If you wish to give someone orders, however, use the modal verbs ‘must’, ‘have to’, or ‘need to’. “You ought to bring extra money just in case.” You can use the modal verbs ‘should’ or ‘ought to’ to give comments or advice without ordering someone about. What if you just want to suggest something rather than command it? “ Would you accompany me to the dentist?” mayīegin your question with ‘can’, ‘could’, ‘will’, or ‘would’ if you want to ask someone else to do anything.
However, when discussing possibility or permission, ‘may’ and ‘can’ are both entirely acceptable possibilities in modern language. In more polite and formal usage, may is better for permission. If you ask “Can I go outside?” it may be mistaken as “Do I have the capacity to go outside?” “His parents must be proud of the person he has become.”īegin your question with the words ‘can’, ‘may’, or ‘could’ if you wish to ask permission to accomplish anything.
“She must be rich to be able to buy such a car.”
You may employ the modal verbs ‘should’ and ‘must’ to convey possibility without certainty in these situations. Some things appear to be likely, but we cannot be certain. “She can write with both her right and left hands.” “I can hold my breath underwater for more than two minutes.” Similarly, the negative form, ‘cannot’’ or can’t’, expresses the subject’s inability to perform a task. The modal verb ‘can’ indicates whether or not the subject is capable of doing an action or demonstrating an ability. “They might postpone the game because of the rain.” “The guests may arrive earlier than expected.” Modals to Show PossibilityĮmploy the modal verbs ‘could’, ‘may’, or ‘might’ in situations when something is possible but not certain. Note: Some modals may have more than one function.
To help you understand modals more easily, here are the different modals with their functions. It is perfectly common to have trouble understanding how modal verbs work, given their wide range of applications.Įven advanced students and native speakers occasionally fail to employ these irregular verbs. Here are the different modals in the English language:
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