Topic 6: Modal Verbs

Grammar Reference: Modal Verbs – Main Uses

Modal Verbs: Introduction
The modal verbs in English are: can, could, may, might, must, ought, shall, shoull, will and
would. They are used to express the following different meanings: possibility, probability and
certainty, ability, permission, instructions and requests, suggestions, offers and invitations,
wants and wishes, obligation and necessity, mild obligation and advice. The modal verbs are
always put first in a verb group. All of them are followed by the base form of the verb (except
ought). Ought is followed by the ‘to’-infinitive form of the verb. There is no ‘-s’ form for the
third person singular of the present tense, and there are no present and past participle forms.
Formula: modal verb + base form of the main verb
A. Possibility: can, could, might, may
When we want to say that something is possible, we use can. When we are not certain
whether something is possible, but we think it is, we use could, might, or may. Be able to,
not be able to, and ‘be unable to’ may sometimes used instead of ‘can’ and ‘cannot’.
Examples:
• Cooking can be a real pleasure.
• That could be one reason.
• He might come.
• They may help us.
• When will I be able to pick them up?
Formula: can / could / may / might + base form of the main verb

B. Probability and certainty: must, ought to, should, will

When we want to express probability or certainty, we use must, ought to, should or will.
When we want to say that something is not probable or is not certain, we use cannot/can’t as
the negative of must rather than must not/mustn’t. When we want to say that something is
probably true or that it will probably happen, we use should or ought to. When we are fairly
sure that something is the case, we use must. We use will to say that something is certain to
happen in the future.
Examples:
• We should arrive by dinner time.
• She ought to know.
• Oh, you must be Sylvia’s husband.
• He must know something about it.
• This cannot be the whole story.
• People will always say the things you want to hear.
• They were certain that you would be defeated but I believed you were likely to win.
Formula: must / ought to / should / will + base form of the verb; cannot/can’t + base form of
the verb
C. Ability: can, could
When we want to say that someone has the ability to do something, we use can. When we
want to talk about someone’s ability in the past as a result of a skill they had or did not have,
we use could/couldn’t. When we want to say that someone had the ability to do something in
the past, but did not do it, we use could have, followed by a past participle. We also often use
this form when we want to express disapproval about something that was not done.
Examples:
• You can all read and write.
• He could run faster than anyone else.
• A lot of them couldn’t dance.
• They are not able to run very fast.
• After treatment he was able to return to work. (He managed to return to work.)
Formula: can / could / be able to / not be able to / be unable to + base form of the main verb;
could have + past participle
D. Permission: can, may, could
We usually use can or may to give someone permission to do something or to ask for
permission to do something. We use cannot/can’t or may not to say that they are not allowed
to do it. We use could to say that someone was allowed to do something in the past. We use
could not/couldn’t to say that they were not allowed to do it. When we are talking about
permission, we also use be allowed to. May and may not are used in more formal situations
than can and cannot.
Examples:
• Students can take a year away from university.
• Children cannot bathe except in the presence of two lifesavers.
• They may do exactly as they like.
• We could go to any part of the island we wanted.
• We couldn’t go into the library after 5 p.m.
• You’re not allowed to use calculators in exams.
• You can go off duty now. (Giving permission.)
• You may leave as soon as you have finished. (Giving permission.)
• ‘May I go to the bathroom?’ – ‘No, you may not exit the room during the exam!’ (Refusing
permission.)
• Can I ask a question? (Asking for permission.)
• Could I just interrupt a minute? (Asking for permission.)
• May I leave the room? (Asking for permission.)
• We were going to be allowed to travel on the trains. (‘To’-infinitive.)
Formula: can / could / may / be allowed to + base form of the main verb
E. Instructions and requests: could you, would you
When we want to instruct someone to do something or request of someone to do something,
we can do so politely by using the phrases Could you, Will you and Would you for giving
instructions and the expressions ‘I would like + ‘to’-infinitive’, ‘Would you mind + present
participle form’, ‘Do you think you could + base form of the verb’.
Examples:
• Would you tell her that Adrian phoned? (Instruction.)
• Will you, please, leave the room? (Instruction.)
• Could you show me how to do this? (Requesting help.)
• Would you do me a favour? (Requesting help.)
• I would like to ask you one question. (Request.)
• Would you mind waiting a moment? (Request.)
Formula: Could you/ Will you / Would you + base form of the verb; I would like + ‘to’-
infinitive’ verb group; Would you mind + present participle form
F. Suggestions: could, shall, may, might
When we want to make a suggestion, we use the modal verbs could/couldn’t or shall. We
can also make polite suggestions by using the expression It might be, followed by a noun
group or an adjective, and a ‘to’-infinitive. We use the expressions may as well or might as
well to suggest doing something because it seems the sensible thing to do or because there is
no reason not to do it. We can also make suggestions by using the expressions: What about /
How about + a present participle form, Let’s / Why don’t I / Why don’t you / Why don’t we /
Why not + base form of a verb.
Examples:
• We could go on Friday.
• Couldn’t we do it at the weekend?
• Shall we go and see a film?
• You might want to try another shop.
• It might be wise to get a new car.
