May and might are modal verbs
They can normally be
interchanged without a significant difference in meaning.
I might go and
I may go more or less have the same meaning
With modal verbs there's only one form of it for every subject pronoun.
For example with the modal verb might we say
I might you might, he might, she might, it might, we might, they might.
The same happens with may. I may, you may, he may, she may, it may, we may, they may.
Just like the other modal verbs there is never an S at the end of may or might
She mights stay, this is not correct
She might stay, this is correct
After might or may
We have the verb or more specifically the base form of the infinitive
this means the infinitive without "to".
For example the infinitive is "to go".
So the base form is just the "go" part
Instead of "to study" only "study".
Instead of "to speak" we only put "speak" after the modal verbs might and may
for example
"You might to go". This is not correct
We don't use all of the infinitive. We need to remove the "to" part
So we say
You might go
This is correct
"She might knows".
This is not correct
We don't conjugate the verb so no "s" is necessary
We need the base form of the infinitive so we say "she might know".
This is correct
Some example sentences with may and mind are:
"I might watch another episode"
"You may bring a partner to our event"
"He may have been nervous"
"She might tell us what happened if we ask her"
"it might rain this afternoon"
"We may be invited, but I'm not sure"
"They might go to the beach this weekend"
When do you use "may" and "might" in English
We can use "may" and might to express possibility
There is a chance of something being true or there is a possibility of something happening.
Note: "might" is used more frequently than "may" in spoken English in this case.
"Take an umbrella, It might rain later"
This means there is a possibility that it will rain later.
You can also say "it may rain later"
"I think she may win the singing competition because her voice is amazing"
"They might be late because of the bus strike"
We can use "may" to ask for permission
"May" sounds more polite than using "can" or "could" when asking for permission
"May I have some water, please?"
"May I borrow your dictionary?"
"May I use the bathroom, please?"
It is best to use "please" in the question to make it more polite
In theory "might" can also be used to request permission
But it sounds very formal and is rare
We can also use "may" to give permission
Here we do not use "might" to give permission
"You may open the window if it becomes hot".
"You may take a brochure if you like".
"You may leave the room once you have finished the test".
In these three cases we are giving permission to do something
We can use
"may not"
To not give permission or to prohibit someone from doing something.
"You may not park your car in front of the gate".
No, it is not permitted.
"You may not leave the room without permission"
"You may not take photos inside the museum, it is prohibited"
"May" is used in academic or scientific language to refer to things that
typically happen in certain
situations.
For example:
"Drivers may feel tired if they do not take a break every two hours"
"Adults may find it difficult to sleep if they use technology before going to bed"
"These tablets may produce serious side-effects if not taken in the correct dosage"
"May" and "might" are used to speculate about past actions
Here we are saying that something was possible in the past, but we are not sure.
For this situation we use "may" plus "have" plus the past participle.
Your comment may have offended some people, we are not sure.
"She is not here, she might have gone to the market". It's possible, but again, we're not sure.
"What was that noise outside? I think it may have been a cat".
With all of these it was possible, but we're not sure.
We can use "may" to express wishes.
When expressing wishes only "may" is used and not "might"
"May you both live a long and happy life together".
"May the New Year bring you love and happiness".
"May all your wishes come true".
"May the force be with you".
I hope you found this video useful
it might be a good idea for you to watch our next video about the difference between maybe and may be.
Have an awesome day!