 IT’S A SPECIAL VERB WHICH ADDS A NEW

MEANING (modality) TO THE MAIN VERB

› YOU SPEAK ENGLISH.
 CAN ability in the present
 COULD ability in the past
 MUST inner obligation
 SHOULD advice
 NEED necessity
 USED TO habit
 They are followed by a BARE INFINITIVE
› I can swim
› You should listen to the doctor
 They lack some tenses or non-personal forms (no
infinitive, gerunds or past participles). No tense
mark (-s in 3rd person singular)
› He can go to the cinema
› He must have been at home at 3 o’clock
 No auxiliaries to form negative or interrogative
sentences.
› He shouldn’t go alone to the doctor
› Excuse me, could I go to the toilet, please?
 CAN
› General/inner ability in the present
 COULD
› General/inner ability in the past
 BE ABLE TO
› Particular ability in the present/past
› General/particular ability in any other tense.
CAN COULD
FAMILIAR FORMAL
 MAY MIGHT
MORE FORMAL ROYALTY
CAN COULD

HIGH PROBABILITY LESS PROBABILITY

I’M (UN)SURE Perhaps

I’M (UN)CERTAIN