Guide to English Modals – TOEIC® Preparation
Flow Exam team
In English grammar, modal verbs form a specific family of auxiliary verbs used to express various semantic nuances: possibility, necessity, permission, ability, recommendation, and many others.
Their peculiarity lies in their atypical grammatical functioning:
- No marking for the third person singular (she will, he can, it must),
- Formation of negation and interrogation without resorting to the auxiliary verb do (example: You must not leave / Must I wait?),
- Direct association with a bare infinitive, meaning without the particle to (example: She should leave, not She should to leave).
These verbs are usually classified into three main categories:
- Primary Modals (Core Modals):
- This category includes verbs such as can, could, may, might, must, shall, should, will, would (sometimes joined by dare and need in specific uses).
- These verbs are defective: they do not have all tense forms (we never say musted, for example) and strictly follow the rules stated above (absence of s, direct negation without do, etc.).
- Semi-Modals (Quasi-Modals):
- They convey comparable modal meanings (necessity, aptitude, future projection…), but they partially adopt the behavior of regular verbs.
- Typical examples: have to, be able to, need (as a lexical verb), dare (as a lexical verb), ought to, used to, be going to, etc.
- Some accept the third-person marking (She has to work), conjugate in the simple past (I had to leave), or require the auxiliary do (Does he need to come?).
- Modal Expressions (Periphrases):
- These are verbal constructions (generally formed with be or have) that fulfill modal roles (examples: be allowed to, be about to, would rather, etc.).
- Unlike primary modals, they are not defective and follow standard conjugation (He is allowed to enter, They were about to start, etc.).
Here is a summary table of the main modal functions. For each one, we have written a detailed lesson that we invite you to consult.
| Function | Modals and expressions |
|---|---|
| Ability (= aptitude to realize something) | can / can't could / couldn't be able to manage to succeed in know how to be capable of |
| Permission (= authorization granted) | can / could / may / might be allowed to have the right to have permission to |
| Obligation (= imperative necessity) | must / shall have (got) to ought to be required to be to + base verb |
| Prohibition (= formal ban) | can't / cannot mustn't may not not allowed to |
| Absence of obligation (= non-necessity) | don't have to don't need to needn't be not required to |
| Advice (= strong recommendation) | should / shouldn't ought to ought not to had better You are advised to… |
| Suggestion / Proposal (= proposition of action) | could / shall Why don't we…? How about…? |
| Intention / Future (= temporal projection, plan) | will / shall be going to be about to |
| Probability / Uncertainty (= variable degree of certainty) | may / must / can't be likely to be bound to be supposed to be like |
| Preference / Wish (= expression of a desire, a preference) | would would like would rather would sooner |
- 🔗 Guide on Expressing Ability for the TOEIC®
- 🔗 Guide on Expressing Permission for the TOEIC®
- 🔗 Guide on Expressing Obligation for the TOEIC®
- 🔗 Guide on Expressing Prohibition for the TOEIC®
- 🔗 Guide on Expressing Lack of Obligation for the TOEIC®
- 🔗 Guide on Expressing Advice for the TOEIC®
- 🔗 Guide on Expressing Suggestion and Proposal for the TOEIC®
- 🔗 Guide on Expressing Intention or Near Future for the TOEIC®
- 🔗 Guide on Expressing Probability and Uncertainty for the TOEIC®
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