ELPS

In English, shall is a modal auxiliary verb. It is the least frequent of the modal auxiliary verbs in use today, and sometimes even native speakers replace it with another auxiliary verb - will across the board. However, there is one traditionally important case where shall rather than will should always be employed. Broadly, the case refers to the formulation of future tenses, and in particular, to forming questions for the first person (I - singular ,We - plural) in them.

Examples

Here are some examples:

Example 1

Where shall I begin with this?

instead of

Where Will I begin with this?

Example 2

Shall I go there tomorrow?

instead of

Will I go the there tomorrow?

Example 3

Shall We meet at the fountain in the middle of the park?

Will We meet at the fountain in the middle of the park?

Example 4

Stephanie seems to be very anxious about her treatment with us. Shall We chat to her to alleviate her concerns?

Stephanie seems to be very anxious about her treatment with us. Will We chat to her to alleviate her concerns?