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Modals and Modal Perfects 23-24

The document provides a comprehensive overview of modals and modal perfects, detailing their forms, uses, and rules in English grammar. It covers various modals such as 'can', 'could', 'may', 'must', and their functions related to ability, permission, obligation, and possibility. Additionally, it explains modal perfects, which refer to past situations, and includes examples and exercises for practice.

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27 views8 pages

Modals and Modal Perfects 23-24

The document provides a comprehensive overview of modals and modal perfects, detailing their forms, uses, and rules in English grammar. It covers various modals such as 'can', 'could', 'may', 'must', and their functions related to ability, permission, obligation, and possibility. Additionally, it explains modal perfects, which refer to past situations, and includes examples and exercises for practice.

Uploaded by

carloscasares2007
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© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Modals and Modal Perfects

Bachillerato

MODALS
FORM:
MODALS: will, would, shall, should, can, could, may, might, must

A. They never change, only one form:


She wills / musted / shalls / mighted..

B. They always go with another verb in the sentence, adding meaning:

She will buy a new car (future, announcement)


She may buy a new car (possibility in the future)
She must buy a new car (obligation)
...
C. They are followed by the bare infinite (infinitive without “to”)

Paul may go to the theatre tonight.


Paul may to goes to the theatre tonight.

D. Interrogative and negative form (NO auxiliary verb, do):


will you go…? She will not go..
should I spend this money? I shouldn’t spend…

F. Two modals cannot be together:

She will can go to the party.

E. They haven’t got tenses to express past or future meanings, except can-
could
But we can use “be able to” for the tenses that “can” hasn’t got:

She will be able to attend the meeting.


They have been able to solve the problem.

And for “must” we can use “have to”:

They had to change the direction.


Sheila will have to send the report again.
SEMI-MODALS: OUGHT TO, NEED TO, HAVE TO

They are called semi-modals because they share some features with modals
but not others: they are not followed by bare infinitive and except “ought to”
they have forms for the past or the present...

- They don’t need to come tomorrow.


- She has to clean her room.
- Does Mary need this pair of trousers?
- Will you have to postpone the weeding?

MODALS and SEMI-MODALS

CAN: Ability, Permission, Request and Possibility


Ability
I can play the piano.

But 'be able to' is also possible:

I'm able to play the piano.


For past abilities:
I was able to learn Japanese in one year.

Permission /Request
I can stay at Danny's when he's out of town.

Can I have a coffee?

But COULD / MAY / MIGHT /WOULD are also possible:

Can we ask you a question? (informal request)

Could you close the door, please? (polite request, a little bit formal)

Would you answer a question? (polite request, a little bit formal)

May we ask you a question? (formal way)

Might we ask you a question? (a very formal way)


Possibility
You can earn a lot of money in this job.
I'm free now. We can go.

CAN’T /CANNOT:

Inability:

I can’t do my homework because I haven’t got my books!

Prohibition:
You can’t use the mobile phone during the test.

Disbelief / Deduction / Certainty that something is


impossible:
This can’t be the right house. There is nobody here.

COULD:

Polite request
Could you close the door, please? (polite request, a little bit formal)

Past ability
When I was ten, I could swim very fast. (past ability)

Polite suggestion

You could share your sandwich with Beth.

Possibility

The electricity bill could get an increase next month.

'May' / 'Might':

Possibility in the future


I may go to the theatre tonight, I have finished my project.

I might go to the theatre tonight but I’m not sure, I need to finish my project
first. (low possibility)

Polite Request / Permission in a formal way:


May I borrow the car tomorrow?
May we come a bit later?

Might we ask you a question? (more formal way)


Might I just interrupt for a moment? (more formal way)

Must / Have to / Need: obligation or necessity

Must: logical conclusion / certainty that something is true:


Jude must be at home, the lights are on.

Must: strong advice


You must see this film, it is incredible!

Must: obligation / necessity


You must do your work on time!

Mustn't : Prohibition / Strong advice


You mustn't go out. You are prohibited to go out. You are not allowed to go
out.

You mustn’t forget your trainers. (strong advice)

Don't have to / Don’t need to / Needn’t: lack of


obligation/necessity
It expresses the absence of obligation or necessity:

You don't have to drive. You are not obliged to drive (but you can if you want to).
You don’t need to finish your task today.
Rose needn’t show her identity card here!

Should / Ought to / Had better: Advice


'Should' is used to ask for or give advice.
Should I see a doctor?
He should leave soon if he wants to catch the train.

Ought to, Had Better : Both express the same idea as 'should'. They can
usually be used in place of 'should'.
You should see a dentist. => You'd better see a dentist.
They should join a team. => They ought to join a team.
NOTE: 'had better' is a more urgent form.
You had better not miss the bus. It is the last one today! Será mejor /más
vale que..
Would
Formal Request / Offer
Would you tidy your desk, please?
Would you like to come to the party with us?
Modal Perfects:
- Modal Perfects ALWAYS refer to a past situation
- They ALWAYS have the same structure:
must have + past participle form
could have + past participle form
couldn’t have +past participle form
would have + past participle form
may /might have + past participle form
should have + past participle form
needn’t have + past participle form
can’t have + past participle form

Must have + past participle form:


Certainty that something was true:
Joan is so happy, she must have passed her test.
Seguro que ha aprobado (aprobó en el pasado)
Debe haber aprobado...

Could have +past participle form:


- Ability to have done something in the past but in fact you didn’t:
We could have bought a new car but we preferred to save the money.
Pude haberme comprado un coche pero NO LO HICE

Couldn’t have + past participle form


Can’t have + past participle form
- Something was not logically possible
- certainty that something WAS impossible /didn’t happen:
You couldn’t have seen Mark. He is abroad.
No pudiste haberle visto..
She can’t have passed the exam – she didn’t study at all!
No puede haber aprobado..
Would have + past participle form:
- Willingness to do something in the past but in fact you couldn’t:
I would have bought a new car but I didn’t have enough money.
Me habría comprado un coche pero NO PUDE

May /Might have + past participle form:


- Possibility that something was true:
I can’t find my jacket. I may have left it at Peter’s party last night.
Puede que me haya dejado la chaqueta..Es posible que dejara la chaqueta en

Should have + past participle form:


Ought to have + past participle form:
- Criticism or regret about a past event:
I feel terrible, I should have told them the truth.
Debería haberles …
I ought to have got up earlier, I will be late.

Needn’t have + past participle form:


- An unnecessary past action:
You needn’t have brought any food. There is plenty of it.
No era necesario que trajeras..

exercises

1. I (stay) up late, but I decided to go to bed early.


2. He (forget) that we were meeting today.
3. That woman (be) a doctor. She looks far too young.
4. We (report) the incident. Nobody else is here.
5. I (eat) so much cake! I don’t feel well.
6. They (win) the race, but they didn't try hard enough.
7. I see his car in front of the building. He (be) here.
Answer key

1. I could have stayed up late, but I decided to go to bed early


2. He might have forgotten that we were meeting today.
3. That woman can’t be a doctor. She looks far too young.
4. We should report the incident. Nobody else is here.
5. I shouldn't have eaten so much cake! I don’t feel well.
6. They could have won the race, but they didn't try hard enough.
7. I see his car in front of the building. He must be here.

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