Modal Verbs

What have researchers said about Modal Verbs?

“The use of modal verbs is one of the problematic areas of English Grammar.”

(Quirk et al., 220)

“In respect to the later developments of meaning carried by [modal auxiliaries], the

situation is exceedingly complex and no rules yet formed seem adequate to mark

out precisely their area of use.” (Fries, 175)

What have researchers said about Modal Verbs?

The mood represented by modal verbs or auxiliaries expresses “certain attitudes of

mind of the speaker towards the contents of the sentence.” (Jespersen)

“What makes it so difficult to account for the use of…’modal auxiliaries’ or ‘modals’…is

that their meaning has both a logical and a practical (or pragmatic) element.” (Leech, 66)

Logical Element/Practical Element

He must go. (logical element the necessity)

It must be true. (logical element the certainty)

Practical element the situation including not only the

speaker but also the hearer or whatever else.

Logical Element/Practical Element

He will not go there.= I predict that he’s not going there.= He refuses to go there.

The discourse point of view is indispensable

to grasp modal expressions.

The Functional Nature of Language

Ideational - concerned with how we represent the reality in language.

Interpersonal - to do with the relationships of persons in using the language.

Textual - to do with the organization of language as coherent messages.

The Functional Nature of Language

The interpersonal function includes the modal

expression which is “a form of participation of

the speaker in the speech event.” (Halliday, 335)

ModalityModal verbs express “modality” defined

as “the manner in which the meaning of a clause is qualified so as to reflect the speaker’s judgment of the likelihood of

the proposition it expresses being true.”(Quirk et al. 219)

ModalityModals are mainly used when we want to indicate

our attitude to what we are saying, or when we are considering how what we say will affect the person

we are communicating with.

She’s the oldest. vs. She might be the oldest. Close the door. vs. Could/Would/Will you close the

door?

Modals: general The ‘modal auxiliary verbs’ or ‘modal verbs’ are

can, could, may, might, will, would, shall, should, ought to, must, need and dare.

We use modal verbs to talk about possibility, willingness, ability, obligation, certainty and permission.

It might rain .(possibility) You must be home by 11 o’clock. (obligation) Will you help me? (willingness) You haven’t eaten all day. You must be hungry. (certainty) May I borrow your car? (permission)

Modals: general Modals (except ought) are always

followed by the base form of the verb.

I might play tennis tomorrow.

You ought to tell her.

Modals: general Modals never inflect no –ing or –

ed forms, no –s in the 3rd person singular present.

Could is sometimes the past of can (ability).

Louise can read. Louise could read when she was

three.

Modals: general Modals do not use do or did to

form negatives.I might not play tennis tomorrow.You ought not to tell her. The negative of can is written as

one word.She cannot (can’t) come.

Modals: general Modals do not use do or did to form questions.Can she speak Spanish?Ought you to tell her? We sometimes us expressions such as be able

to, be allowed to and have to instead of modal verbs.

I’d like to be able to play the piano. (can has no infinitive: I’d like to can play…)

Modals: generalShe had to go to the doctor’s yesterday.(must is not used about the past: She must go … yesterday.) Talking about the past modal verb +

have + past participle.Peter is late. He may have missed his bus.(Perhaps he missed his bus.)

Ability: can, could, be able to

Tom can play chess.

I can’t pick up the box, it’s too heavy.

My sister could swim when she was 4 years old.

Ability: can, could, be able to

My sister was able to swim when she

4 years old.

I will be able to play the guitar in five

Months.

The ability to do something in a particular

situationEven though I’d hurt my leg, I was able to swim back to

the boat. (Not: …I could swim back…)

Even though I’d hurt my leg, I managed to swim back to the

boat.Even though I’d hurt my leg I succeeded in swimming

back to the boat.

Permission: can/couldYou can use my phone if you want to.I’m sorry but you can’t bring drinks in here.Can I use your pen for a moment?Could Tom sit next to you? (Less direct, more polite)

Talking about permissionYou can’t smoke in this room.You aren’t allowed to smoke in this room.

