Modals of Possibility.
Hi, are you confused about modal verbs?
In this tutorial you are going to learn some
very important facts about modal verbs
and specifically about modals of possibility.
Remember to turn the subtitles on so you can follow along.
Lets get started.
There are 9 pure modal verbs.
3 that start with "M." Must might and may.
2 that start with "W", will and would.
2 that start with "C", can could,
And 2 that start with "S", shall and should.
How do I use modal verbs?
There are 5 General rules for all modal verbs.
One. Modals do not change.
They are the same for all pronouns.
I must go, you must go
and importantly in third person, he must go.
Note no "s".
Two.
Modals are followed by the infinitive without to.
So, It might rain.
and not It might to rain.
Three.
Negative modals use "not" or "n't".
So, he might not win.
and not
He don't might win.
Four.
In questions,
the subject and the modal are inversed.
So here, "Could it rain?" instead of "it could rain."
and not "Do it could rain?"
Five.
Modals have no past form.
This rule is linked to rule 1 ,
where modals can not be changed.
So they can't have a past form
because they can't be changed.
The most important thing about modal verbs
is to understand that they can change their meaning
depending on the context in which they are used.
For instance "may" is a modal of possibility and of permission.
It may rain. It might rain.
It could rain.
From the context we can see here
that may is being used
as a modal of possibility.
Sometimes non native speakers avoid using modals for fear of getting it wrong.
This can sound unnatural.
Here are some examples.
It is possible it will rain tomorrow...
This is grammatically correct.
but not what a native speaker would say.
They would be more likely to say,
It may rain tomorrow.
or....
At the party, I have the possibility to dance.
again it would be better to say,
At the party, I might dance.
So how do you learn modals?
The best thing to do is to learn their function -
that is what they do.
So let's look at modals of possibility in more detail.
They are may, might and could.
Where's Sue?
She may be in the garden.
She could be at work.
Ask Tony, he might know.
This is like saying …..perhaps she is in the garden .
It's possible she is at work.
Tony, perhaps it's possible he knows where she is.
Here may, might and could are all used to say something is a possibility.
It might be sunny, it mightn't be sunny.
It's possible its sunny, it's possible it won't be sunny.
It may be yummy , it may not be yummy.
It's possible it will be yummy,
it's possible it won't be yummy.
Notice "may not" cannot be contracted.
However, stop and be careful with "could".
"Could" changes meaning in the negative.
It could be true means that it's possible that it is true.
However, it couldn't be true.
means it's NOT possible that it is true.
and not that it's possible it's not true.
Compare these sentences.
I'll be late this evening. This is a fact.
He is definitely going to be late.
Whereas,
I may be late this evening.
Is just a possibility. I may be late, I may not be late.
Usually "may" and "might" are interchangeable.
However you can only use "might" in unreal situations.
For example,
If I were in your position I might look for another job.
I am not in your position,
so therefore you have to use "might" and not "may".
Modals can also be used in the continuous form.
So you have: May be + -ing, Might be + -ing
or Could be + -ing.
I might be watching TV.
It's possible, I'll be watching television.
I may be playing tennis.
Its possible, I will be playing tennis.
I could be sleeping.
Its possible, I will be sleeping.
Now its your turn to see how much you remember.
Be careful of the dog,
It might bite you.
It may bite you.
It could bite you.
I'm not sure Tony will come to school.
Tony may not come to school.
Tony might not come to school.
Remember "could" in the negative changes meaning.
I'm not working on Monday.
But I might be working on Tuesday.
I may be working on Tuesday.
I could be working on Tuesday.
Congratulations!
You now know how to use modals of possibility.
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Modals of Possibility.