should've

Australia, UK, US/ˈʃʊdəv/British, Southern, Standard/ˈʃɵdəv/Northern Ireland, Scotland/ˈʃʉdəv/

A form of should — Used to issue an instruction (traditionally seen as carrying less force of authority than alternatives such as 'shall' or 'must').

Similar
shoulda
OriginEnglish have ← Middle English haven ← Old English habban →
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Meanings

contraction
  1. abbreviationcontractionContraction of should + have.

    He should've arrived earlier.

    1 more example

    Mo said should-haves weren't going to do Lolly or me any good.

    2008, Wally Lamb, The Hour I First Believed, Ch.5, at p.113

    Synonyms: shoulda

Synonyms & antonyms

Origin

  1. Englishshould
  2. Proto-Indo-European*kap-
  3. Proto-Germanic*habjaną
  4. Proto-West Germanic*habbjan
  5. Old Englishhabban
  6. Middle Englishhaven
  7. Englishhave
  8. Englishshould've

From should + -'ve.

Full word history & related roots →

Translations

Spanish debió haber (de), debía haber (de)
  • debió haber (de) (él)contraction
  • debía haber (de) (él)contraction
  • debería haber (de) (él)contraction
  • debiese/debiera haber (de)contraction
  • (él) habríacontraction
  • hubiesecontraction
  • hubieracontraction
Cite this entry
APA

should've. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/should've

MLA

“should've.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/should've. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “should've,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/should've.

Source: should've on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.