THE MODAL AUXILIARIES Caractersticas: Slo tienen una forma. No aaden s en la 3 pers. sing. de presente.

No utiliza do para negar o interrogar. Ex: We shouldnt.... / Shall we...? Van seguidos de la raiz del verbo (sin to) excepto ought to. Los modales no tienen forma ni de pasado ni de futuro. Para expresar dichos tiempos empleamos otros verbos en su lugar, tales como BE ABLE TO y HAVE TO. El semimodal NEED puede usarse como verbo normal o como auxiliar. CAN, COULD y BE ABLE TO (USOS):

I. a)

1. Habilidad , capacidad Ej.: He can speak three languages She could play the piano at the age of three. Could se usa para expresar habilidad general en el pasado, no para hablar de una habilidad particular. En ese caso se usa was/were able to, managed to, o succeeded in. Sin embargo, couldnt se usa tanto para la habilidad general como la particular. Ej: After six hours climbing, we succeeded in reaching the top of the mountain (not * we could reach) Ej: Simon was so drunk that he couldnt find the front door. 2. Imposibilidad (forma negativa de MUST 2) Ej: The doctor cant see you today. He is fully booked. (peticin informal) (peticin educada)

3. Peticin Ej: Can I use your phone? Could I talk to you for a moment? 4. Permiso Ej: You can borrow the car tonight. 5.

CAN - Posibilidad terica (comparar con MAY/MIGHT 4 /COULD) Ej: One can hold their breath for three minutes, with practice. Accidents can happen. Sugerencia (posibles soluciones a un problema) Ej: What shall we do? We can go to the police. (si se usa could es una sugerencia menos fuerte)

6.

** CAN slo se utiliza en presente (tambin en futuro no lejano). Para los dems tiempos, utiliza la expresin BE ABLE TO Ej: I cant/wont be able to see you tomorrow. Because Im going away. Shes been able to pass he exam.

Exercise 1. Fill in the blanks with can, could and be able to 1. He had hurt his leg, so he .. walk very well. 2. The baby .. sleep. Theres too much noise here. 3. She wasnt at home when I phoned but I . contact her at the office. 4. My grandmother loved music. She . play the piano very well. 5. I .. finish sewing this dress yet. Ive been too busy this week. 6. The boy fell into the river but fortunately we .. rescue him. Exercise 2. MATCH the sentences to uses 1-6 seen before. 1. Tom, can you lend me 5 dollars? 2. Although the Titanic sank quickly, many passengers were able to escape. 3. You could try drinking tea with honey for a sore throat. 4. Here, you can take my pen.

5. Could I please reserve a table for dinner? 6. How many elephants can fit into a mini? 7. That cant be the postman. Its only seven oclock. b) COULD HAVE + PARTICIPIO

1. Para indicar que tenamos la posibilidad de hacer algo en el pasado, pero de hecho no lo hicimos. Ej: I could have sent her a card, but I was too busy. 2. Se usa tambin para expresar una suposicin porque no sabemos lo que sucedi. Ej: He didnt come to school yesterday. He could have been ill. II. a) MAY y MIGHT (USOS)

1. Permisos formales Ej: You may use a pencil in this exam. 2. Prohibiciones formales Ej: You may not smoke here. 3. Peticiones educadas Ej: May I come in? 4. Posibilidad (la manera de traducirse este uso es puede que o pudiera ser que) (tambin COULD) Ej: He may be the right man for the job. He may/might not be interested Will you answer the phone? It could / may / might be your mother.

Exercise 3. MATCH the sentences to uses 1-4 seen before. 1. Visitors may not enter this section of the palace. 2. They might not finish the building although they promised to. 3. May I sit here? 4. Students may not use any study notes in this exam. Exercise 4. REWRITE the sentences using a MODAL AUXILIARY 1. Perhaps John is at the school now. 2. Chewing gum is forbidden in class. 3. The teacher allows students to leave early on Fridays. (Start: Students.) 4. Perhaps the post will arrive soon. b) MAY/ MIGHT HAVE + PARTICIPLE Se usa para expresar una suposicin porque no sabemos lo que ocurri (igual que COULD HAVE + PARTICIPIO 2) Ej: He didnt answer the phone all day. He could / may / might have been out of town. Exercise 5. REWRITE the sentences using a MAY / MIGHT HAVE + PARTICIPLE 1. Perhaps he telephones, but I was out earlier. 2. Its possible that the bank loaned them the money. (The bank) 3. Maybe Tom didnt want to meet us. III. a) MUST (USOS)

1. Obligacin Ej: I must visit the doctor soon. I will have to study hard next year. She had to work late last week. 2. Deduccin lgica (para expresar seguridad basada en los hechos o circunstancias) Ej: Jason didnt have lunch today, he must be hungry. There is no heartbeat and the body is cold. He must be dead.

