July 16, 2015 - Modals - Lesson 4 in the book

MODALS

Modals are those helping verbs, which express the ‘mode’ or ‘manner’ of the actions

indicated by the main verbs. They express modes such as ability, possibility,

probability, permission, obligation, etc.

The most commonly used modals are:

shall, should, will, would, can, could, may,

might, must, ought to, used to, need and dare.

Will              100%            I will see next week.

Should          75%             I should (probably) see you (again) next week.

May             50%             It may rain at night.

Might           25%             It might rain tonight.  Most likely, it won’t, but it might.

Can              Ability – I can sing.  I can swim.

                    Permission – Can I borrow your pen please?

                    Possibility – Can I help you?  I can go to France or Italy.  I’m not sure                        where I want to go yet.               

Could           Past tense of can

                    I could run 10  miles 5 years ago.

                    I could have the passed the exam if I had studied.

                    More polite way of asking a question.

                    Could I borrow your pen, please?

                    May I borrow your pen, please?

Modals are used to:

Ask permission—may, can, could

Examples: May I come in?

Could I use your pen, please?

Make a request—can, could

Example: Could you please give me the doctor’s telephone number?

Express a possibility—may, might, could

Example: It might rain during the night.

Give advice or suggestion—should

Example: You should wear a helmet while riding your motorbike.

Express necessity or compulsion—must, have to

Examples: We must (authority) slow down while driving in front of a school.

I have to submit my project by tomorrow.

• Express prohibition

Example: You must not talk loudly in the library.

Express a promise or intention—will, shall

Example: I will mail you my address.

Express a wish—may

Example: May you have a long life!

A modal does not change according to the number of people in the subject.

Examples: He can learn. I can learn. You can learn.

They can learn. We can learn.

􀁛 A modal is always used with a verb in its basic form.

The modal takes the tense

while the main verb remains in its dictionary form.

Examples: I can run. I may run.

I could run. I might run.

􀁛 Modals can be used alone in response to a question.

Examples: Can you sing? I can.

Will you sing? I will.

Will you come? I may./I will.

􀁛 Modals, when joined with ‘not’ to form a negative, can be contracted.

Examples: I cannot run. I can’t run.

I do not run. I don’t run.

I will not run. I won’t run.

WORKSHEET 8

I. Fill in the blanks in the following sentences by using appropriate modals.

a) __Could/Can_ you please tell me the direction to the hotel?

b) You ___must/have to______ pay in cash. They do not accept credit cards.

c) I _may/will_________ come home from the office today.

d) _Can/May/Could___ I help you?

e) You _have to/should_________ clean your room.

f) We _should/must__ keep the lights and fans switched off when they are not in use.

g) We _must/can/could/should_____ improve the existing education system.

h) ___May_______ you have a wonderful day!

i) I _may/should/have to/wish to_____ go to see the movie. The reviews are good.

j) I __will________ definitely be at the airport to receive you.

k) She _should/has to/must____ take her meals regularly.

l) You _have to/must___ reach home before eleven, she said.

m) _Could/May____ we go for a walk?

n) The soldiers in the Army __must______ wear a uniform.

o) There is one more point I _will/may/could/must____ refer to.

p) You have worked hard. You __will/can/must_____ pass.

q) It is very cloudy. It _may______ rain.

r) You __should_____ be properly dressed when you come to office.

s) _Would/Will__ you like to come to the party tomorrow?

t) People ___should/must_______ not tell lies.

II. Fill in the blanks with the correct modals given in the brackets.

God is great and we (a) __________ (should/would) be grateful to him. We (b)

__________ (might/should) do our duty and leave the reward in the hands of

God. Ultimately, God (c) __________ (might/will) help us. We (d) __________

(might/should/may) leave everything to God.

III. There is a missing word in each line of the following passage. Mark the

place of the missing word with a ‘/’ and write the correct word. Write the

word before and after the word in your answer sheet.

People /not ask a writer why he writes his a) People need not.

biography. They know that every life b) _____________

be interesting if properly presented. c) _____________

Moreover, we learn many things if d) _____________

we want to from a great life. It not be e) _____________

necessarily the life of a great leader that inspire us. f) _____________

IV. There is an error in each line of the passage that follows. Write the incorrect

and correct word in your answer sheet.

Plastic bags are not be used because a) are should

they should cause much pollution. b) _____________

They need never disintegrate with c) _____________

time. They should block the sewerage. d) _____________

It need to melted and reprocessed e) _____________

but that might make it even more f) _____________

harmful. Even if buried they can g) _____________

never be destroyed. They should be h) _____________

useful today but they would be i) _____________

very harmful for the coming generations. j) _____________

V. The following passage has not been edited. There is one error in each line.

Write the incorrect word and the correct word in the answer sheet.

The label can be removed before cooking. a) _________ __________

Then the cookware could be rinsed in b) _________ __________

warm soapy water. It is advisable to keep c) _________ __________

to low heat. The cookware would never d) _________ __________

be used on high heat. Very high e) _________ __________

temperatures would cause sticking. The f) _________ __________

handles used to also loosen. However, g) _________ __________

one should not worry about the h) _________ __________

maintenance as it is quite easy. The vessel i) _________ __________

might be cleaned with liquid detergent. j) _________ __________

One can not use sharp detergent for cleaning. k) _________ __________

VI. Fill in the blanks with suitable modals from the ones given in the box

below.

should might can could have to must

a) Ritu’s flight from Morocco took more than 11 hours. She ___________ be

exhausted after such a long flight. She ___________ prefer to stay in tonight

and get some rest.

b) If you want to get a better feeling for how Raniganj is laid out, you

___________ walk down town and explore the riverside.

c) You ___________ research the route a little more before you set sail.

d) When you have a small child in the house, you ___________ leave small

objects lying around.

e) Anvesha: ___________ you hold your breath for more than a minute?

