Showing results for shouldn't. Search instead for shouldn-t.

shouldn't

American

[shood-nt] / ˈʃʊd nt /

contraction of should not.

shouldn't British

/ ˈʃʊdənt /

contraction

should not

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Usage

See contraction, ought ¹.

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

"Its priority, both domestically and in foreign policy, is economic development. There is a broad consensus that China shouldn't recklessly get involved in a war."

From BBC

In some respects, it shouldn’t put much of a dent in consumer spending and the economy.

From The Wall Street Journal

The level of command with which Jackson and Hirsch shape this piece indicates that the audience shouldn’t expect otherwise.

From Salon

There is an argument that Americans shouldn’t worry much about $4 gasoline.

From The Wall Street Journal

In some respects, though, $4 gasoline shouldn’t put much of a dent in consumer spending and the economy.

From The Wall Street Journal

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023