Modal Verbs

All the auxiliary verbs except be, do and have are called modals. Unlike other auxiliary verbs modals only exist in their helping form; they cannot act alone as the main verb in a sentence.

Be, do, and have also differ from the other auxiliaries in that they can also serve as ordinary verbs in a given sentence.

The modal verbs are:

CAN / COULD / MAY / MIGHT / MUST / SHALL / SHOULD / OUGHT TO / WILL / WOULD

Modal	Example	Uses
Can	They can control their own budgets. We can’t fix it. Can I smoke here? Can you help me?	Ability / Possibility Inability / Impossibility Asking for permission Request
Could	Could I borrow your dictionary? Could you say it again more slowly? We could try to fix it ourselves. I think we could have another Gulf War. He gave up his old job so he could work for us.	Asking for permission. Request Suggestion Future possibility Ability in the past
May	May I have another cup of coffee? China may become a major economic power.	Asking for permission Future possibility
Might	We'd better phone tomorrow, they might be eating their dinner now. They might give us a 10% discount.	Present possibility Future possibility
Must	We must say good-bye now. They mustn’t disrupt the work more than necessary.	Necessity / Obligation Prohibition
Ought to	We ought to employ a professional writer.	Saying what’s right or correct
Shall (More common in the UK than the US)	Shall I help you with your luggage? Shall we say 2.30 then? Shall I do that or will you?	Offer Suggestion Asking what to do
Should	We should sort out this problem at once. I think we should check everything again. Profits should increase next year.	Saying what’s right or correct Recommending action Uncertain prediction
Will	I can’t see any taxis so I’ll walk. I'll do that for you if you like. I’ll get back to you first thing on Monday. Profits will increase next year.	Instant decisions Offer Promise Certain prediction
Would	Would you mind if I brought a colleague with me? Would you pass the salt please? Would you mind waiting a moment? "Would three o`clock suit you?" - "That’d be fine." Would you like to play golf this Friday? "Would you prefer tea or coffee?" - "I’d like tea please."	Asking for permission Request Request Making arrangements Invitation Preferences

 

Note The modal auxiliary verbs are always followed by the base form.

 

'Used to' or 'use to' vs would

I was asked on Pal Talk recently how to use used to and would.

If we say something used to happen we are talking about repeated events and actions in the past, usually things that happened a long time ago and are now finished.

To express this we can use either used to or would.

• When I was young I used to play with my dolls. = When I was young I would play with my dolls.

Of course I no longer play with dolls!

• We used to go out a lot in the summer.

Implies that we no longer go out much.

If you want to talk about repeated states or habits in the past, you must use used to, you cannot usewould: 

• My dog used to bark at cats.

• I used to smoke.

• I used to be an administrative assistant.

• I used to live in England.

  
  

You should use'use to'without a din sentences when it follows 'did'or 'didn't'(don't worry too much about this because lots of people get it wrong).

The question form is ‘Didyou use to…?'. When asking a closed question you put did/didn't in front of the subject followed by use to, you cannot use would.

• Did you use to go out with my sister?

• Did they use to own the company?

• Didn't we use to go to the same school?

Also when asking questions about states in the past you cannot use would.

• What sort of things did you use to like when you were young?

. In the negative you cannot use wouldwithout a change in meaning.

• I didn't use to play with my dolls.

If I said I wouldn't play with my dolls. It would mean I refused to play with my dolls.

• We didn't use to go out much in the winter months.

If I said we wouldn't go out much. It would mean we refused to go out much.

Note - The general rule is when there is did or didn't in the sentence, we say use to (without d) when there is no did or didn't in the sentence, we say used to (with d).

There is also a difference between "used to do something and to be used to something".

Used to something

However,used to has another meaning, it can be used as an adjective and we use it to talk about things that have become familiar, and are no longer strange or new.

Used tousually comes after verbs such as be, get or become.

• After a while you get used to the noise.

• She will become used to the smell.

• I was used to the web site.

You can also say that someone is used to doingsomething.

• I'll never get used to getting up at six o'clock in the morning.

• It took me a while until I was used to driving on the right-hand side of the road.

MODAL VERBS

They are auxiliary verbs

They don’t change in singular or plural

They don’t need DO for negative or interrogative, THEY JUST ADD NOT

They need a verb in base form

They don’t have infinitive, gerund or participle

They don’t have future

 

CAN / BE ABLE TO / COULD

CAN - USES

Ability or capability: “I can play the guitar”

Request, permission: “can I go to the toilet?”

Possibility: “I can lend you some money”

Suggestions: “You can read another book”

NEGATIVE – CAN’T CANNOT

PAST TENSE – COULD / COULDN’T

Could es el pasado de Can, pero también puede usarse para expresar una petición o una sugerencia más formal y menos directa que con Can:

“Could you open the door, please?”

BE ABLE TO

Es un semimodal que se usa para las formas verbales que Can no puede hacer, por ejemplo en futuro:

“I will be able to finish my Project”

MAY / MIGHT

USES

Possibility: “It may rain” “It might rain” (La posibilidad es menor con Might)

May puede también usarse para pedir permiso de una manera educada: “May I have a cup of tea?”

MUST / HAVE TO

USES

Obligation: “You must do your homework” “you have to do your homework”

Certainty: También usamos Must para cuando estamos seguros de algo: “that must be John” (ese debe ser John)

Must solo se usa en presente, para los demás tiempos usamos el semimodal HAVE TO.

“I had to finish earlier last night”

Cuando queremos expresar falta de obligación, no podemos usar MUSTN’T, ya que éste expresa prohibición. Tendremos que usar DON’T HAVE TO:

“You don’t have to do your homework now”

(no tienes que hacer los deberes ahora)

“you mustn’t do your homework now”

(está prohibido que hagas los deberes ahora)

Para la falta de obligación también podemos usar NEEDN’T:

“You needn’t do your homework now”

SHOULD / OUGHT TO

USE - Advice, opinion

“You should / ought to tell the truth”

Ought to se usa poco y es muy raro verlo en negativa o interrogativa.

SHALL

Es un modal que ha perdido prácticamente todo su uso. Originalmente expresaba mandato. Sigue apareciendo en contextos como la biblia.

“thou shalt not kill”

FORM

Affirm: SUJ+MODAL+V(BASE)+COMPL

I can play the piano

Negative: SUJ+MODAL+NOT+V(BASE)+C

I couldn’t go to the party

Interrogative: MODAL+SUJ+V+COMPL+?

May I take some biscuits?

 

PERFECT MODALS

Los modales perfectos se forman con un modal y un presente perfecto (have + participio). Se refieren a un hecho pasado:

MUST HAVE DONE – Conclusión lógica sobre un hecho pasado: “It must have been difficult to pass the driving test”

MAY / MIGHT HAVE DONE – Suposición sobre un hecho pasado: “She may have lost my number” (Puede que…)

COULD HAVE DONE – Indica lo que podía haberse hecho y no se hizo: “I could have gone to the party”

COULDN’T HAVE DONE – certeza de que algo no ocurrió: “he couldn’t have stolen the car”

WOULD HAVE DONE – intención de haber hecho algo en pasado: “I would have cooked dinner but I fell asleep”

SHOULD / OUGHT TO HAVE DONE – lamento sobre el pasado: “You should have told your mum to give you money”

NEEDN’T HAVE DONE – falta de necesidad de que algo hubiera ocurrido: “you needn’t have brought anything”