Modals – Brightonschool

MODALS VERBS

AN INTRODUCTION TO MODALS

The modal verbs include can, could, must, may, might, will, would and should. They always go before the MAIN VERB and express ability, obligation, possibility, premission or request.

Modal verbs are unlike other verbs. They do not need an additional auxiliary in negatives or questions.
May I come in? NOT ~~Do I may come in~~? You shouldn’t smoke. NOT ~~You don’t should smoke~~.
Modals are always followed by the infinitive verb (without TO). She must have been stuck in the traffic. NOT S~~he must has been…~~

FORMS OF MODALS

Modal Simple

Jenny should do her presentation.

Passive Modal Simple

The presentation must be done.

Modal Continuous

Jenny must be doing her presentation.

Passive Modal Perfect

The presentation must have been done.

Modal Perfect

Jenny should have her presentation.

Modals in their base form (modal + V1) refer either to the present or to the future.
I will/can/might help you now/tomorrow.

Modals coupled with a perfect infinitive (modal + have + V3) refer to the past (must, can’t, needn’t, could, should, may and might).
Differentiating between these two uses of modals is a common source of mistake among English learners. So be mindful how you use them. Study the following examples.

Sam might come to the party. (future reference)
Sam might have come to the party but in the end he didn’t. (past reference)
You needn’t buy any milk; there’s a lot in the fridge. (present reference)
Oh, you needn’t have bought me such an expensive gift. (past reference)
You’re calling from the Maldives? It must be lovely being there. (present reference)
I heard you’ve just come back from the Maldives. It must have been lovely. (past reference)
Greg should be here very soon.
Greg should have been here an hour ago. He might have got stuck in traffic.
James, this project should be finished by tomorrow morning.
James, this project should have been finished by last Monday. What went wrong?

Could and would are even more trickier. They can refer to the past even in their base form. (modal + infinitive) We often use could as the past form of can with verbs of perception (see, hear, smell, feel) and remember or understand.

I could write a few more sentences, if you think it’s necessary. (present reference)
I could have written much more but the editor said there was no need to do so. (past reference)
I could do 25 push-ups when I was young. (general ability in the past)
I could hardly understand what he said.

We couldn’t see anything because of the fog.
I couldn’t remember his address.
When we were 18, we would walk along the beach for hours. (repeated action in the past)
My son just wouldn’t tell me where he had been the previous night. (unwillingness in the past)

THE USE OF MODALS

CAN
general ability
I can’t speak Chinese.
She can play the piano wonderfully.
permission
I can drive his car when he doesn’t use it.
She can use his credit card whenever she wants.
request
Can you give me a hand?
Can you take this parcel to the manager?
negative deduction (in present)
You can’t be 35. You look much younger.
The children can’t be hungry. They’ve just eaten a pizza.
possibility
This job can be a challenge for her.
Smoking can cause cancer.
criticism
Pamela can be annoying sometimes.

COULD
general ability in the past
She could run a marathon when she was in her twenties.
I could do two-variable equations in kindergarten.
polite request
Could you leave the door open, please?
suggestion (in present)
You could visit your grandma more often, couldn’t you?
possibility
Someone is at the door. It could be Thomas.
suggestion in past (could + perfect infinitive)
You could have come with us. There was enough room in the car.
Yeah, you’re right. I could have done earlier. But was too lazy.
negative deduction (in past) (could + perfect infinitive)
It couldn’t have been Jessy. She set off to Canada the other day.
It could have been done much better. (perfect infinitive passive)

MAY
possibility
She may arrive at any moment.
Jess may be upset if she hears the news.
giving permission
You may leave the room.
You may use my smartphone if your battery is dead.
request/permission
May I come in?
speculation
Dan is late. He might have stuck in traffic.
Do you think Peter may know something about the case?
in fixed phrases
May the force be with you.
May the Queen live forever.