Bunty: No, I can’t.

f) Jasprit’s engagement ring is enormous! It ___________ have cost a fortune.

g) Please make sure to feed the fish while I am gone. If they don’t get enough

food, they ___________ die.

h) I ___________ speak Assamese fluently when I was a child.

i) The teacher said we ___________ read the book if we needed extra credit.

j) The spatula ___________ be in this cupboard but it’s not here.

Lesson  4 – Modals

Write one sentence for each modal below:

Will          100% probability

I will go to work.

I will go to Mexico.

I will go to the market today.

I will eat a hamburger later.

I will come to school next Monday.

Should    75% probability

I should go to work.

I should go to school.

I should go to the park today.

I should have studied hard more often.

I should clean the house every day.

I will go home after class.

I will study

every night.

May         50% probability

I may go to work.

You may get the job.

I may forgive you if you apologize.

I may go to Vegas.

May you have sweet dreams!

May you have fun on your vacation!

Might      25% probability – I might go to work.

I might need more money to pay for the repairs.

I might win the super lotto.

We might go to the cinema.

I might need more time to finish my exam.

Can

Can I please borrow your pen?

I can help you take care of your kids.

I can attend the conference.

Can I go out to extend my parking.

Could

Today could be your lucky day.

Could you take out the trash today?

I could be with my friend at school.

I could see you in 2 weeks.

Will, should, may, and might – video link below

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v0sAavIffRw

Can -       Ability – I can swim

                 Permission – Can I go swimming?

                 Give examples:

Could -    Past tense of “can”

                 Also, more polite to use when asking a question.

         Example:      Could I borrow your car? 

Vs. Can I borrow your car?

                 Give examples of both a) something that

                 happened in the past and b) a polite request

                

Can/Could – video link below

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zE9VAw6sUOg

can/could/may/might worksheet

http://autoenglish.org/gr.may.pdf

Should – advice

She should leave her country because of the bad war conditions.

Examples: 

I should exercise every day.

He should eat green vegetables for dinner.

Must – necessity

You must go to the doctor because your blood pressure is too high.

Examples:  You must eat an apple every day to keep the doctor away.

Might – possibility

I might go to the movies today if I can find a babysitter for my children.

Examples:

Yesterday, you said that you might give me money today.  Will you?

Possibility, Necessity, Obligaton

Possibilities   https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SaBH_huiJSM

May, Might, Could

May:       You may already be a winner.

                 She may not already know that she is a winner.

Might:    You might win a prize.

Could:     This could be your lucky day.

Read page 139

Do page 140 Exercise 1, 2, and 3

Necessity:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HruEIzi5_d4  (obligation, duty, prohibition, necessity)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Rm1FCCSnv8o (necessity)

Must, Have to, Have Got To

Must:               Individuals and companies must obey the law.

Have to: You have to act now.

Have got to:  You have (You’ve) got to act now.

All three have the same meaning.

Obligation:    
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NUMLDz-Cs7A

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=90k9_cUFwqo  (obligation and advice video)

Must, Be Supposed to

Must:      (official)         

People who win money must pay taxes on their winnings.

Be supposed to:    (reminder)   

You’re supposed to wear your seatbelt while driving.

Modals cartoon 
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HruEIzi5_d4



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Book Exercises

p. 140  - Exercise 1 – add a verb after the modal

A:  What are you going to do this summer?

B:  I haven’t decided yet.  I might go back to Peru, or I may stay here and look for a summer job.  What about you?

A:  I’m not sure either.  My brother might come here.  If he does, we might visit some interesting places in the U.S.  I received a letter a few days ago telling me that if I mail in a postcard, I could win a trip for two to Hawaii.

B:  I don’t believe those letters.  When I get those kinds of letters, I just throw them away.

A: How can you just throw them away?  You could be a winner.

B:  Who’s going to give us a free trip to Hawaii for doing nothing?

A:  Well, I suppose you’re right.  But someone has to win those prizes.  It could be me.  And if I buy a lot of magazines from this company, my chances of winning might improve/increase.

B: That’s not true.  Those letters always say, “No Purchase Necessary.”

A:  I really want to go to Hawaii with my brother.

B:  Then I suggest you work hard and save your money.

A:  I might be 90 years old by the time I have enough money.

p. 142  - Exercise 4 – add a verb after the modal

1.  Sweepstakes companies must write/say “No Purchase Necessary” in big letters in the information they send to you.

2.  Sweepstakes companies sometimes tell people that they must call a 900 number to win a prize.

3.  Sweepstakes companies often tell people, “You must act/play now.  Don’t wait.”

4.  Companies must tell the truth about the conditions of the contest.

5.  If a sweepstakes company tells you that you must purchase/buy something, it is not a legitimate sweepstakes.

p. 145  - Exercise 9 – use be supposed to + verb

1.  I’m supposed to do/finish my homework before I watch TV.

2.  I’m not supposed to talk on the phone with my friends for more than 30 minutes.

3.  I’m supposed to clean my room once a week.  My mother gets mad when I leave it dirty.

4.  If I go to a friend’s house, I’m supposed to tell my parents where I am so they don’t worry.

5.  I have a part-time job.  I’m supposed to save/deposit/put some of my money in the bank.  I’m not supposed to spend/use my money on foolish things.

6.  I’m supposed to help my parents with jobs around the house.  For example, I’m supposed to do/wash the dishes once a week.  I’m supposed to take out the garbage every day.

7.  My sister is supposed to put her toys away when she’s finished playing.

8.  She’s not supposed to touch/use the stove.

9.  She’s not supposed to watch TV after 8pm

10.                She’s supposed to go to bed at 8:30pm.

11.                We’re supposed to do/finish our homework before dinner.