LESSON 11

1. Auxiliary verbs are a closed subclass of verbs which fulfil a series of syntactic
functions in conjunction with full verbs in the verb phrase.

a. Auxiliaries appear in the formation of interrogatives. They are necessary for

the inversion process possible for all verbs except the verb “be” (e.g. Did
you arrive late?)
b. Auxiliaries appear in the formation of verb negation. All verbs except the
verb “be” require an auxiliary verb to accompany the negative verb in the
verb phrase.
c. Auxiliaries can form contraction with subjects (personal pronouns or proper
nouns) or with negatives. The construction “let’s” is an anomaly because the
direct object is contracted to the verb.
d. “DO” (does/did) may be added to the verb phrase to add syntactic emphasis.
Other auxiliaries may be stressed in pronunciation to create oral emphasis.
e. Auxiliaries may function in reduced clauses in place of the entire verb
phrase, also known as ellipsis. This is common in answers to questions, (e.g.
Did you like it? I did) question tags (e.g. He shouldn’t come, should he?) and
reply questions (A: I called you last night B: Did you?)

- 20.7 As soon as I could

“Could” is the past and conditional form of the modal “can”. For other tenses,
we must use “be able to” (e.g. I will be able to / I have been able to go). It is also
worth nothing that in this case “could” is used on its own to avoid repeating the
sequence “go back to the city”. This kind of ellipsis is possible after all auxiliary
verbs.

f. Auxiliaries are also vital in the formation of verb constructions, such as the
aspect auxiliaries in the aspect transformations or the modal auxiliaries (e.g.
He came – He hasn’t come yet / He will come / He may still come)

2. Unique features:
a. Auxiliary verbs are always subordinated to the head of the phrase (although
it may be implicit in the case of ellipsis) which usually appears in a BARE
INFINITIVE.
The aspect auxiliaries (be/have) function differently in this sense because
they are always followed by a participle (either present or a past participle)

b. Since auxiliary verbs belong to the closed class of function words, they
normally experience vowel reduction in pronunciation, unless they have oral
emphasis or appear in exposed position.
 This vowel reduction is represented in written language through contraction.

3. Primary auxiliaries: Unlike modal auxiliaries, they have conjugations. They

should not be confused with the full verbs that share forms. The difference is
evident in the reduced pronunciation as well as in usage (e.g. I’ve visited there
before vs. I have a trip planned for next summer)

a. “Do” (does/did) is a general auxiliary added to the verb phrases without an

existing auxiliary to form interrogatives, verb negation, syntactic emphasis
or ellipsis.
b. Aspect auxiliaries “be” and “have” create verbal aspect constructions:

i. Progressive aspect (continuous) highlights the extension of an action

over time. Aspect auxiliary “be” + PRESENT PARTICIPLE (-ing)

ii. Perfect aspect highlights the ongoing effects of an action. Formed with
the aspect auxiliary “have” + past participle (V –ed). The verbal
construction “have got” is formed on the present perfect but in meaning
it coincides with the present simple.

- 24. 11 The Basque and Catalan nationalists, in their turn, have just
warned.
“Just” is an adverb that require the use of the present perfect in British
English, in American English is used also with the past simple: e.g. I just
saw your mother
We use it to refer to a very recent past (acabar de + inf).

iii. Perfect progressive aspect combines the previous two aspects to

highlight both the extension of an action as well as its ongoing effects.
Have + PAST PARTICIPLE of the aspect auxiliary “be” + PRESENT
PARTICIPLE (-ing)

4. Modal auxiliaries do not have a full set of conjugations. They have no third
person singular conjugation with –s (e.g. I can – She can). Will/ would, shall/
should, can/could, may/might and must. They appear:

a. Future intentions (will/shall).

- 21. 6 The will-future consists of “will” or “shall” followed by the BARE
INF of the main verb. “Will” can be used with all persons, whereas
“shall” is restricted to suggestions/requesting/offers using the first person
pronouns (I/we): e.g. I will be with you presently / Shall we dance?