MIGHT
possibility (present or past)
Hurry up! The meeting might start at any moment.
Nobody has seen her for years. She might have died.
in conditionals
If you keep following her, you might be in trouble.
If I had bought a lottery ticket, I might have been a millionaire.
making a suggestion (when there is no better alternative) /might + as well + base verb/
You might as well come inside. John will be at home at any moment.
We might as well start the meeting. The others will be here soon.
speculation
It might be a problem if the prices continue to fall.

WILL
promises
Yes, mom, I will tidy up my room and take out the litter.
I will always love you.
certainty in the future
She will be 20 in September.
The rooms will be redecorated but all the furniture will remain the same.
making predictions
It will be rainy and cold in the next few days.
I think she will be lost in that big city.
willingness
If you will wait here for a second until I sort out the issue.
unwillingness (present)
Greg just won’t answer the phone. Have no idea what’s going on.
Darling, would you have a look at the car? It won’t to start.
conditional
As soon as I get there, I will let you know.

WOULD
offer
Would you like your Martini shaken or stirred?
preference
I would rather have my stake well done.
polite request
Would you please come in and sit down?
Would you close the door, please?
in conditionals
Where would I be if I hadn’t met you.
If I were you, I definitely wouldn’t go there.
I would have considered the offer if I had received it in time.
repeated action in past
We would often go walking along the beach.
10 years ago, I would go running and do exercises and used to be much fitter.
unwillingness in the past
My old car wouldn’t start this morning. It must be the battery again.
The suspect wouldn’t tell the truth to the police.

SHOULD
assumptions
He should be at the airport by now.
You should find this book helpful.
possibility
Should you meet Peter at the party, tell him I haven’t forgotten my the debt.
If anybody should ask for me, tell them I’ve left for good.
advice
You should do more exercises and reduce sugar intake if you want to loose some weight.
prohibition
Listen to me; you should never do this again.

SHALL
suggestions
Shall we have a short break?
It’s a bit stuffy here. Shall I open the window?
You shall go to the ball, Cinderella.
question
What shall we do now?
Shall I continue singing or was it enough?
offer
Shall I open it for you?

MUST
emphatic advice
You must see Tom Hanks’ latest movie. It’s hilarious.
If you’re in Paris, you must visit the Louvre. It’s simply unmissable.
obligation, necessity
Safety instructions must be followed. She is in deep trouble; I must help her.
prohibition
Children, you mustn’t cross the street when the light is red.
for emphasis
I must admit, you look gorgeous in this red dress.
I must say, this is not what we’ve expected.
for deduction in present/past
Someone is at the door. It must be Greg. He said he would drop in.
She managed to recover from a serious illness. It must have been difficult period for her.

SEMI-MODALS and MODAL PHRASES

Modal phrases (be able to, be going to, be allowed to, be about to, had better) and semi-modals (have to, used to, ought to, need, dare) are used to express the same things as modals, but are a combination of (auxiliary) verbs and the preposition to. Need and dare can be main verbs as well.

HAVE TO
We use HAVE TO for external responsibilities or obligations in past, present or future. HAVE TO is conjugated as a regular verb and requires an auxiliary verb in questions or in negatives.

for external (imposed) obligation
Sam has to be at work on time.
We have to finish it by tonight. The boss said so.

if something is required by a rule or law
In the UK, you have to drive on the left.
All visitors have to wear safety helmets at the building site.

where ‘MUST’ is not possible
If you feel tired, you don’t have to drive.
I had to help her; didn’t have any other option.
They will have to start early.
I didn’t have to work as I had a day off.
Does she have to go?

for emphasis in various spoken phrases
I have to say, this is not going to work out.
I have to admit, I expected something much better.
I have to tell you, this time you won’t get away so easily.

BE ABLE TO
for past achievements (single event)
Edmund Hilary was able to reach the summit in 14 hours.
Sue was able to solve a difficult mathematical problem.
The thief was able to open the door with a single piece of bent wire.

Future/present ability (when can is grammatically not possible)
I have never been able to understand her.
Will you be able to attend the meeting tomorrow?
By the end of this century people will be able to travel to Mars and back in a few days.

