana?

shall we go out tonight?

¿qué te (or le etc.) parece si salimos esta noche?

shall we dance?

¿bailamos?

I'll ask him, shall I?

le pregunto ¿sí? or ¿te (or le etc.) parece?

let's try again, shall we?

intentémoslo otra vez ¿sí? or ¿te (or le etc.) parece?

whatever shall we do? Brit

¿qué podemos hacer?

2. shall with 2nd and 3rd persons (in commands, promises etc):

they shall not pass

no pasarán

thou shalt not steal BIBL

no robarás

should² VB mod

1. should (expressing desirability):

should

debería

should

debiera

you should be studying

deberías or debieras estar estudiando

you should be studying

tendrías que estar estudiando

she shouldn't treat her friends like that

no debería or debiera tratar así a sus amigos

you should have thought of that before

deberías or debieras haber pensado en eso antes

you should have thought of that before

tendrías or tenías que haber pensado en eso antes

I've brought you some flowers — oh, you shouldn't have

te he traído unas flores — ¡no te deberías or debieras haber molestado! or ¡no te tenías or tendrías que haber molestado!

shall I invite them? — I think you should

¿los invito? — creo que deberías hacerlo

that is as it should be

así es como debe ser

you should've seen the look on her face!

¡tenías or tendrías que haber visto la cara que puso!

I didn't have any breakfast — you should've said!

no desayuné — ¡me lo hubieras dicho! or ¡habérmelo dicho!

2. should (indicating probability, logical expectation):

should

debería (de)

should

debiera (de)

it should add up to 100

tendría que or debería (de) or debiera (de) dar or sumar 100

how should I know?

¿cómo quieres que sepa?

how should I know?

¿cómo voy a saber (yo)?

why should they want to come here?

¿por qué han or habrían de querer venir aquí?

3.1. should with first person only (conditional use) Brit form:

I should like to see her

me gustaría verla

I shouldn't have mentioned it if he hadn't asked me to

no lo habría or hubiera mencionado si él no me hubiera preguntado

I shouldn't be surprised if they didn't turn up

no me sorprendería que no aparecieran

I should be grateful if you would send me the details

le agradecería (que) tuviera la gentileza de enviarme la información

3.2. should with first person only (venturing a guess) Brit:

I shouldn't think the chairs are very old

no me parece que las sillas sean muy antiguas

I should think she must be over 80

yo diría que debe tener más de 80

will they be finished by Friday? — I shouldn't think so

¿terminarán antes del viernes? — no creo or no me parece

she's a little upset — I should think she is, poor thing

está un poco disgustada — y es lógico, pobrecita

3.3. should with first person only (expressing indignation):

he said he was sorry — I should think so too!

pidió perdón — ¡faltaría más! or ¡era lo menos que podía hacer!

she won't be asking us for any money — I should think not!

no nos va a pedir dinero — ¡faltaría más! or ¡sería el colmo!

4. should (subjunctive use) with all persons:

it is essential that you should be present

es indispensable que estés presente

it's natural that he should want to go with her

es natural or lógico que quiera ir con ella

I'm sorry he should see it like that

siento que él lo vea de esa manera

if you should happen to pass a bookshop …

si pasaras or si llegaras a pasar por una librería …

5.1. should (expressing amused surprise):

and who should turn up but her ex-husband!

¿y quién te parece que apareció? ¡su exmarido!

what should she come out with at the critical moment but … ?

¿y no va y en el momento crítico sale con que … ?

5.2. should (in exclamations) iron:

he said she drinks too much — he should talk!

dijo que ella bebe demasiado — ¡mira quién habla!

they should complain! I was waiting twice as long as them

¡yo sí que me puedo quejar, que estuve esperando el doble que ellos!

