Modal verbs

Modals (also called modal verbs, modal auxiliary verbs, modal auxiliaries) are

special verbs which behave irregularly in English. 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 have a great variety of communicative functions.

The modal verbs include can, must, may, might, will, would, should. They are used
with other verbs to express ability, obligation, possibility, permission, advice,
prohibition, lack of necessity, probability. Below is a list showing the most useful
modals and their most common meanings:

Modal Meaning Example

can to express ability I can speak a little Russian.
can to request permission Can I open the window?
may to express possibility I may be home late.
may to request permission May I sit down, please?
must to express obligation I must go now.
must to express strong belief She must be over 90 years old.
should to give advice You should stop smoking.
would to request or offer Would you like a cup of tea?
would in if-sentences If I were you, I would say sorry.

The verbs or expressions dare, ought to, had better, and need do not behave like
modal auxiliaries to a large extent and may be added to the above list.

Modal verbs are unlike other verbs:

They do not change their form (spelling). They don't use “s”, “es”, “ies” forms for the
third person singular (simple present affirmative sentences).

They do not have infinitive or participle form (past/present).

They make questions by inversion (“she can go…” becomes “can she go….?”) because
they are auxiliary verbs by themselves, so that they do not need an additional auxiliary
in negatives. For example: He shouldn't smoke (He doesn't should smoke).

They are followed directly by the infinitive of another verb (without 'to'). For
example: He can play de guitar (NO: He can to play the guitar).

They are used to indicate modality allow speakers to express certainty, possibility,
willingness, obligation, necessity, ability.

Here is a list of modals with examples:

 Modal Verb Expressing Example

Strong obligation You must stop when the traffic lights turn red.
must
logical conclusion / Certainty He must be very tired. He's been working all day long.

must not prohibition You must not smoke in the hospital.

ability I can swim.

can permission Can I use your phone please?

possibility Smoking can cause cancer.

ability in the past When I was younger I could run fast.

could polite permission Excuse me, could I just say something?

possibility It could rain tomorrow!

permission May I use your phone please?

may
possibility, probability It may rain tomorrow!

polite permission Might I suggest an idea?

might
possibility, probability I might go on holiday to Australia next year.

lack of necessity/absence of I need not buy tomatoes. There are plenty of tomatoes
need not
obligation in the fridge.

50 % obligation I should / ought to see a doctor. I have a terrible

headache.

should/ought to advice You should / ought to revise your lessons

logical conclusion He should / ought to be very tired. He's been working all
day long.

had better advice You 'd better revise your lessons

The modals must and can need substitute verbs to express obligation or ability in the

different tenses. Here are some examples:

Past simple Sorry I'm late. I had to finish my math test.

Present perfect She's had to return to Korea at short notice.
Future You'll have to work hard if you want to pass the exams.
Infinitive I don't want to have to go.
Past simple I couldn't/wasn't able to walk until I was 3 years old.
Present perfect I haven't been able to solve this problem. Can you help?
Future I'm not sure if I will be able to come to your party.
Infinitive I would love to be able to play the piano.

Modals in the present and past

Generally speaking modals in the past have the following form:

 modal + have + past participle

Example:

 Present: 
You should see a doctor.
 Past:
You should have seen a doctor

Except for modals that express obligation, ability and lack of necessity:

 Obligation: 
Present = I must / have to work hard. -- Past = I had to work hard.
 Ability: 
Present = I can run fast. -- Past = I could run fast when I was young.
 Lack of necessity: 
Present = You don't have to / needn't take your umbrella. –
 Past = You didn't have to / didn't need to take your umbrella.

  Modals in the Present Modals in the Past

Obligation You must / have to stop when the traffic lights You had to stop.

are red.

Advice You should see a doctor. You should have seen a doctor

Prohibition You mustn't smoke here. You mustn't have smoked there.

Ability I can run fast. I could run fast. now I am old.

Certainty He has a Rolls Royce. He must be very rich. He must have been rich. He had a big
He can't be American. His English is terrible. house and an expensive car.
He can't have written that poem. He was
illiterate.

Permission Can I go out? She could drive her father's car when she

was only 15.

Possibility It may / can / could / might rain. It's cloudy. I guess it may / can / could / might have
been Lacy on the phone.

Lack of You don't have to / needn't buy any tomatoes. You didn't have to / didn't need to

necessity There are plenty in the fridge. buytomatoes.

Choose the right modal verb

1. There are plenty of tomatoes in the fridge. You needn’t buy any. (Mustn’t –
needn’t- shouldn’t - may not)

2. It's a hospital. You mustn’t  smoke (Mustn’t – needn´t – may not – don’t have to).

3. He had been working for more than 11 hours. He must be tired after such hard
work ( must – need – had better – mustn´t) . He may    prefer to get some rest
( may – should – must – had better).
4. I could speak Arabic fluently when I was a child and we lived in Morocco (could –
might –can – must) . But after we moved back to Canada, I had very little
exposure to the language and forgot almost everything I knew as a child. Now,
I can just say a few things in the language.(may – can – must – need)

5. The teacher said we can read this book for our own pleasure as it is optional (can
– needn’t – must – should ). But we needn’t read it if we don't want to. (could –
need – needn´t – mustn´t).
 6. Can (may – need – must – can ) you stand on your head for more than a minute?
No, I can’t (may not – needn´t – can´t).

