CLASS 9 ENGLISH MODALS

Modal auxiliaries are verbs such as can, must, could, would, etc. which are used with main
verbs to express such ideas as possibility, permission, necessity, obligation, etc.

Characteristics of Modal Verbs

1. The modal verbs are: can , could ,may, might, must , ought to , shall,should ,will , would,
dare,need, have to ,used to.
2. Modal verbs have only one form. They have no ‘ing’ or ‘ed’ forms.
3. They don’t add ‘s’ or ‘es’ to the third person singular form.
For ex.: Mohan can speak two languages.
4. Modal verbs are followed by the infinitive of another verb without ‘to’ (first form of the
verb).
5. Questions are formed without do/does in the present or did in the past.
Can I help you? May I come in?

MODALS

1. Can

Use Examples

ability to do somethng. in the present I can speak French.

She can cook well.
Ananya can swim .

permission to do something in the present Can I go to the cinema?

Can we go to meet Grandma?

request Can you wait a moment, please?

Can you share your book with me?

offer I can lend you my car till tomorrow.

He can help you in solving your problem.
2. Could

Use Examples

ability to do somethig in the past I could run fast when I was young.
He could play Piano at the age of six.

polite permission * Could I go to the cinema, please?

polite request * Could you wait a moment, please?

Could you share your book with me?

3. May

Use Examples

possibility It may rain today.

He may come to party

with his family.

permission to do something in the present May I go to the cinema?

May I use your kitchen?

polite offer May I help you?

May I solve this

question for you?

4. Might

Use Examples

possibility (less possible than may) * It might rain today.

He might come to the party
with his family.

hesitant offer Might I help you?

5. Must

Use Examples

Strong obligation • You must obey your parents.

• We must go to school in time.

Compulsion • You must answer all questions.

• You must submit the assignments by Monday.

Conclusion
• You must be tired after your long journey .
• There must be some mistakes.

You must consult a doctor at once.

You must work hard to get this job.
Strong advice,
recommendation You must read ‘The Diary of Anne Frank’ by Anne Frank,a 15 years
old German girl..It highlights the plight of Jews during the second
world war.

6. must not

Use Examples

You must not work on dad's computer.

Prohibition
• You must not come here.
• You must not use the office
phone for private calls.

7. need not

Use Examples
Something is not I needn't go to the supermarket, we're going to the restaurant
necessary tonight.

• They need not send the letter now.

• You need not go. (i.e., It is not necessary for you to go).
• He need not come now.

8. ought to

Use Examples

Advice You ought to drive carefully in bad weather.

Ought to is You ought to switch off the light when you leave the
used for room.
expressing
what is the • You ought to get up earlier.
right or • We ought to exercise daily.
sensible thing • Children ought not misbehave with elders.
to do, or the
right way to
behave:

9. shall

used instead of will in the 1st person

Use Examples

Shall I carry your bag?

Permission
Shall I call you tomorrow?

10. should

Use Examples
advice You should drive carefully in bad weather.

• She should do yoga daily .

• He should work hard if he wants to get a good job.

obligation You should switch off the light when you leave the room.

• You should look after your old parents.

• You should pay all your taxes.
• You should switch off the lights when not in use.

11. will

Use Examples

Request, order (less polite than would) Will you please shut the door?
Will you pass me that book?
All the students will complete
this work by Sunday.
Promise,determination
I will stop smoking.
I will perform well in the next test
They will win the competition.

12. Would

Use Examples

Request (more polite than will) Would you shut the door, please?
Would you get me a glass of
water?
1.Must and have to:

• Must is used for all persons in the present and the future tenses.
• The negative is must not (mustn’t).
• The interrogative form is- Must I?
• Must has no infinitive and no past tense. It is followed by the infinitive without ”to’.

(i) Must is used to express obligation(duty-moral,legal):

• You must obey your parents.

• You must go to school in time.

(ii) It is used to express compulsion, ordering someone to do something because it is

necessary or important to do so:

• You must answer all questions.

• You must submit the assignments by Monday.