Uses of will-future (non-planned, spontaneous decisions):

(a) I’ll be 18 tomorrow. Future in a neutral way
 (b) I hope it won’t take you too long. Personal opinion about the future.
This tense is typically used in THAT-CLAUSES, after the present simple
of verbs of cognition (think, believe, fear, hope, be sure, be afraid, etc).

“I fear he’ll get brain damage if he goes on like that”. Future tense
determined by the conditional clause that follows.

- 21.10 People will do the strangest things.

“Will” here is not a future auxiliary, but a modal verb used to talk about
habits. It also can be used with a notion of volition: e.g. I have tried to
tell him, but he will not (=refuses to) listen.
Will, would, and shall function in relation to their historic forms and
express volition or desire rather than a future time.

- 21.16 The leader of opposition has recently declared

To express events before the present, the choice between past simple of
present perfect depends on whether the event or the period of time when
it occurred has finished or not (yesterday, last night, last month…).

However, sometimes depends on the presence of an adverbial which is

indeterminate in terms of time (recently and lately). These adverbs along
with since + time adverbial/clause (e.g. Since 9 o’clock) invariable
require the present perfect or present perfect progressive.

Will, would, and shall function in relation to their historic forms and
express volition or desire rather than a future time.

“Shall” is used in modern English to 1rst person suggestions and emphasis.

(e.g. I shall leave no stone unturned) This example indicates a firm intention
or promise to do something, either by the subject of the sentence or by the
speaker.

b. “Would” functions with dynamic verbs to speak of past habitual activities

(e.g. When I was young, we would visit my grandparents every summer).
This is synonymous of “used to”:

- 19.2 “Would” cannot be used to describe a past situation or state: e.g. We

would/used to go out with them every Saturday. BUT I used to be a
ballet dancer *I would be…
“Would” is preferred to describe short, repeated actions: e.g. When I was
at college I would get up at six every morning.

c. “Would” and “could” can appear in conditional constructions to express

hypothetical suppositions (subjunctive mood)
d. Can/could/may express an ability or permission to do the action of the head
of the verb phrase.
“Be able to”, “managed to” and “succeeded in” express ability outside of the
present tense or even to clarify completion in the past tense.

- 19.1 The teachers reading my compositions could not make out my name

“Could” is used to talk about a skill or ability in the past (e.g. I could play
the piano when I was eight). It can also be used to say that somebody was or
was not able to do something on a particular occasion (example).

This occurs in negative statements and before such verbs as see, hear, smell,
taste, feel and understand: e.g. I would have liked to talk to him, but I could
see what was happening.

In affirmative sentences, we use the verbs “managed (to do something)”,

succeeded (in doing something)”, and “was/were able (to do something)” to
talk about a particular achievement, specific actions or situations in the past:
e.g. We managed to repair the computer, He was able to find out what had
happened.

The verb “could” cannot always be used to refer to something that someone
does on one occasion. Alludes to a skill that the subject of the sentence
possessed at some stage during a certain period in the past

e.g. I managed to open the door without breaking it / I could speak English
(general)

- 19.13 The past of can is could. In all other tenses and non-finite forms,
we use BE ABLE + TO-INF: e.g. I won’t be able to find a decent job.
This structure is also used in place of “can” in the present tense: e.g.
They are able to solve the problem.

- 20.8 It might have been because it was the first time

May and might can be combined with a perfect infinitive to express a

possibility in the past: “They might have heard you”.
The structure might/could + perfect infinitive is also used to say that
something was possible but didn’t happen: “You might/could have
ruined my trunks”.

“May/might + perfect infinitive” and “can/could + perfect infinitive” are

not interchangeable in negative contexts, since “can’t” and “couldn’t” +
perfect infinitive express deduction:
 “They might not have heard you” (It’s possible that they didn’t hear you)
“They couldn’t have heard you” (It’s impossible that they heard you)

e. May, might, can, could express the probability of the verb phrase or an
ability.

- 19.7 My doctor may be right

“May” and “might” are used to talk about the probability of a present or
future event. “May” suggests a stronger probability than “might”.
“Might” expresses remote possibility.
“Something might happen” (it is possible but not very likely). To express
probability about a past event we can use “may” and “might” followed
by a perfect infinitive: “They might/may have finished.

