Modals verbs are a class of auxiliary verbs. Modal verbs are also called

modal auxiliaries or simply manners. There are tenEnglish modal verbs:

In English, the main verb is always in infinitive without

to, except the modal ought.

can

could

may might

shall should

will would

must ought to

1. In a statement, the word order is subject + modal + main verb.

sujeto modal verbo principal

They

Ellos can

pueden come.

venir.

Mike

Mike should

debe walk.

caminar.

1. In questions, word order is subject + modal + main verbs

modal sujeto verbo principal

Can

¿Pueden they come?

venir?

Should

¿Debería Mike Mike

drive?

manejar?

Informative questions (wh-questions)

When

¿Cuándo can

pueden they come?

venir?

How

¿Cómo could

podría he know?

saber?

MODALS, AUXILIARIES

Be, have and do can be auxiliaries und full verbs.

Modals are: can, could, may, might, must, ought to, shall, should, will, would and

need

(need can be a full verb, too).

NOTE:

1) Do not use modals for things which happen definitely. The sun rises in the East.

2) They do not have an -s in the 3rd person singular. He can play football.

3) Questions are formed without do/does/did. Can he speak Spanish?

4) It follows a full verb in the infinitive. They must read the book.

5) There are no past forms (except could and would). He was allowed to watch the

film.

6) When you use the past particple, you tell about things which did not happen

in the past.

You should have told me.

Shall, will and forms of have, do and be combine with main verbs to indicate time and voice. As auxiliaries, the verbs be, have and do can change form to indicate changes in subject and time.

• I shall go now.

• He had won the election.

• They did write that novel together.

• I am going now.

• He was winning the election.

• They have been writing that novel for a long time.

Uses of Shall and Will and Should

In England, shall is used to express the simple future for first person I and we, as in "Shall we meet by the river?" Will would be used in the simple future for all other persons. Using will in the first person would express determination on the part of the

speaker, as in "We will finish this project by tonight, by golly!"

Using shall in second and third persons would indicate some kind of promise about the subject, as in "This shall be revealed to you in

good time." This usage is certainly acceptable in the U.S., although

shall is used far less frequently. The distinction between the two is often obscured by the contraction 'll, which is the same for both verbs.

In the United States, we seldom use shall for anything other than polite questions (suggesting an element of permission) in the first-

person:

• "Shall we go now?"

• "Shall I call a doctor for you?"

(In the second sentence, many writers would use should instead, although should is somewhat more tentative than shall.) In the U.S., to express the future tense, the verb will is used in all other cases.

Shall is often used in formal situations (legal or legalistic documents, minutes to meetings, etc.) to express obligation, even

with third-person and second-person constructions:

• The board of directors shall be responsible for payment to

stockholders.

• The college president shall report financial shortfalls to the

executive director each semester."

Should is usually replaced, nowadays, by would. It is still used, however, to mean "ought to" as in

• You really shouldn't do that.

• If you think that was amazing, you should have seen it last

night.

In British English and very formal American English, one is apt to

hear or read should with the first-person pronouns in expressions of liking such as "I should prefer iced tea" and in tentative

expressions of opinion such as

• I should imagine they'll vote Conservative.

• I should have thought so.

1.Their Forms:

They help verbs. They express a wide range of meanings:

Ability, possibility, permission, necessity… Most of the

modals have more than one meaning.

Can – could – may – might – should – would – had better

will – must, Have to – ought to – have got to.

The simple form of the verb follows all of them.

EXAMPLES:

She should work harder.

I have got to travel this summer.

She has to do her homework herself.

Would you speak more slowly please?

You had better see him after your conflict.

Shouldn’t you save a little money for a rainy day?

You must not wait like this!

May I have this pen to write down some words?

You’d better not come late!

2. Expressing Ability: Can - Could:

Can expresses ability in the present or future.

Can = is able to (present)

= Will be able (future)

The negative of can is: Can’t = cannot = can not

The past form of can is could. Its negative is couldn’t = could not.

Could express the ability in the past.

Could = was able (past)

EXAMPLES:

I can buy a screwdriver at a hardware store. But I cannot use it. (Present)

She could speak English, but she couldn’t write it. (Past)

3. Giving permission: can, May

May is usually used in formal situations, can is used in

Informal situation.

EXAMPLES:

You may borrow my car when you come.

Can I borrow your book?

4. Asking polite questions:

4.1. May I, could, Can I, Might I? : “I” is the subject

We use those modals to ask polite questions. The questions ask for

Someone’s permission.

May I is more formal than could I. Please is often included

in questions.

Might I is less frequently used. But it has the same meaning

and usage as may I and could I.

Can I is sometimes used informally to request permission,

especially if the speaker is talking to someone fairly well known.

5. Expressing advice (advisability): Should, had better, and ought to:

They mean: This is a good idea. This is good advice.

The negative forms are: shouldn’t – had better not.

Ought to doesn’t have the negative form.

Should and ought to have the same meaning.

Had better is close to should and ought to. But had better is stronger.

Basically, had better means: This is a very good idea.

Often, had better implies a warning or a threat of possible bad consequences.

Had, here, is not the past of have. It’s used as part of an idiom.

It is used in the present and the future as well.

Ought to = otta

Sometimes in speaking, had is dropped:

EXAMPLES:

You better stay home.

You should stay to listen.

You need your sleep. You shouldn’t stay up late.

What should I do now?

I had better stay home.

She had better not smoke.

She’d better save extra money.

He ought to come in time.

Should have + Ed (past participle) (Not: should + present perfect)