Definition of will
past wouldplay \wəd, (ə)d, ˈwu̇d\ pres sing & pl will
transitive verb
: desire, wish <call it what you will>
auxiliary verb
1
—used to express desire, choice, willingness, consent, or in negative constructions refusal <no one would take the job> <if we will all do our best> <will you please stop that racket>
2
—used to express frequent, customary, or habitual action or natural tendency or disposition <will get angry over nothing> <will work one day and loaf the next>
3
—used to express futurity <tomorrow morning I will wake up in this first-class hotel suite — Tennessee Williams>
4
—used to express capability or sufficiency <the back seat will hold three passengers>
5
—used to express probability and often equivalent to the simple verb <that will be the babysitter>
6
a —used to express determination, insistence, persistence, or willfulness <I have made up my mind to go and go I will>
b —used to express inevitability <accidents will happen>
7
—used to express a command, exhortation, or injunction <you will do as I say, at once>
intransitive verb
: to have a wish or desire <whether we will or no>
if you will
: if you wish to call it that <a kind of preoccupation, or obsession if you will — Louis Auchincloss>
shall vs. will
From the reams of pronouncements written about the distinction between shall and will—dating back as far as the 17th century—it is clear that the rules laid down have never very accurately reflected actual usage. The nationalistic statements of 18th and 19th century British grammarians, who commonly cited the misuses of the Irish, the Scots, and occasionally the Americans, suggest that the traditional rules may have come closest to the usage of southern England. Some modern commentators believe that English usage is still the closest to the traditionally prescribed norms. Most modern commentators allow that will is more common in nearly all uses.