Your search term in other parts of the dictionary

the document should be single-spaced

el documento debe ser mecanografiado a espacio simple or sencillo

how should I know? he snapped grumpily

—¡yo qué sé! —gruñó

we should try to become less inward-looking

deberíamos mirarnos menos el ombligo

Translations for should in the Spanish»English Dictionary

Your search term in other parts of the dictionary

la solicitud deberá hacerse por cuadruplicado

you should submit four copies of the application form

la solicitud deberá hacerse por cuadruplicado

applications should be submitted in quadruplicate form

nos han invitado varias veces, tenemos que reciprocar

they've asked us round several times, we should reciprocate o we should have them back here

la solicitud se debe presentar por duplicado

applications should be made in duplicate

los niños deben obediencia a sus padres

children should obey their parents

deben ser juzgados con benevolencia

they should be judged leniently

should in the PONS Dictionary

Translations for should in the English»Spanish Dictionary

should [ʃʊd] VB aux

1. should (expression of advisability):

to insist that sb should do sth

insistir en que alguien debería hacer algo

2. should (asking for advice):

should I/we ...?

¿debería/deberíamos...?

3. should (expression of expectation):

I should be so lucky! inf

¡ojalá!

4. should form (expressing a condition):

I should like to see her

me gustaría verla

5. should (rhetorical expression):

why should I/you ...?

¿por qué debería/deberías...?

6. should Brit form:

I prefer that Anna should do it

prefiero que lo haga Anna

7. should form (would):

we should like to invite you

nos gustaría invitarte/invitaros

Your search term in other parts of the dictionary

should the need arise

si fuera necesario

should doubt arise

en caso de presentarse la duda

you should get some netting for those windows

deberías comprar un visillo para esas ventanas

the cobbler should stick to his last prov

zapatero, a tus zapatos prov

I didn't do it lest he should come

no lo hice por si venía

Translations for should in the Spanish»English Dictionary

Your search term in other parts of the dictionary

cabe destacar que... ex

it should be pointed out that...

¿qué procedimiento se puede seguir aquí?

what procedure should be followed here?

debes educar tu oído

you should train your ear

eso te servirá de vacuna fig

that should teach you a lesson

le estaría muy agradecido que me contestara lo antes posible

I should be very grateful if you would reply as soon as possible

should Examples from the PONS Dictionary (editorially verified)

I should like to see her

me gustaría verla

I prefer that Anna should do it

prefiero que lo haga Anna

we should like to invite you

nos gustaría invitarte/invitaros

that I should live to see this!

¡que tenga que vivir para ver algo así!

the cobbler should stick to his last prov

zapatero, a tus zapatos prov

I think we should call him/her

estoy por llamarle

with everything just as it should be

con todos los requisitos fig inf

what procedure should be followed here?

¿qué procedimiento se puede seguir aquí?

now we (etc.) should remain silent

ahora procede guardar silencio

I think we should buy it

estoy por comprarlo

Monolingual examples (not verified by PONS Editors)

English

As with a safe word call from any other, it should herald the stopping all play and a recuperative discussion between the participants.

en.wikipedia.org

Clean-outs should be placed in accessible locations at regular intervals throughout a drainage system, often including outside the building, because clean-out augers have limited length.

en.wikipedia.org

It also should be avoided by patients with peptic ulcer disease or poor kidney function, since this medication can worsen both conditions.

en.wikipedia.org

She continued: if that opinion is misinformed, the solution is not to bow to it, but the solution should be to inform.

en.wikipedia.org

A well-structured pant suit and long kurtas plus well-fitted skirts should be wardrobe staples.

www.thehindu.com

Deference should be given only with a justification consistent with democratic values and sufficiently necessary to maintain public order.

en.wikipedia.org

The first retorted that the second should fly off his ground.

en.wikipedia.org

They should find out if their mortgage company is willing to give them a bridge loan.

www.theglobeandmail.com

It is typically charged monthly and should be itemised.

www.bbc.co.uk

At the store, they should not be damaged or bruised and pre-cut pieces should be refrigerated or surrounded by ice.

en.wikipedia.org