Modals of Obligation: must, have to, have got to, need, will, shall, is to, was to

02

easyenglish lesson

Modals
Modals may seem confusing to non-English speakers. Study the chart below.
You will see that several different modals can express a single mood.
And several different moods can be expressed by a single modal.
Below, you will find an example of each modal as it expresses each mood.
Go to the lessons to learn more.

LESSON  MOOD   MUST HAVE TO GOT TO NEED WOULD WILL SHALL SHOULD OUGHT MAY MIGHT COULD CAN ABLE TO DOES DID IS
01infer  inference/conclusion must have to got to  would will       cannot    
02oblig  obligation  must have to got to need  will shall          is to
03advice recommendation/advice    need    should ought        
04suggst suggestion        shall    might could can    
05expect expectation         should ought        
06probab probability           may might      
07permit permission/concession          may might could can    
08reques request       would will     might could can    
09offer  offer        will     might could can    
10possib possibility             could can able to   
11abilit ability/capacity     would will      could can able to does did 
12predic prediction       will shall        does  is

01infer: inference/conclusion:
must  He must know about the second world war because he was born in Germany.
must not They must not have gotten my message because they haven't called.
have to  If she is English she has to have drunk tea at least once.
got to  With those brightly colored shorts and sunglasses, they've got to be tourists.
would  A tall steel tower in the center of Paris? Ah, that would be the Eiffel Tower.
will  Behind every successful man, you will find a woman.
will  When the cat's away, the mice will play.
can't  If she's tall and thin, it can't be Mary.

02oblig: obligation:
must  All the soldiers must report back to their commanding officer at least once a day.
must  If two ride on a horse, one must ride behind.
must not If you are feeling sick, you must not go out in the rain.
have to  To become a doctor you have to study for many years.
don't have to In America, all citizens should vote, but they don't have to.
got to  You've got to change the oil in your car every once in a while, or the engine will blow up.
need  To get your passport, you need to go to the government office.
will  You will do exactly as I tell you to do.
shall  Thou shalt not steal.
is to  Phillip and Joey are to buy all the drinks for the party.

03advice: recommendation/advice
need  If you want to go hiking in the Rocky Mountains, you need to get a good raincoat.
should  To learn English really well, you should travel in America or Ireland.
ought  You ought to call Catherine if you are thinking of not going.

04suggst: suggestion
shall  Shall I come back later?
might  If you can't find the phone number in the yellow pages you might try directory assistance.
could  You could try a different shampoo if your hair is too dry.
can  They can ask Uncle Peter for help if they don't understand.
let  Let nature take her course.

05expect: expectation
should  Suzanne should be getting home any minute.
ought  The movie ought to start at about eight o'clock.

06probab: probability
may  Bring a pic-nic lunch because there may not be a restaurant at the beach.
might  If you explain your problem to Elizabeth, she might have some suggestions.

07permit: permission/concession
may  The guard said we may not take pictures in the museum.
may  You may be a college graduate, but you're a lousy poker player.
may  A man may work from sun to sun but a woman's work is never done.
might  The World Cup might be the biggest sports event in the world, but I think it's boring.
could  Mom said we could play outside after dinner.
can  I'm sorry, only employees can use the office telephone.

08reques: request
would  Would you please be quiet?
will  Will you open that door for me please?
might  Might I have a try at your computer game?
could  Could I see the rest of your house?
can  Can Pamela use the bathroom?

09offer:  offer
will  I'll take care of the flight reservations.
might  We might help out with the cooking if you like.
could  Mohammed could explain the details to everyone.
can  Kamal can take the car and go get Tanaka at the swimming pool.

10possib: possibility
could  At this hour, the library could be closed.
can  You can take a boy out of the country, but you can't take the country out of the boy.
can  Women: you can't live with 'em and you can't live without 'em.
can  You can't lose what you never had.
can  You can't buy happiness.
able to  We went to the concert, but we weren't able to meet the musicians.

11abilit: ability/capacity
would  When this car was new, it would go 170 kilometers per hour.
will  All of these clothes will not fit in your suitcase.
could  When I first came to Italy, I couldn't understand anything.
can  Veronica can't swim and she can't drive a car, but she can sing really well!
can  Those who can, do; those who can't, teach.
able to  I won't be able to speak Chinese well until I've had many more lessons.
does  Junko is very strong; she runs 10 kilometers every day.
did  When I knew Richard in Japan, he spoke Japanese very well.

12predic: prediction
will  What will people think?
will  Time will heal all wounds.
shall  We shall meet him at the train station.
shall  Blessed are the meek for they shall inherit the earth.
shall  As you sow, so shall you reap.
does  The train gets in at eight thirty.
is  Tomorrow is Christmas.