Modal verbs and their meaning

What are 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.

Here are some characteristics of modal verbs:

 They never change their form. You can't add "s", "ed", "ing"...
 They are always followed by an infinitive without "to" (e.i. the bare infinitive.)
 They are used to indicate modality allow speakers to express certainty, possibility, willingness,
obligation, necessity, ability

List of modal verbs

Here is a list of modal verbs:

can, could, may, might, will, would, shall, should, must

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

Use of modal verbs:

Modal verbs are used to express functions such as:

1. Permission
2. Ability
3. Obligation
4. Prohibition
5. Lack of necessity
6. Advice
7. possibility
8. probability

Examples of modal verbs

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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 in
need not
obligation the fridge.
50 % obligation I should / ought to see a doctor. I have a terrible headache.
advice You should / ought to revise your lessons
should/ought to
He should / ought to be very tired. He's been working all
logical conclusion
day long.
had better advice You 'd better revise your lessons

Remember

Modal verbs are followed by an infinitive without "to", also called the bare infinitive.

Examples:

 You must stop when the traffic lights turn red.

 You should see to the doctor.
 There are a lot of tomatoes in the fridge. You need not buy any.

Modals in the Present and Past

Modals in the present and past
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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

You must / have to stop when the traffic lights are
Obligation You had to stop.
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.
He must have been rich. He had a big
He has a Rolls Royce. He must be very rich. house and an expensive car.
Certainty
He can't be American. His English is terrible. He can't have written that poem. He was
illiterate.
She could drive her father's car when she
Permission Can I go out?
was only 15.
I guess it may / can / could / might have
Possibility It may / can / could / might rain. It's cloudy.
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 buy
necessity There are plenty in the fridge. tomatoes.

Grammar Exercise - Modals

Choose the right modal verb

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 1. There are plenty of tomatoes in the fridge. You

 buy any.
 It's a hospital. You
 smoke.
 He had been working for more than 11 hours. He be tired after such hard work. He
 prefer to get some rest.
 I speak Arabic fluently when I was a child and we lived in Morocco. 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
 just say a few things in the language.
 The teacher said we read this book for our own pleasure as it is optional. But we
 read it if we don't want to.
 you stand on your head for more than a minute? No, I
 .
 If you want to learn to speak English fluently, you
 to work hard.
 Take an umbrella. It
 rain later.
 You leave small objects lying around . Such objects
 be swallowed by children.
 People
 walk on grass.
 Drivers
 stop when the traffic lights are red.
  I ask a question? Yes, of course.
 You
 take your umbrella. It is not raining.
 you speak Italian? No, I

Grammar Exercise - Present and Past of Modals

Do the exercise below on the present and past of modals and click on the button to check your
answers.

Choose the correct answer

1. He

 French. His French is terrible.

 The kids are calm today. They
 tired.
 Although Leila was very hungry, she didn't eat very much. She
 the food.
 The phone is ringing. It
 Mary. She promised she would call.
 John had a terrible accident. He
 when the traffic lights were red.
 I don't know why she got so many bad grades. She
 lazy studying.
 I didn't know you needed help. You
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 me.
 I am so tired. I need some rest. I think I
 a week off.
 He
 so fast when he was young.
 Nancy on holidy. I have just met her in the street.

Grammar Exercise - Modals of prohibition and lack of necessity

(mustn't or needn't)
Do the exercise below on modals of prohibition and lack of necessity (mustn't or needn't)

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

1. Nancy

 go to bed early; tomorrow is her day off.

 You
 smoke on buses. It's forbidden.
 You
 do it now; you can finish it later.
 Students
 use their mobile phones during the lessons.
 You
 buy any meat. There is plenty of it in the fridge.
 You
 bring a swim suit. I can lend you one.
 It's a secret. You
 tell anybody.
 You
 do the washing up; we have a dishwasher.
 You really
 be late again.
 You drink at all if you plan to drive.

Must and Have to

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:

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  It has rained all day, it must be very wet outside.
 The weather is fantastic in California. It must be 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.

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