Shortform
“should” in braille
Written s-h-d — 6 letters cut to 3 letters of abbreviation, then written in 2 cells. That is 4 cells saved every time the word appears.
dots 1-4-6, then dots 1-4-5
Unicode ⠩⠙ — 6 letters in 2 cells
How to recognise it
sh-d, where the sh is one cell that also means the word “shall”. “shoulder” is the standard example of what this rule must not do — it is not “should” plus an er, and it is spelled out.
Two steps, not one
Abbreviated in letters first, then written in cells. “should” loses 3 letters — o, u, l — to become shd. Then it contracts again: sh is a single cell, which is how 3 letters of abbreviation fit into 2 cells.
| Stage | What it is | Cells |
|---|---|---|
| Spelled out | should | 6 cells |
| Abbreviated | shd | 3 letters |
| Written | 2 cells |
Longer words that keep it
For “should” the Shortforms List (Rules of Unified English Braille, Appendix 1) names six longer words that keep it: shoulda ⠩⠙⠁, shouldst ⠩⠙⠌, should've ⠩⠙⠄⠧⠑, shouldest ⠩⠙⠑⠌, shouldn't ⠩⠙⠝⠄⠞ and shouldn't've ⠩⠙⠝⠄⠞⠄⠧⠑. A longer word that is not on the list is spelled out. An added s keeps the cells as well: “shoulds” is ⠩⠙⠎ (10.9.5).
| Word | In braille | Ending | Cells |
|---|---|---|---|
| shouldest | -est | 4 cells |
Words that only look like it
The shoulder family begins with these letters and has nothing to do with the word; none of it is on the Shortforms List, and each is written out in full. So is “should not” spelled without its apostrophe. With the apostrophe it is a different matter: shouldn't and should've are on the list and keep the shortform: ⠩⠙⠝⠄⠞ and ⠩⠙⠄⠧⠑.
| Word | In braille | Cells |
|---|---|---|
| shoulder | 5 cells | |
| shoulders | 6 cells | |
| shouldering | 6 cells |
Learn it with the modal shortforms
This is one of 3 shortforms built to the same shape — the opening sound, then a d: could (cd), would (wd).
What these 2 cells mean elsewhere
Every cell here has other jobs, which is where misreadings come from:
| Cell | Dots | What it is elsewhere |
|---|---|---|
| 1-4-6 | the letters sh inside a word, and the word “shall” alone | |
| 1-4-5 | the letter d; the word “do” standing alone |
In a whole book
In a count over the whole of Alice’s Adventures in Wonderland (26,439 words), this contraction is written 32 times and saves 128 cells. That is 0.37% of everything Grade 2 saves in the book, and ranks it 65th of the 158 contractions used.
The words it is written in: should (27), shouldn't (5).
Check your own text
The translator writes “should” with Grade 2 selected, and the contractions page has all seventy-five.
“should” in braille as an image
The word as it is actually written: shd in 2 cells, not 6 letters.
