What are Modal Verbs?
Modal verbs are special verbs which behave very differently from normal verbs. Here are some important differences:
1. Modal verbs do not take “-s” in the third person.
Examples:
- He can speak Chinese.
- She should be here by 9:00.
2. You use “not” to make modal verbs negative, even in Simple Present and Simple Past.
Examples:
- He should not be late.
- They might not come to the party.
3. Many modal verbs cannot be used in the past tenses or the future tenses.
Examples:
- He will can go with us. Not Correct
- She musted study very hard. Not Correct
Common Modal Verbs
| Can Could May Might Must |
Ought to Shall Should Will Would |
For the purposes of this tutorial, we have included some expressions which are not modal verbs including had better, have to, and have got to. These expressions are closely related to modals in meaning and are often interchanged with them.
