English Grammar and Composition chapter 5: Verbs Modals

05 Verbs: Modals

5/1: Primary auxiliaries and modal auxiliaries

In the last unit we discussed verbs and tenses. In this unit we will focus on modals.

A . Read the passage below and the conversation that follows:

Rehana took a secretarial course a few months ago. She can write short-hand and can type too. But she cannot use a word processor. She realizes that to get a good secretarial job, she must learn to use a computer. She also has to improve her English which is not very good. This morning she goes to an English Language Centre that a friend has recommended. At the administrative office there she has the following conversation with a member of the official staff:

Admin staff : Good morning! Can I help you?

Rehana : Morning. Could you please tell me when the next English course starts?

Admin staff : Well, we have different courses like General Communicative English, Business English, and English for nurses and so on. Which one would you like to do?

Rehana : The Business English course. Could you tell me when the next course starts and what the fee is?

Admin staff : Sure. It's a three-month course and the fee is Taka 5000. Would you like to take a brochure? You can find details about all the courses that we offer. You might like to have a look at them.

Rehana : Thanks a lot.

Notice the words in bold. They are called modal verbs or modal auxiliaries.

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Grammar point

There are two kinds of auxiliary verbs in English:

Primary auxiliaries: am/is/ are/was/were, have/has/had, do/does/did

Modal auxiliaries: can/could, may/might, will/would, shall/should, must/ought to/need

Modal auxiliaries are different from Primary auxiliaries in the following ways:

Past tense forms: The primary auxiliaries have past tense forms. The modal auxiliaries do not. For example, must or may do not have a past form. (may and might can refer to the same time: present or future)

Third person forms: The primary auxiliaries have third person forms (he/she+ is/has/does). Modal auxiliaries do not change. They have no –s form.

Infinitives: The primary auxiliaries are related to an infinitive: to be, to have, or to do. There is no infinitive form for the modal auxiliaries. (We do not say to can, or to might.)

Note: Need fits into both categories.

It can be used as a full verb: need, needs, needed, e.g.

We need sugar. He needs rest. They needed some money.

It can also be used as a modal auxiliary verb:

We needn't take a taxi. We needn't go to the doctor.

Use

We use modals to express a variety of moods or attitudes towards actions or events in the past, present or future. Modals can be used to express possibility, certainty, ability to do something, requests, permission, obligation, necessity, prohibition, advice, etc.

Look at the following sentences:

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Can I borrow your English dictionary for two days?

Sorry, I'm using it now, but I can give it to you tomorrow.

Would Ben lend me his dictionary? What do you think?

You could ask him. He might.

Activity 1 Discuss in pairs what functions do can, could, would or might in the above conversation perform, and what time do they refer to - past, present or future?

5/2: Can and Could

A . Read the following texts.

Figure

Description: Two line drawings: a young man with curly hair, wearing a T-shirt with a star, playing a guitar; beside him a dancer in traditional costume with one arm outstretched.

a. I can sing and I can dance.

But I can't fly like a bird or swim like a fish.

Figure

Description: Two photographs of birds in flight over a cloudy sky, placed above a drawing of fish swimming in water.

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b. : Excuse me, can you tell me the time, please?

: Sure, it's half past five.

: Thanks.

c. The teacher said to her class, "Students, you must remember two things. First, you can bring a calculator, but you cannot bring any mobile phone into the classroom, and second, you cannot chew gums in my class."

d. : Hi, Babul. Are you taking part in the next marathon race?

: I'm afraid not. I could walk for miles without getting tired before. But now I can't. I had a knee surgery two years ago.

e. : Can you tell Mr. Rashid that the guests are here?

: Sure. Anything else?

: Thanks, Shahana. And could you please send in some snacks and tea for the guests?

f. : Can I borrow your pen for a while?

: Yes, but please don't forget to return it.

: Of course not.

g. : Could I use your laptop? I need to check my e-mail.

: Go ahead. You could take it to your room, if you want.

: Thanks a lot.

h. : I'm getting bored, can't go anywhere. When is the rain going to stop?

: Well, you could make use of the time you're stuck at home. You could read books, or do some writing, or do crossword puzzles to improve your English.

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Grammar point

Can and could are modal verbs, and are used like auxiliaries before the main verb.

We make the negative by adding not/n't to can/could. Note how we write cannot. There is no break between can and not:

I cannot fly like a bird.

To make questions we say can /could + name/pronoun + main verb:

Can/could you pass me the salt, please? Can you use a computer?

Use

Can/could for ability, and cannot for inability/prohibition:

We use can to express ability: I can sing and I can dance.

In the sentence But I cannot fly like a bird, cannot expresses lack of ability.

The past tense of can as ability is could: Two years ago I could walk for miles, but now I cannot.

We use cannot/can't to express prohibition**:** You cannot bring mobile phones into the classroom, and you cannot chew gums in my class.

For permission and requests:

We use can/could to give or ask for permission. Can is less formal than could.

Can I borrow your pen? Oh, sure!

Could I use your laptop, please? You could take it to your room, if you like.

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We use can/could to ask someone to do something: Can you please tell Mr. Rashid to come? Could you please send some snacks and tea?

For possibility:

We use could to express possibility: You could read books, or do some writing, or do crossword puzzles.

Activity 1 Read the following conversations. Fill in the blanks with can, could, or cannot/can't:

a. Doctor : Look at this chart, Padma. _______ you see the letters and the pictures?

Padma : Yes, I _______ see some pictures and some of the letters.

Doctor : _______ you name the things you see?

Padma : Well, I can see a bird, a flower, a house and the letters B, M, Q . …. No, it's O.

Doctor : That's good. Now come here. _______ you take off your glasses, please?

b. : _______ you hear me at the back?

: No, we _________. We don't think the microphone is working. _______ you please speak a little louder?

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c. : Dad, _____ I go to the New Year eve's concert?

: You ______, but you ________ stay out after 11 p.m.

d. : ______ you please make less noise? I'm trying to write a report, and I _______ concentrate if you sing so loudly.

: I'm sorry, but I ______ help it. I need to practice for the college function tonight.

: _______ you please go to another room then?

e. : Hey friends, where shall we go on holiday this winter?

: We ______ go to Dinajpur to see the Kantaji Temple.

: Oh, it will be too cold there in January. I ________ stand cold.

: Well, if you like mountains, we ________ go to the Neelgiri mountains in Bandarban.

: Or we _____ go to the Sundarbans. We ______ see both the jungle and the ocean!

f. : _____ you play tennis?

: Yes, I _____. But I ________ play it until I joined the community club and took lessons in tennis last year.

: ______ you please teach me?

: Sure. We ________ start tomorrow, if you are ready.

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