BE ABLE TO is similar to CAN; we use it to talk about abilities in places where it is not possible to use can. We often use WAS/WERE ABLE TO for past achievements (but not for past states) in positive sentences. We use couldn’t or, more formally, wasn’t/weren’t able to in negative sentences. Consider the following examples:

Mr Brown, we are terrible sorry that our team was not able to provide you the software you had required.
Hey John, I’m so sorry that I couldn’t help you the other day.

BE ABOUT TO
to talk about things which are going to happen very soon
We are just about to go for a walk. Do you ‘wanna’ come with us?
I am about to have a shower, can I can call you back later?

to talk about things that were going to happen but didn’t
I was about to leave the party when she popped in.
We were about the make a complaint when she came over and apologized.

BE GOING TO
for predictions (based on present evidence)
You look pale. Are you going to faint?
She is going to have a baby very soon.
Look at those clouds; it’s going to rain in minutes.

for intentions and plans (that have already been made)
I‘m going to replace my old laptop.
She‘s going to be a musician when she grows up.
We’re going to buy a new flat next year.

for commands
Kids, you’re going to start doing your homework right now.

*GONNA/gənə/is used in informal speech instead of GOING TO.
Are you gonna try these things or not?
I (am) gonna ask her out tonight.

BE SUPPOSED TO
to say what someone should do
What am I suppose to do now?
You’re supposed to finish this by tonight.

to say what someone is allowed to do
You are not supposed to leave the room until the police arrive.
Am I supposed to start the engine?

to indicate what people say/think about someone or something
Dr Brown is supposed to be one of the best surgeon in the city.
Nora Roberts’ new romance novel is supposed to be a bestseller.

to show that one is angry or offended by something
Was this supposed to be a kind of joke? I’m not amused at all.
You’ve left my suitcase in front of the door. What’s this supposed to mean?
Is this supposed to be my part of job? It is ridiculous.

HAD BETTER
for emphatic advice
It is a strong expression. We use it if we think there will be negative results if someone does not do what is suggested. The verb form is always HAD and it is followed by an infinitive without TO. Both HAD BETTER and SHOULD are used for giving advice but had better refers to a specific action/situation while should has a more general meaning. Study the following examples.

We’d better leave now; the police could be here at any moment.
You should be more careful. One day you might be caught.
Jimmy, you had better tell me the truth now. I know where you’ve been.
Jimmy, you should always tell the truth to people. The truth may hurt for a little while, but a lie hurts forever.

NEED/NEED TO

NEED can behave either as a modal or regular verb. As a modal it is used most commonly in negative
sentences and it’s followed by an infinitive without TO. It talks about the lack of necessity.
You needn’t worry. Everything will be all right.
You needn’t come tomorrow. There will five of us in the office. More than enough.
You needn’t have bought milk. There are three cartons in the fridge.

As a regular verb, NEED is followed by a TO-infinitive, in all types of sentences.
You don’t need to know everything.
My car needs to be cleaned. (My car needs cleaning. – also correct)
Wanna better results? You will need to study much harder.
Do you really need to spend that much money to feel happy?

DARE

DARE can be a main and a modal verb too. As a main verb it can mean:

to have enough courage (main verb, intransitive use)
Pat the dog on the head if you dare.
Touch me if you dare.

to challenge somebody to do smt. (main verb, transitive use)
I dared him to ask her out.
My friend dared me to ride a snowboard down a steep slope.

As a modal verb it can mean:

to be sufficiently courageous
How you dare say I’m a lazy sloth?
No one dared say a word when Mr. Bean entered the room.

WOULD RATHER

We use ‘would rather’ or ‘d rather’ to talk about preferring one thing over the other. It has two different forms:

a) same subject – ‘would rather’ + base form
I‘d rather take the kids to school.
I‘d rather not stay at home.

b) different subjects – ‘would rather + past simple clause
I’d rather you took the kids to school.
I’d rather you didn’t stay at home.

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