Frequency: The word is one of the 1500 most common words in English.
Note: 'Shall' is a modal verb. It is used with the base form of a verb.
1.
You use ~ with ‘I’ and ‘we’ in questions in order to make offers or suggestions, or to ask for advice.
Shall I get the keys?...
Shall I telephone her and ask her to come here?...
Well, ~ we go?...
Let’s have a nice little stroll, ~ we?...
What ~ I do?
MODAL
2.
You use ~, usually with ‘I’ and ‘we’, when you are referring to something that you intend to do, or when you are referring to something that you are sure will happen to you in the future.
We ~ be landing in Paris in sixteen minutes, exactly on time...
I ~ know more next month, I hope...
I ~ miss him terribly.
MODAL
3.
You use ~ with ‘I’ or ‘we’ during a speech or piece of writing to say what you are going to discuss or explain later. (FORMAL)
In Chapter 3, I ~ describe some of the documentation that I gathered...
MODAL
4.
You use ~ to indicate that something must happen, usually because of a rule or law. You use ~ not to indicate that something must not happen.
The president ~ hold office for five years...
MODAL
5.
You use ~, usually with ‘you’, when you are telling someone that they will be able to do or have something they want.
‘I want to hear all the gossip, all the scandal.’—‘You ~, dearie, you ~!’
MODAL
6.
You use ~ with verbs such as ‘look forward to’ and ‘hope’ to say politely that you are looking forward to something or hoping to do something. (FORMAL)
Well, we ~ look forward to seeing him tomorrow...
MODAL politeness
7.
You use ~ when you are referring to the likely result or consequence of a particular action or situation.
When big City firms cut down on their entertainments, we ~ know that times really are hard...
MODAL