More examples:You can/ are allowed to get married in Britain when

you are 16.(That’s the law)The children normally go to bed at 9 o’clock, but they

can/are allowed to stay up later on Saturdays.(Their parents have decided this.)

General permission in the past

When I was 18, I could borrow my parents’ car whenever

I wanted to.

When I was 18, I was allowed to borrow my parents’ car

whenever I wanted to.

Permission to do something in a particular

past situationI was allowed to borrow my parents’

carlast night.(Not: I could borrow my …)

Possibility: can, couldPossible future actions:If you don’t like it, I can paint it a different color.If you don’t like it, I could paint it a different color.

Can is sometimes used to say that somethingis generally possible:Anyone can learn to swim.(= It is possible for anyone to learn to swim.)

Possibility: can, couldIn this meaning can has often a similar meaning to sometimes.Owning a dog can be expensive. (= Owning a dog is sometimes expensive.)

We use could to talk about theoretical possibility in the past:My brother could be horrible when he was a child.

Possibility: can, couldCan’t and Couldn’t = something is

or was impossible.This can’t be Sam’s coat, it’s far too big.

You couldn’t have seen Simon yesterday. He’s in America.

The Meanings of Modal Verbs

Intrinsic = imply some kind of human control over events, so they include meanings which are often described as permission, willingness and necessity.

Extrinsic = involve some kind of human judgment about what is or isn’t likely to happen, so include meanings which are described often as prediction or possibility.

The Meanings of Modal Verbs

All modal verbs have both intrinsic and extrinsic uses.

You can have a break now. (intrinsic use)

Paris can be very hot in summer.(extrinsic use)I will see you tomorrow. (intrinsic and extrinsic use)

Key concepts and the language teaching

classroom The formal simplicity of modal verbs clashes with the semantic complexity

of the modality phenomenon.

Subjectivity and flexibility is found not only in the actual use of modals

in real discourse but also in the theoretical basis adopted for their

description.

Key concepts and the language teaching

classroom The meaning frontiers of modals are far from being as clear-cut and well-differentiated as students are,

rather erroneously, made to believe, when modals are taught in

the classroom, and for perfectly understandable pedagogical

reasons.

Key concepts and the language teaching

classroom A premature exposition to the wide

range of meanings that may be covered by modals and to the

variation of meanings which they may undergo in context may result in confusion and prove a hidrance.

Tips and activities for teaching Modals

1. Noticing If modal verbs are an area you haven’t thought much about,

start looking out for them yourself in different English texts. Examining modality can give a lot of background information about the

speaker or writer’s impression of the event. For example, what impression does the previous sentence give if you replace the word can with will? What does it give if you delete the can altogether?With your students, this could simply mean underlining different modal verbs in a text and discussing their meaning. More advanced students could also rewrite a text using different modal verbs (in order to sound more confident, or less confident).

Tips and activities for teaching Modals

2. Reformulating Many students tend to avoid modals, especially if they

don’t have them in their own language. When monitoring speaking activities, you could choose to focus only on modal verbs. Listen out for examples of English that could be better replaced by a modal verb, e.g.

It is possible that he went to the dentist. Write these on the board at the end of the activity and ask

students to reformulate them using a modal verb. You could also do this with samples of students’ writing.

Tips and activities for teaching Modals

3. Modal verb drill To focus on form and meaning, you

can set up a drill like the following. Write on the board the words:

POSSIBLE IMPOSSIBLE CERTAIN

Tips and activities for teaching Modals

Say different phrases and show how the sentence changes depending on if it’s possible, impossible or certain, e.g.

We go out. (point to CERTAIN) We’ll go out.

We stay at home. (point to IMPOSSIBLE) We can’t stay at home.

We go to the cinema. (point to POSSIBLE) We might go to the cinema.

Tips and activities for teaching Modals

Continue, giving other cues. These cues could be spoken, or written on cards, which you can show the students, e.g.

I have a drink. (CERTAIN) I have coffee. (IMPOSSIBLE) I have tea. (POSSIBLE) We work tonight. (POSSIBLE)

TaskGroup work – Bearing in mind the

conceptswe studied today, choose a set of modal

verbs and prepare a lesson on them.