(iii) It is used to show conclusions :

• You must be tired after your long journey .

• There must be some mistakes.

(iv) The negative form of must (must not) is used for prohibition:

• You must not come here.

• You must not use the office phone for private calls.

(v) It is used to give emphatic advice:

• She must consult a doctor at once.

• You must work hard if you want to get good marks.

Must and have to:

Have to, like must, expresses obligation in the present while had to does so in the past.
Must expresses an obligation imposed by the speaker. Have to/Had to expresses
external obligations—an obligation by outside authority or circumstances.

• I must reach there in time .(the speaker himself feels so).

• You have to reach school in time. (ordered to do so by some external authority).

Had to is used when describing something belonging to the past.

 • He had to go early to catch the train.

2. Have to/Had to:

(i) Have to expresses obligation and necessity in the present. Had to does so in the
past:

• She has to look after her mother.

• He had to finish his work before 5 p.m.

(ii) Have to and had to are used for giving advice:

• First you have to mix the water and the sugar.

• She had to take those pills to get better.

(iii) Have to and had to are used to draw a logical conclusion:

• There has to be some reason for his mischief.

• This has to be a part of the whole plan.

(iv) Have to is used to indicate that something is very important or necessary:

• We have to be more careful in future.

• I have to clear all the debts before December.

3. Should:
(i) Should is the past tense of shall. In indirect form of speech ‘shall’ changes into
should:

• I said, “I shall go to school tomorrow.”

• I said that I should go to school the next day.

(ii) Should is used to express obligation, duty, etc.

• You should look after your old parents.

• You should pay all your taxes.
• You should switch off the lights when not in use.

(iii) Should is used to give advice or suggestion:

• You should consult a doctor.

• She should do yoga daily .
 • He should work hard if he wants to get a good job.
• You should drive very carefully in bad weather.

(iv) Should is used to express polite requests:

• I should be thankful if you give me some money.

4. Need:
As a modal verb, need is usually followed by an infinitive without ‘to’:
The modal verb need is mainly used in questions and negatives, which are formed
without ‘do’:
Need I go now? You need not go.

The negative ‘need not’ is often shortened to needn’t in conversation and informal
writing. Need does not change its form, so the third person singular of the present tense
does not end in’ —s’ :
He need not go there.
(i) The nigtive need expresses absence of obligation:

• They need not send the letter now.

• You need not go. (i.e., It is not necessary for you to go).
• He need not come now.

(ii) Need is used to express obligation or necessity:

• Need I attend the class today?

• Need he solve all the sums?

Ought, must, have to, and should

Note: Ought is used to express the subject’s obligation or duty. But it indicates neither
the speaker’s authority as with must, nor an outside authority as with have to. The
speaker is only reminding the subject of his duty. Besides this, he is giving advice or
indicating a correct or sensible action.
Ought can be used in exactly the same way as should:
You ought to/should obey your parents.
Have to and must:
You have to be regular. (These are the rules.)
You must obey your teachers. (The speaker insists on it.)
You have to take this medicine. (The doctor insists on it.)
You must take this medicine. (The speaker insists on it or It is the speaker’s emphatic
advice.)
You mustn’t drink this, it is poison, (prohibition)
You oughtn’t smoke so much. (It is not right or sensible.)
PRACTICE WORK
Q. Fill in the blanks using these modal verbs- can,can’t,could, couldn’t,may,might,must,must
not.

1.Penguins ………………..swim very well.

2.- I……………run very fast when I was younger.

3.- It's snowing, so we …………go out now.

4.It is a hospital.You ……………smoke.

5………..she speak Italian?

6.Drivers ………. stop when the traffic lights are red.

7. She ……….. stand on her head for more than a minute.

8. You ………………….. leave small objects lying on the

ground.Such objects …………..be swallowed by child.

9.Yesterday we ………….play.
10. …………. you play the piano
when you were seven?
11. You have a nice tricycle,…………. you ride it?
12. He has a broken leg,
so he …………walk for a few days.

13. I ………… sleep last night.

14. We ………… respect our elders.