• He might as well take the car.
• What about going to Judy’s?
• How about using my car?
• Let’s go outside.
• Why don’t we just give them what they want?
• Why not bring him along?
Formula: could / couldn’t / shall + base form of the verb; You might like / You might want +
‘to’-infinitive; It might be + noun group / adjective + ‘to’-infinitive; may as well / might as
well + base form of the verb; What about / How about + a present participle form; Let’s +
base form of the verb; Why don’t you + base form of the verb
G. Offers and invitations: Would you like, Can I, Could I, Shall I
We use these expressions when we are offering to do something for someone. We use I can or
I could to make an offer when we want to say that we are able to help someone, and we can
also use I will/I’ll to offer to do something.
Examples:
• Would you like a drink?
• Can I help you with the dishes?
• Could I help you carry those bags?
• Shall I shut the door?
• I could pay some of the rent.
• You must come and visit me.
• Let me drive you to London.
• Have a piece of cheesecake.
• Do help yourselves to the chocolate biscuits.
• Why don’t you come to lunch tomorrow?
• How about coming with us to the party?
Formula: Would you like + ‘to’-infinitive; Would you like + noun; Can I / Could I / Shall I +
base form of the verb; I can / I could / I will / You must + base form of the verb;
H. Wants and wishes: would like / wouldn’t mind, wouldn’t like
We can use would like, followed by ‘to have + past participle’ to say that someone wishes
now that something had happened in the past, but it did not happen. We can use would have
liked, followed by a ‘to’-infinitive or a noun group, to say that someone wanted something to
happen, but it did not happen. Other verbs indicating a lack / a presence of wants and wishes
that we can use in these constructions include: (would / wouldn’t) hate / love / prefer + a ‘to’-
infinitive / a noun group; (would / wouldn’t) enjoy + a present participle / a noun group. We
can use the expressions would rather and would sooner, followed by a base form of a verb, to
say that we prefer one situation to another.
Examples:
• I would like to know the date of the next meeting.
• I wouldn’t like to see it.
• I wouldn’t mind a cup of tea.
• I would love a cup of tea.
• I would prefer a cup of coffee.
• He’d rather be playing golf.
• I’d sooner walk than take the bus.
Formula: would like / wouldn’t like + ‘to’-infinitive / noun group; would like + to have +
past participle; wouldn’t mind + present participle / noun group; would / wouldn’t enjoy +
present participle / noun group; would rather + base form of the verb.
I. Obligation and necessity: have to, must, mustn’t, need to
When we want to say that someone has an obligation to do something, or that it is necessary
for them to do it, we use must or have to. When we are stating our own opinion that
something is an obligation or a necessity, we normally use must. When we are giving
information about what someone else considers to be an obligation or a necessity, we
normally use have to. We use must not/mustn’t to say that it is important that something is not
done or does not happen. Must not does not mean the same as not have to: if we must not do
something, it is important that we do not do it; if we do not have to do something, it is not
necessary for us to do it, but we can do it if we want. When we want to talk about necessity,
we can also use need to. We use don’t have to, don’t need to, or needn’t to say that it is not
necessary to do something.
Examples:
• I must be very careful not to upset him.
• They have to pay the bill by Thursday.
• I always have to do the shopping.
• They mustn’t find out that I came here. (It is important that they don’t find out.)
• You don’t have to wear a suit. (It is not obligatory to wear a suit, but you can wear a suit if
you want to.)
• A number of questions need to be asked.
• Many women don’t have to work.
• You don’t need to buy anything.
• You needn’t say anything if you don’t want to. (Giving permission not to do something.)
• I needn’t have waited until the game began. (I did not know that it was unnecessary.)
• I didn’t need to worry. (I knew that it was unnecessary.)
Formula: have to / must / mustn’t / had to + base form of the verb; need to / don’t need to /
don’t have to / needn’t + base form of the verb; need not have/needn’t have + past participle;
didn’t need to / didn’t have t’ + base form of the verb.
J. Mild obligation and advice: should, ought to, had better
When we use should and ought to, we are saying that the feeling of obligation is not as strong
as when we use must. We use should and ought to in 3 main ways: when we are talking about
what is a good thing to do or the right thing to do; when we are trying to advise someone
about what to do or what not to do; when we are giving or asking for an opinion about a
situation. We also use the expression had better to indicate mild obligation to do something in
a particular situation or to give advice or our opinion about something. The negative form of
this expression is had better not + base form of the verb.
Examples:
• We should send her a postcard. (Good/right thing to do.)
• We shouldn’t spend all the money. (Good/right thing to do.)
• He ought to come more often. (Good/right thing to do.)
• You ought not to see him again. (Good/right thing to do.)
• You shouldn’t use a detergent. (Advice.)
• You ought to get a new TV. (Advice.)
• I think that we should be paid more. (Giving opinion.)
• I don’t think we ought to grumble. (Giving opinion.)
• What do you think we should do? (Asking for opinion.)
• You’d better go tomorrow. (Advice.)
Formula: should / shouldn’t / ought to / ought not to + base form of the verb; had better +
base form the verb; had better not + base form of the verb.

Sources:
Collins COBUILD Intermediate English Grammar and Practice, Practice Material by Dave
Willis, HarperCollins Publishers 2004, 2011
English Grammar and Vocabulary – Language Practice for Advanced 4th Edition with Key,
Michael Vince, Macmillan Publishers Limited 2014