** Recuerda que must se utiliza para hablar solamente del presente y del futuro. No tiene pasado (HAD TO) Compara con HAVE (GOT) TO ( Obligacin, mandato externo) Ej: All students have (got) to register by October 5th. COMPARA: Im entering the army, so I have to get my hair cut. I must get my hair cut. (= I want to have it cut)

Exercise 6. Choose between MUST and HAVE TO: 1. Im tired. I .. go to bed. 2. John be home by ten oclock. 3. We get another dog soon. 4. This is a great book. I .. read it. 5. I think we pay in advance. 6. Catholics . go to church on Sundays. b) MUST HAVE + PARTICIPLE Se emplea para expresar que estamos bastante seguros de algo que ocurri en el pasado, o cuando sacamos conclusiones lgicas sobre el pasado. Su forma negativa es CANT HAVE + PARTICIPIO. Ej: Its terrible late. She must have stayed at work. John didnt come to school. He must have been ill. (debe de haber estado enfermo, seguro que estuvo enfermo) Tom cant have bought a Shakiras new CD. He dislikes her music. Exercise 7. Choose: must (have) / cant (have) 1. (The door bell rings) I wonder who that is. It . (be) Jim. He said he would come after 7 and its only 6.30 now. 2. I wonder why Tom isnt at work today. I suppose he .. (be) ill. 3. Don passed the examination. He didnt study much for it. It . (be) very easy. 4. She knew everything about our plans. She (listen) to our conversation. 5. Dennis did the opposite of what I asked him to do. He (understand) what I said. 6. Jim seems to know a lot about history. He (have) a lot of books. Exercise 8. Choose: may not have /cant have /had to /must have 7. Shakespeare .. been to Australia because it hadnt been discovered. 8. King Arthur existed nobodys sure. 9. Castles in the Middle Ages been cold places. 10. People in those days get their water from wells and streams. 11. Poor people 500 years ago had easy lives. 12. But they been unhappier than us. IV. MUSTNT / NEEDNT / DONT HAVE TO (USOS):

1. 2.

MUSTNT se usa para prohibir algo. Ej: You mustnt smoke in the library. NEEDNT y DONT HAVE TO significan: no es necesario, no hace falta que.. Ej: You neednt/dont have to shout. I can hear you perfectly well.

** NEED slo funciona como auxiliar modal en forma negativa. Exercise 9. Choose: mustnt / dont have to 1. Campers play music after 10 pm. 2. Students ask for permission to stay out after midnight. 3. Bicycles be parked in front of the courtyard. 4. You .. pay for your tickets now. 5. You .. disturb your sister while shes studying. 6. You .. knock before you come into the room. V. a) SHOULD, OUGHT TO (USOS): 1. Dar o pedir consejo, dar recomendaciones. Ej: You look ill. You should see a doctor. ** SHOULD puede sustituirse por OUGHT TO. No hay diferencia de significado entre los dos. Exercise 10. Choose: must/should 13. Tell Mark he tidy his room at once. 14. I suppose I .. write to Aunt Rachel one of these days 15. All officers report to the Commanding Officer by midday. 16. You . Have your hair cut at least once a month. b) SHOULD / OUGHT TO HAVE + PARTICIPIO Se usa para lamentar o reprochar que algo no ocurriera en el pasado y que no se haya cumplido lo que esperbamos. Ej: You ought to have seen a dentist earlier. Now you probably need extensive treatment. She should have passed the driving test, but unfortunately she failed. Exercise 11. Make statements using SHOUL HAVE + PARTICIPLE. 1 David didnt study for his exams although he was advised to, so he failed them all. 2. It was stupid of Alan to be rude to his boss. (Alan.) 3. Look how wet you are from the rain! It was silly not to take an umbrella. 4. It was wrong of you not to wait for him. (You) Exercise 12. Rewrite using a MODAL AUXILIARY: 1. We expected him to win the prize, but he didnt. 2. I suggest you get a second opinion. 3. A driving license isnt necessary for that job. (You) 4. I think I will be late for lunch, but Im not sure. 5. If you want my advice, see a doctor! Exercise 13. LOOK AT THE FOLLOWING SITUATIONS AND CREATE SENTENCES USING MODALS ACCORDING TO THE INSTRUCTIONS GIVEN. TRY TO ASK ONE QUESTION. a. We're going to London for a weekend. (Make suggestions about things to do). b. I start studying at University in October. (Talk about necessity) c. Neil has a fever and a sore throat. (Give him some advice) d. You want to hold a party at the weekend. (Make polite requests and ask for permission) e. You have just won a lottery. (Talk about possibility)