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Glite Dictionary
shouldest

shouldest

1 9.9
To be an old second-person form used with thou to show duty or advice
  • auxiliary
  • Archaic
: deberías
  • Thou shouldest not lie!

Examples

  • If thou shouldest find the answer, share it with the others.

  • He asked, 'Why shouldest thou fear the darkness?'

  • Pray that thou shouldest be guided by wisdom in thy choices.

  • Why shouldest thou doubt?

  • If thou shouldest find the answer, share it with the others.

  • He asked, 'Why shouldest thou fear the darkness?'

  • Pray that thou shouldest be guided by wisdom in thy choices.

Synonyms

shouldst
vsshouldest
  • Archaic
2 9.9

To be an old form people used with 'thou' to give advice or talk about duty

is the same form but spelled with extra letters and a final syllable

Surface Forms

shouldest infinitive

Morphology

shouldest = should (transparent) = should + est

The meaning is directly derived from the modal 'should' with the archaic 2nd-person singular suffix 'est', so learners who know 'should' can infer it means 'you should' though the ending is archaic.

Etymology

Shouldest is an old form of should used with the old word 'thou' for 'you', and the ending -est marks that old 'you' form, like in lovest or goest. So shouldest simply means 'you should' in older English.