SHOULD vs. SUPPOSED TO?

Hi and welcome to the Espresso English podcast where you can improve your English in just a few minutes a day. My name is Shayna and I'm the teacher at Espresso English. Make sure to visit the website ispressoenglish.net where you can get online courses and e-books that will help you learn English even faster. Let's get started with today's lesson. A student asked if there's any difference between should and supposed to. Should is used more for general advice and supposed to is used more for when something needs to follow a rule. If you feel sick you should go to the doctor. There's no rule about going to the doctor when sick but it would be a good thing to do. But if we say bicycles are supposed to be parked in this area it means there's a rule or an expectation about where they are parked. Supposed to is often used when the rule exists but isn't being followed. For example bicycles are supposed to be parked in this area but most people leave them on the sidewalk instead. Thanks for the great question and be sure to follow me for more English tips. If you want more great English lessons visit EspressoEnglish.net where you can sign up by email to receive a free e-book with 500 plus real English phrases. You'll also find online courses to help you improve your English fast even if you don't have much time to study. Keep practicing your English and I hope you have a wonderful day.