# For Esperanto speakers: translation question

**URL:** <https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-esperanto-speakers-translation-question/773608>\
**Category:** Factual Questions\
**Created:** [December 2, 2016, 6:52am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-esperanto-speakers-translation-question/773608 "2016-12-02T06:52:19Z")\
**Posts on this page:** 3\
**Page:** 2

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**Author:** ![Sunspace](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sunspace/32/1250_2.png) [@Sunspace](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sunspace)\
**Post date:** [April 15, 2017, 12:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-esperanto-speakers-translation-question/773608/21 "2017-04-15T00:32:41Z")

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_Saluton!_

How did I miss this thread earlier? 🙂 (Oh yeah, I haven’t been on the boards much lately…)

Translating the US Constitution? Are you still working on this? PM me; if you have a text maybe I can polish it a bit…

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**Author:** ![PatrickLondon](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/patricklondon/32/4422_2.png) [@PatrickLondon](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PatrickLondon)\
**Post date:** [April 15, 2017, 6:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-esperanto-speakers-translation-question/773608/22 "2017-04-15T06:42:07Z")

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> [@John\_Mace](#):
>
> “Shall” is borderline archaic in American English. It’s not used much in everyday speech. Using it often evokes an air of stuffy formality: _Whatever shall we do?_ I’d expect to hear it more commonly used in England

I occasionally see it misused here in public notices in third person or neutral forms, as though it’s just a slightly posher sort of future tense, without the implication of compulsion that I was brought up to understand from it in those uses. Always strikes me as odd.

It’s not usual to hear it in the first person as a normal future tense. Most people would say “I’m going to [do whatever]”, or avoid any difference between “will” and “shall” with “I’ll…”

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**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\
**Post date:** [April 15, 2017, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/for-esperanto-speakers-translation-question/773608/23 "2017-04-15T08:05:42Z")

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> [@PatrickLondon](#):
>
> It’s not usual to hear it in the first person as a normal future tense. Most people would say “I’m going to [do whatever]”, or avoid any difference between “will” and “shall” with “I’ll…”

I believe that’s what **Chronos** was talking about. I remember being told that the distinction between shall/will was reversed for first person singular.

The only logic I’ve ever come up with for the difference is “shall” is compelling yourself, while “will” is a declarative statement of what you will do, and thus suggests that you feel obligated to do so.

I, like **John Mace** , treat “shall” as archaic. I find “should” or “must” or similar to be sufficient.

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