7. If you want to learn to speak English fluently, you need (could – need – needn’t –

mustn’t)  to work hard.

8. Take an umbrella. It might (need – should – mustn’t – might))  rain later.

9. You shouldn’t ( shouldn’t – need – needn’t – may not) leave small objects lying
around . Such objects may (must – need – may – mustn´t) be swallowed by
children.

10. People mustn’t (couldn’t – needn’t – mustn’t – may not )  walk on grass.

11. Drivers must (could – must - may) stop when the traffic lights are red.

12. May (may – must – should - will)  I ask a question? Yes, of course.

13. You needn’t (couldn’t – needn’t – mustn’t – may not)  take your umbrella. It

is not raining.

14. Can (can – need – should - may) you speak Italian? No, I can’t (shouldn’t –
mustn’t – may not – can’t) .

Do the exercise below on  the present and past of modals

Choose the correct answer

1. He can’t be (can’t have been – can’t be) French. His French is terrible.
2. The kids are calm today. They must be (must have been – must be – had to
be)tired.

3. Although Leila was very hungry, she didn't eat very much. She couldn’t have liked
(couldn’t have liked – could have liked –can’t like ) the food.

4. The phone is ringing. It  must be (must be – must to be –must have been )

Mary. She promised she would call.

5. John had a terrible accident. He had to stop (must stop – had to stop ) when the
traffic lights were red.

6. I don't know why she got so many bad grades. She might have been (may be –
might be – might have been) lazy studying.

7. I didn't know you needed help. You should have told (should have told – should
tell) me.
8. I am so tired. I need some rest. I think I should take (should take – should have
taken) a week off.

9. He could run (could have run – can run – could run) so fast when he was young.

10. Nancy can’t have gone (can’t have gone – can’t go) on holiday. I have just
met her in the street.

Do the exercise below on modals of prohibition and lack of necessity

Write the correct answer (mustn't or needn't)

1. Nancy needn’t go to bed early; tomorrow is her day off.

2. You mustn’t smoke on buses. It's forbidden.
3. You needn’t do it now; you can finish it later.
4. Students mustn’t use their mobile phones during the lessons.
5. You needn’t buy any meat. There is plenty of it in the fridge.
6. You needn’t bring a swim suit. I can lend you one.
7. It's a secret. You mustn’t tell anybody.
8. You needn’t do the washing up; we have a dishwasher.
9. You really mustn’t be late again.
10. You mustn’t drink at all if you plan to drive.

Do the exercise below on the meaning of modals 

Choose the correct answer about the meaning of the modal forms in the
following sentences

1. May I use your mobile phone? (Asking for advice, Asking for permission, Making a
suggestion)

2. May I help you?  (Asking for advice, Asking for permission, Making a suggestion)

3. You mustn't walk on grass. (Expressing prohibition, Expressing obligation,

Expressing lack of necessity)

4. What do you think I should do? (Asking for advice, Asking for permission, Making
a suggestion)

5. Can you help me with this exercise? (Asking for advice, Asking for permission,
Making a suggestion)
 6. I can speak Arabic. (Expressing possibility, Expressing obligation, Expressing
ability)

7. I think you should see a doctor. (Expressing probability, Giving advice, Making a
request)

8. You must stop when the traffic lights are red. (Expressing prohibition, Expressing
obligation, Expressing ability)

9. You needn't take your umbrella. It isn't raining. (Expressing prohibition,

Expressing obligation, Expressing lack of necessity)

10. You may pass the exam. It is not very difficult. You only have to work
harder. (Expressing prohibition, Expressing obligation, Expressing possibility)

What's the difference between must and have to?

Must and have to are modal verbs in English. This page will guide you to the proper
use of these modals.

Must

1. We use must to make a logical deduction based on evidence. It indicates that the

speaker is certain about something:

Examples:

 It has rained all day, it must be very wet outside.

 The weather is fantastic in California. It must a lot fun to live there.

2. Must is also used to express a strong obligation.

Examples:

 Students must arrive in class on time.

  You must stop when the traffic lights are red.
 I must go to bed.

Have to

Like must, have to is used to express strong obligation, but when we use have

to there is usually a sense of external obligation. Some external circumstance makes the
obligation necessary.

Examples:

 I have to send an urgent email.

 I have to take this book back to the library.

What is the difference between shall and will?

Shall is not used often in modern English especially in American English. In

fact, shall and will have the same meaning and are used to refer to the simple future.
They are use as follows:

 will is used with all persons 

 shall is used with the first person singular and plural
 The short form of will and shall is 'll
 In the negative, the short forms of will not and shall
not are won't  and shan't respectively

Uses of shall

It should be noted that shall is often used to make suggestions, offers or ask for advice.
It is used in questions as follows:

 Shall we stay or go out?

 Shall we dance?
 Shall I get his phone number if I meet him?
 What shall I do to get rid of my acne?

As said above shall is used with first person singular and plural (I and we.) But there is a
very special use of shall with other persons to make a promise, command or threat as
noted below:

 You shall not get in! (Command)

  You shall pay for it. (Threat)
 You shall get your money back soon. (Promise)

In American English shall is mainly used in formal or legal documents:

 You shall abide by the law.

 There shall be no trespassing on this property.
 Students shall not enter this room.