These questions ask you to give ordinary advice, express an urgent warning, or recognise the correct structure after should, ought to and had better. First identify the intended force, then build the verb phrase.
Read the situation before choosing the form
Begin with the context. A sensible recommendation with no immediate threatened consequence calls for should or ought to; both are standard, so do not try to rank them by strength. A warning tied to a particular danger, deadline or likely bad consequence calls for had better. After choosing the expression, check its grammar separately. Should takes the bare verb, ought keeps to before the bare verb, and had better also takes the bare verb even though had looks like a past form.
| Signal in the context | Pattern to build |
|---|---|
| Ordinary recommendation | should plus bare verb, or ought to plus bare verb |
| Specific warning with an immediate risk or consequence | had better plus bare verb |
| Warning against an action | had better not plus bare verb |
For a negative recommendation, put not after should or between ought and to: should not act and ought not to act. For a negative warning, keep the whole frame had better not, then add the unchanged verb. A quick final check is useful: locate the first lexical verb and make sure it has no to, -ing, -ed or third-person ending after should or had better. After ought, make sure the single to is present.
Avoid these tempting forms
| Temptation | How to reject it |
|---|---|
| should to plus a verb | This blends the should pattern with the ought to pattern. Use should directly before the bare verb, or use ought to. |
| to, an -ing form, a past participle or an -s form after had better | Had better is a fixed warning frame followed by the bare verb. The word had does not turn the following verb into a participle. |
| had not better, or had better not to plus a verb | In a negative warning, not belongs after better and the next verb remains bare: had better not plus verb. |
| ought without to, or should followed by an -ing form | Ought requires to before the bare verb, while should connects directly to the bare verb. Keep the two structures separate. |
Try it
Which sentence contains a form error in the contrast among should, ought to, and had better for advice?
- We had better to descend before the cloud covers the ridge.
- You should photograph the meter.
- The committee ought to publish a timetable.
- I had better keep the receipt.
Select all that apply. Which sentences give an ordinary recommendation with a standard should or ought-to form?
- You should dim the screen an hour before sleep.
- The club should to revise its unusually complicated membership form.
- The club ought to revise its membership form.
- You ought consider dimming the screen well before bedtime.
Use had better (negative: had better not) and the verb in brackets to complete the urgent warning: The last cable car departs in four minutes. We ___ now, or we will be stranded overnight. (leave)