Good day everyone! I miss doing this again, sharing what I had learned from the reporters. Now, let us have the modals. We will able to distinguish the uses of modal verbs the: can, could, will, would, may, might, shall, should, ought to, must. So let us start.
Modal Verbs
A modal is a type of auxiliary
(helping) verb that is used to express: ability, possibility, permission
or obligation.
They are different from normal verbs like
"work, play, visit..." They give additional information about
the function of the main verb that follows it.
They
never change their form. You can't add "s", "ed",
"ing"...
They
are always followed by an infinitive without "to" (e.i. the
bare infinitive.)
The modal verbs are can,
could, will, would, may, might, shall, should, ought to, must.
Can and Could
CAN COULD
* used to describe ability
(I can change the oil in my car without help.)
*used
to described your ability in the past
(When
I was
younger, I could run for miles," or "
It used to be you could buy
lunch for a dollar.)
*say whether something is possible
or not
(Do you think he can win the race?)
* used
in this way, it refers to something that you believe is likely to be true or to
happen.
(We could
have as many as ten people come to dinner tonight.)
*used to ask permission to do
(Can I
borrow your car?)
(Can I
get you something to drink?)
*Could
is also used to refer to something that you wish to have or do but that is not
possible. ("If only we could be free of this tyrant!")
*It’s
also used to describe something that was possible but did not happen, used with
the verb have ("We could have won if we had practiced harder.").
*Could
can also express annoyance or another strong emotion ("He could have asked
me if I needed help!" or "I could have died I was so embarrassed!"), but can isn’t used this way.
Similarity:
When
making general polite suggestions or asking a question, both could and can are
possible ("Excuse
me, can/could you tell me what time it is?")
May and Might
MAY MIGHT
*Formal
Permission / Formal Prohibition
(You may start your exam now.
Or You may not
wear sandals to work.)
*Polite Suggestion (You might like to try
the salmon fillet. It’s our special today.)
*Polite Request (May I help you?)
Similarities
*Possibility
We may
go out dinner tonight. Do you want to join us?
Our company
might get the order if the client agrees to the price.
*Negative Possibility
Adam
and
Sue may not buy that house. It's very expensive.
They might
not buy a house at all.
*To Make a Suggestion (when there is no
better alternative)
You may
as well come
inside. John will be home soon.
We might
as well take
Friday off. There’s no work to be done anyway.
Will and Would
Will Would
*to
say what we believe will happen in the future
(We'll
be late.
We will have to take the train.)
*to
say what we believed would happen:
I thought
I would be late …… so I would have to take the train.
*to
talk about what people want to do or are willing to do:
Perhaps
dad will
lend me the car.
*to
talk about what people wanted to do or were willing to do:
Dad wouldn’t
lend me the car, so we had to take the train.
*use in
conditionals with if and unless to say
what we think will
happen in the future or present:
I will give her
a call if I can find her number. You
won’t get in unless you have a
ticket.
*In
conditionals with words like if and what if. In these sentences
the main verb is usually in the past tense:
I would
give her a call if I could find her number.
*to
make offers and promises:
I will
give you a lift home after the party.
We will come and see you next week.
*to
talk about the result or effect of a possible situation:
It would be very expensive to stay in a hotel.
*to
talk about something that we did often in the past because we wanted to do it:
When they were children they used to spend their holidays at their grandmother’s at the seaside. They would get up early every morning and they’d have a quick breakfast
then they would run across the road to the
beach.
*We
use conditionals to give advice:
Dan will help you if you ask him. Dan would help you
if you asked him.
Shall and Should
SHALL SHOULD
*To
Offer of Assistance or Polite Suggestion
(When you are quite sure of a positive
answer)
Shall we go for
a walk?
*To
Offer of Assistance or Polite Suggestion (When you are not sure of a positive
answer)
Should I call a
doctor?
*Express
certain laws and rules.
You
shall abide by the law.
*We
can use it as a personal opinion.
You
should go to the police. Or You should
see a doctor.
*Used
to ask for someone’s opinion:
What should we do now?
*Used
something expected or correct: Everybody should arrive by 6 pm.
*Use
to express that we wish something had happened but it didn’t.
You should
have seen it, it was beautiful.
*To predict
something will probably happen or expected to be
the case, base on logic
or a typical situation
My
sister's on the way, she should
be here soon.
Ought to
*to
express the view that something is the right thing to do, because it’s morally
correct, polite, or someone’s duty:
You
ought to admit that you made a mistake.
*to
predict that something is fairly likely or expected, based on normal
circumstances or logic:
Our long-delayed mail is on the way
from France and ought to arrive today.
* to
offer
or ask for advice or recommendations:
If you haven’t read the book then you ought
to see the movie.
What
ought to be done to improve things?
Must
*to talk about something that has to be
done because it’s compulsory or obligatory Online stores must give a cooling-off
period of seven working days.
*Because
it’s
very important:
To calm public opinion, police must quickly
arrest the culprits and solve this case.
*to
express the view that something is highly likely because it’s a logical
conclusion based on something else that the speaker knows, or it’s the normal
thing to expect:
Our measurements show that exactly the
opposite must be the case.
Her mega
hairdo must have taken several cans of hairspray to achieve.
*to
say to someone that you strongly recommend or advise something because it’s a
good idea:
We get on well and keep saying we must meet up for lunch
sometime.
Modality: Tense
Past and continuous
We
can indicate the past by using a modal verb + have
+ -ed form
of the verb
which follows:
We should
have listened more
carefully.
I suppose we could
have gone to
the hotel. I would
have preferred the
holiday camp.
We
can indicate the continuous by using a modal verb + be
+
ing form of the verb which
follows.
continuous
|
They may
be coming sooner
than we expected.
He could
be staying with
friends in London.
|
past and continuous
|
She might
have been waiting for
us.
I must
have been chatting to
him for 20 minutes.
|
Except CAN, MUST and MAY
Replacements:
|
can
|
→
|
to
be able to
|
|
must
|
→
|
have
to
|
|
may
|
→
|
to
be allowed to
|
CAN – TO BE ABLE TO
I can drive. = I am able to drive.
|
Present tense
|
Past tense
|
Present perfect
|
Will - future
|
I
|
am able
to drive.
|
was able
to drive.
|
have
been able to drive.
|
will
be able to drive.
|
He, she, it
|
is able
to drive.
|
was able
to drive.
|
has
been able to drive.
|
will
be able to drive.
|
You, we, they
|
are able
to drive.
|
were able
to drive.
|
have
been able to drive.
|
will
be able to drive
|
I must learn. = I have to learn.
|
Present tense
|
Past tense
|
Present perfect
|
Will – future
|
I, you, we, they
|
have to
learn.
|
had to
learn.
|
have
had to learn.
|
will
have to learn.
|
He, she, it
|
has to
learn.
|
had to
learn.
|
has
had to learn.
|
will
have to learn.
|
MAY – BE ALLOWED TO
I may go out – I am allowed to go
out
|
Present tense
|
Past tense
|
Present perfect
|
Will – future
|
I
|
am allowed
to go
|
was allowed
to go
|
have
been allowed to go
|
will
be allowed to go
|
he, she, it
|
is allowed
to go
|
was allowed
to go
|
has
been allowed to go
|
will
be allowed to go
|
you, we, they
|
are allowed
to go
|
were allowed
to go
|
have
been allowed to go
|
will
be allowed to go
|
