˘
MODAL AUXILIARY VERBS
˘ CAN – MAY – MUST – SHOULD –
OUGHT TO
˘
CHARACTERISTICS:
˘ NO DO / DON’T, DID / DIDN’T;
Example:
˘CHARACTERISTICS:
˘ NO - Infinitive (Modal +
Verb);
“You MAY
SAY I’m a dreamer. But I’m not the only one.” (not
MAY to SAY )
***** Exception: ought to
(That
ought to be true)
˘
CHARACTERISTICS:
˘ NO ‘s’ or ‘es’
in the 3rd person singular.
CAN
˘
Capacity; physical/mental ability:
˘Can will be able to
(future)
˘Can – permission
˘Can I borrow your pencil?
— Can I use your car?
˘CAN’T
˘
Impossibility:
˘
Ex.:
˘This can’t be the house.
˘(I’m sure it isn’t)
˘COULD
˘ Capacity/ ability in the PAST:
˘CAN ° COULD
˘
Can/Could I use your car tomorrow please?
˘ (could is more polite,
or expresses greater uncertainty; can antecipates
the answer yes)
˘ Para indicar que algo poderia ter
sido feito, mas năo foi:
˘ Could have + past
participle (3rd)
˘MAY
˘
MAY is used:
˘
to ask for permission in a formal way:
˘°May I open the door?
˘MAY
˘ to express possibility or
uncertainty in a formal way:
°The peace conference may find a solution to the
problem.
˘MAY
˘
To express wishes:
˘ °“May the force be with you, Luke!”
˘
Probability:
˘ (MAY have + past participle;
˘
MIGHT have + past participle)
°Susan was very late. She may
have missed her bus.
˘ °We all thought they might
have survived the earthquake.
MUST
˘
Examples:
˘
This must be the right address! (certainty)
˘
Students must pass an entrance examination to study at this
school. (necessity)
˘
You must take some medicine for that cough. (strong
recommendation)
˘
Jenny, you must not play in the street! (prohibition)
˘
The meal must be ready by now. (deduction)
˘Must * had to
*Our
son was very ill last night and we had to call the doctor. (Not * must call * musted
call * * musted to call* )
(Must has no past form and we use had
to to express
‘inescapable
obligation’ in the past)
˘ My lawyer said he must/had to warn me not to answer
any questions.
˘ (we can
use must or had to as past
forms in indirect speech)
˘ REMEMBER: "Must not"
vs. "Do not have to"
"Must not" suggests that you are prohibited from
doing something. "Do not have to" suggests that someone is not
required to do something.
˘
Examples:
˘ You must not eat that.
It is forbidden, it is not allowed.
˘ You don't have to eat
that. You can if you want to, but it is not necessary.
˘NEEDN’T
˘ [modal] British English used
in negative sentences when saying that something is not necessary or not always
trueNeedn’t
˘ need not/needn't
˘ You needn't stay long.(You
don’t have to stay long)
˘ Going to the dentist need not necessarily
be a painful experience.
˘SHOULD / OUGHT TO
˘ Should/ ought to: dar conselhos, lembrar
I’m
sure your mother’s worried. You should phone her.
˘ I’m sure your mother’s
worried. You ought to phone her.
˘SHOULD / OUGHT TO
˘ YOU SHOULD STOP SMOKING.
(advice)
˘ YOU OUGHT TO STOP
SMOKING.(advice)
˘ YOU MUST STOP SMOKING.
(Obligation)
˘ YOU HAVE TO STOP
SMOKING.(necessity)
˘ Should HAVE + PAST PARTICIPLE /
Ought to HAVE + PAST PARTICIPLE Usado
para indicar algo que deveria ter acontecido no passado, mas năo aconteceu.
˘ I didn’t know you’d been so
sick. You should have told me.
˘
˘ I didn’t know you’d been so sick. You ought to have told me.