Modal verbs By Tymoshchuk Vyacheslav

The modal verbs are: can, could, may, might, must, should, will, shall & would.

Ability (present and future ability) *We use can or be able to for ability in the present. If the ability is surprising or involves overcoming some difficulty, we often use is/are able to : Despite his handicap he can/is able to drive a car. *To describe a future ability we use will be able to, NOT can: Will I be able to speak fluently by the end of the course?

Past ability *We usually use could to express past ability: When we went into the house, we could smell burning. *It is possible to use could, or was/were able to, in questions, superlatives, and in sentences with limiting adverbs such as only or hardly: Sorry, but this is the cheapest hotel I could/was able to find.

Possibility (present possibility) *We use can to talk about things which are generally possible: Heath insurance can be very expensive. *We usually use may, might and could to talk about specific possibilities: This rash may/might/could be a symptom of something more serious.

Future possibility *We use will/wont be able to to talk about future possibility or impossibility: Well be able to get a coffee at the theatre but we wont be able to eat until after the show. *We use may/might or could to talk about future actions which are less certain: The directors may call a stockholders meeting.

Past possibility *We use could to talk about general possibility in the past: Teachers could be very strict at my old school.

Speculation and expectation (present speculation) When we speculate, we make informed guesses about an action or situation. We use a modal followed by the infinitive of a main verb in the simple or continuous form. *We use must or have got to, if we strongly believe that something is true: This must be the place – its the only restaurant in the street. *We use have (got) to when we want to add emphasis : You have got to be joking! That was not a foul.

Present and future expectation *We use should/shouldnt or ought to/ought not to to express an expectation – we expect an action to happen now or in the future because of our prior knowledge or the current circumstances: The plane took off on time so it should/ought to be landing about now and there shouldnt/ought not to be any delays.

Past speculation *We can make informed guesses about an action or situation in the past, using a modal: Im not sure where Susie is. She could have left early.

Past expectation *We use should (not)/ought (not) to + have + past participle to talk about an action that we expected to happen in the past: I dont know where our main speaker can be. He should/ought to have arrived hours ago.

Obligation and necessity (present and future obligation) *We usually express obligation in English with must or have to : You must arrive in gold time for the meeting tomorrow. The Chairman will be there. *We often use must and have to with a passive verb: Democracy must/has to be seen to work. *We often use must to express an obligation imposed by the speaker: I must get up earlier – I waste so much time in the mornings.

Present and future necessity *We can use need to, must and have to to express a necessity that results from things other than just commands. Rules or laws, or to show that something is very important: All living beings need/must/have to take in sustenance in order to live.

Past obligation and necessity *We use had to when we talk about an obligation or necessity in the past: The staff and students at the university had to evacuate the campus.

Prohibition and criticism (present and future prohibition) *We use must not to express a prohibition imposed by the speaker or writer: Remember that you mustnt remove patient files from the surgery; theyre confidential.

Past prohibition and criticism *We use couldnt or wasnt/werent allowed to in the past: They couldnt watch the film because they were too young.

Thank you for attention!