Transcript Verb Usage 3 - Gordon State College

Verb Usage 3
Modal Verbs
Modal verbs are easy to use (if you’re a native speaker of English) but not so easy
to understand. They are AUXILIARY verbs used to express necessity, uncertainty,
ability, or permission:
You must do your homework now. (necessity)
He may need some help. (uncertainty)
They can read really well. (ability)
You may leave now. (permission)
There are 8 commonly used modal verbs:
can
could
may
might
must
ought
should
would
“Will” & “shall” are also sometimes considered modals, but they are used
exclusively to form the future & future perfect tenses.
**”Shall” is rarely used but was at one time used with the 1st person to form the future,
while “will” was used with 2nd & 3rd persons.
You already know, although perhaps unconsciously, that modal verbs are different
from other verbs. For one thing, they don’t get an -s on the end of 3rd person singular
verbs:
he laughs
he can laugh
he must laugh
he should laugh
Another difference is that using modals in the past is somewhat complicated.
Technically,
could
would
should
might
is the past tense of
is the past tense of
is the past tense of
is the past tense of
can
will
shall
may
However, modal usage is much more complicated than that. It’s correct to say both
I may go. – I might go.
And neither one is in the past. In fact, if you really think about it, it sounds as if both
are in the future. Because they have to do with MOOD (that’s where the adjective
“modal” comes from), tense is really tricky.
The same is of “can” & “could”:
I can leave now. – I could leave now.
The two have different meanings, but the difference doesn’t have anything to do with time. When you use
the sentence with “can,” the implication is that you have the ability to leave now & are going to do so. With
“could,” you still have the ability, but the implication is that you’re not going to do so:
I could leave now, but… (I don’t want to go with you; I have too much homework;
I would rather wash my hair.)
So do we ever need modals in the past? And if so, how do we put them in the past if the past of “can,” “may,”
etc., happen at the same time as “can,” “may,” etc.?
Think about it: if you say right now, “I could leave if I wanted,” what would you have said yesterday?
I could have left if I had wanted.
Technically, that’s present perfect. Well, it’s the present perfect of “leave,” not the present perfect of “can” or
“could.” You can’t put modals in the perfect tenses:
“I have can eat”????? “I had might eat”?????
The only way you can change the time (tense) of a modal verb is to change the tense of the main verb, as in “I
could have left.” Even then, the present perfect is the only tense that will work:
I could have left
I could had left????
I could will have left????
I could will leave????
In short, modal verbs have a lot more to do with subtlety
of meaning than they do with time. What’s the
difference between these two sentences:
Can I have another glass of Coke?
Could I have another glass of Coke?
They mean the exact same thing. Ideally, you realize that
the difference is that the second one is more polite than
the first. Technically, it should be “May I have another
glass of Coke?” “May” is about permission; “can” is
about ability. That is, you CAN have another glass of
Coke, but you MAY not, because your mother won’t allow
it. But informally, everyone uses “can” (as well as
“could”) to talk about permission, not just ability.
What about “should”? We use “should” to make a
strong recommendation:
You should leave now if you want to arrive on time.
And just like with “can”/”could,” if you want to use
“should” in the past, you have to use the present
perfect of the main verb:
You should have left yesterday.
Don’t lose any sleep over modal verbs. You just
need to be aware of them & of the fact that their
usage involves meaning more than tense. As a
native speaker of English, you automatically use
modals correctly most of the time. But if you ever
want to become an ESL (English as a Second
Language) instructor, you’ll have to study them a
little more in depth, because they are somewhat
difficult for non-native speakers of English. For you,
there aren’t even any practice exercises, & if you
look for any on the internet, you’ll find fill-in-theblank exercises that will be no challenge for you at
all.