Modal Verbs
&
Modal Perfect Forms
Modal Verbs
Modals are different from normal verbs:
1. They don't use an 's' for the third person singular.
2. They make questions by inversion ('she can go' becomes
'can she go?').
3. They are followed directly by the infinitive of another verb
(without 'to').
4. Modals are auxiliary verbs and so they do not need an
additional auxiliary in negatives or questions. For
example: Must I come? (Do I must come?), or He shouldn't
smoke (He doesn't should smoke).
List of Modal Verbs in English
can
could
may
might
will
would
must
shall
should
ought to
Modal Verbs
Modal
Meaning
Example
can
to express ability
I can speak a little Russian.
can
to request permission
Can I open the window?
may
to express possibility
I may be home late.
may
to request permission
May I sit down, please?
must
to express obligation
I must go now.
must
to express strong belief
She must be over 90 years old.
should
to give advice
You should stop smoking.
would
to request or offer
Would you like a cup of tea?
would
in if-sentences
If I were you, I would say sorry.
Modal Verbs
Modal verbs are unlike other verbs. They do not change their form (spelling) and they
have no infinitive or participle (past/present). The modals must and can need substitute
verbs to express obligation or ability in the different tenses. Here are some examples:
Past simple
Sorry I'm late. I had to finish my math test.
Present perfect She's had to return to Korea at short notice.
Future
You'll have to work hard if you want to pass the exams.
Infinitive
I don't want to have to go.
Past simple
I couldn't/wasn't able to walk until I was 3 years old.
Present perfect I haven't been able to solve this problem. Can you help?
Future
I'm not sure if I will be able to come to your party.
Infinitive
I would love to be able to play the piano.
Modals Expressing Probability
First, they can be used when we want to say how sure
we are that something happened / is happening / will
happen. We often call these 'modals of deduction' or
'speculation' or 'certainty' or 'probability'.
For example:
It's snowing, so it must be very cold outside.
I don't know where John is. He could have missed the
train.
This bill can't be right. 200 for two cups of coffee!
Modals Expressing Ability
Present:
can / can't (for both general and
specific ability)I can play the piano.
She can speak English.
He can't drive he's too tired.
We can't come now.
Future:
will / won't be able to (general
ability)At the end of the course, you will
be able to make your own website.
He won't be able to speak Japanese in a
week! It will take months.
can / can't (specific ability)I can help
you tomorrow
I can't come to the party
Past:
could / couldn't (for general ability)I could read when
I was four.
She could speak French when she was a child, but now she
has forgotten it.
He couldn't dance at all until he took lessons.
My grandfather couldn't swim.
was able to / couldn't (for specific ability)When the
computer crashed yesterday, I was able to fix it.(not 'I
could fix it')
She was able to pass the exam, even though she hadn't
studied much.(not 'she could pass')
He called us because he couldn't find the house.
I couldn't open the window.
could + have + past participle (an ability someone
had in the past, but didn't use)I could have played the
piano well but I didn't practise enough.
We could have come earlier.
She could have studied law, but she preferred to become a
secretary
Modals Expressing Obligation
Present
Positive
Negative
have to /
don't have to
strong obligation (possibly from
outside)Children have to go to
school.
(sometimes 'have got to')
no obligation
I don't have to work on Sundays.
You don't have to eat anything you
don't like.
must / mustn't
strong obligation (possibly based
on the speaker's opinion)I must
study today.
negative obligation
You mustn't smoke here.
should / shouldn't
mild obligation or advice
You should save some money.
mild negative obligation or advice
You shouldn't smoke so much.
Be careful about the difference between mustn't and don't have to!
Mustn't means it's not allowed, or it's a bad idea:
You mustn't eat so much chocolate, you'll be sick
Don't have to means you don't need to do something, but it's fine if you want to do it:I don't have
to get up early at the weekend(of course, if I want to get up early, that's fine, but I can stay in bed if
I want).
Modals Expressing Obligation
Past
Positive
Negative
had to / didn't have to
obligation in the pastI had to
wear a school uniform when I
was a child.
no obligation in the pastWe
didn't have to go to school on
Saturdays.
must*
changes to 'had to'
should have + pp / shouldn't
have + pp
a past action which didn't
happen: the advice / regret is
too lateYou should have gone
to bed earlier, now you have
missed the train.
a past action which didn't
happen: the advice / regret is
too late
You shouldn't have taken that
job., it was a bad idea.
* Remember 'must have done' is a modal verb of deduction or speculation, not
obligation in the past. For example: Julie must have left. Her coat's not here.
Modals Expressing Permission and
Modals Expressing Habits
Permission
We can use verbs such as 'can', 'could' and 'may' to ask for and give
permission. We also use modal verbs to say something is not allowed.
For example:
Could I leave early today, please?
You may not use the car tonight.
Can we swim in the lake?
Habits
We can use 'will' and 'would' to talk about habits or things we usually do, or
did in the past.
For example:
When I lived in Italy, we would often eat in the restaurant next to my flat.
John will always be late!
Modal Perfect Forms
All modal perfect auxiliary verbs refer to the past.
FORM: Modal + Have (Infinitive) + Past Participle
1. must have done = we are almost sure something happened in the past
Jane wasn't feeling well yesterday. She must have caught a cold.
Bill didn't answer the phone when I called him. He must have fallen asleep.
2. can't have done = we are almost sure something did not happen in the past
She can't have forgotten to send you an invitation. I gave her your address.
They can't have gone to bed late. They were very tired.
3. may / might / could have done = it is possible that something happened in
the past but we aren't sure.
Laura hasn't arrived yet. She may/might/could have missed the bus.
I didn't see Paul at work. He may/might/could have been ill.
4. could have done = we had the ability to do something in the past but did
not do it.
You could have told us about the new project!
She could have called me when she arrived but she forgot.
Modal Perfect Forms
5. should have / ought to have done = (a) it was the right thing to do
but we didn't do it. (b) we expected something to happen but it
didn't.
You should have told him the truth.
They ought to have received the cheque by now.
6. would have done = we wanted to do something but we didn't do it
in the end.
They would have emailed you but the Internet was down yesterday.
I would have bought that DVD but I didn't have enough money.
7. needn't have done = it wasn't necessary to do something but we
did it.
You needn't have gone to the supermarket. I've already done the
shopping.
The weather was warm and sunny. I needn't have taken an umbrella.