“I might even be unable to understand my handwriting” means that I

don’t think it is very likely I am able to understand it. We use “unable”
because modals cannot occur with each other: *I might even can/could
understand my handwriting.

f. Shall, would, can, could, may appear in the interrogative construction for
polite offers with various degrees of formality.

g. Must, shall, should push the action of the verb phrase to be obeyed or
fulfilled. Their use is synonymous with the verbal constructions “have
to/have got to” and “ought to”. The auxiliary “should” is used for
suggestions of soft obligations.

- 19.4 To talk about necessity or obligation in the present tense, we use the
modal “must” or the structure “HAVE (GOT) + TO-INF”. In British
English, “must” tends to be used when the obligation comes from the
speaker, whereas “have (got) to” is more common when the obligation
comes from someone else.

“I must do something” (my own idea)

“I have (got) to do something” (someone has told me to do something)

“Have got” is more formal, common in spoken English. Informal

English: gotta.

- 19.10 “Should” and “ought to” are used to express obligation,

recommendation or advice: e.g. You should start at once / You ought to
read this carefully.
“Must” and “have got to” express stronger obligation.
 “Should/ought to + perfect infinitive” is used to refer to an unfulfilled
obligation in the past: e.g. Perhaps I should have worked harder; You
ought to have revised for the exam

- 19.12 “Ought to”:

(a) it takes a to-inf (e.g. I ought to read)
(b) negative with not (e.g. I ought not to do that)
(c) interrogative form “ought + subject + to-inf” is extremely formal (e.g.
Ought I to stay?) it is preferred: “Should I stay?”
(d) the particle “to” is not used in question tags: (e.g. We ought not to tell
him, ought we?)
(e) more emphatic than “should”, but the structure “had better” is
stronger than them: “You’d better go immediately, otherwise I’m sure
they’ll tell you off.

h. The auxiliary “must” is also used in affirmative deductions, while “can’t”

appears in negative deductions with the present infinitive. The auxiliary
“should” can also function in a context of deduction: e.g. He was just going
next door. He should be there by now)

- 19.5 It must have been due to some injury

(a) “must” is used to express deduction or certainty: “It must be very
difficult” “You must be joking”
(b) deductions about something in the past are expressed by “must”
followed by a perfect inf.: “It must have been very difficult”
(c) negative deductions are expressed by “can’t”: “It can’t be very
difficult” and can’t/couldn’t + perfect inf.: “It couldn’t have taken him
an hour to shower”

5. Marginal modal auxiliaries (semi-modals), are full verbs which can function
as auxiliary verbs in specific contexts.

a. “Ought to”: expresses suggestion or weak obligation. Like other auxiliaries,

it has no conjugation in the third person singular (e.g. he ought to do it) and
it has no past simple form (e.g. You ought to have done it yesterday). Unlike
modals, it is followed by a to-inf.
“Should” is its synonym with the verbal construction “had better”

b. “Needn’t”: like modal auxiliaries, “need” can undergo contraction with the
negative adverb (“needn’t) to express the absence of obligation. In this
construction, the verb is not conjugated in the third person singular (e.g. He
needn’t have come vs. *he needs not have come vs. He didn’t need to come).
“You don’t need to bring your own pencil” full verb “You needn’t bring
your own pemcil” modal
 “Need” also functions as an alternative to “have to”, “ought to” or “must”

c. “Dare”: it is used in set expressions as a marginal modal auxiliary (e.g. How

dare he show up late again!) It may also appear as a full verb in similar
contexts (e.g. He wouldn’t dare to come late again, would he?)

- 19.15 I dare not write a love letter

In negative and interrogative sentences, it may be either a modal or a full

verb, but in other contexts, “dare” is usually a full verb. As a modal, it
always take a BARE INFINITIVE and its negative form is made by adding
“not” (“daren’t) (example).

As a full verb, it is usually (not always) followed by a TO-INF and it

combines with “do” a negative and interrogative sentences.

“I dare not write a letter” (modal auxiliary)

“I don’t dare (to) write a letter” (full verb)

This verb is also used as a synonym of “challenge”, then it takes a TO-INF:

e.g. I dared him to drink a bottle of vodka.