Modals and their Functions || English

MODALS AND THEIR FUNCTION

Modal	Function	Examples
Must	To express necessity/obligation	Ø  I must finish tiss task by ten today. Ø  Student must do the test in less than hour.
	To express a strong degree of certainty	Rio : why is Johan absent today? Tina : he must be sick.
Should/ought to	To express advisability	F  You ought to go to the doctor now. F  We have work hard. We should take a rest.
Can	To express an ability	ÿ Susi can sing well. ÿ Aldo can run fast.
	To express informal permission	P You can leave now. P You can eat the cake.
	To express informal polite request	Can I borrow your pencil?
Could	To express polite request	Could you do thee dishes
	To express certainty (not very strong)	Where is Tiara? She could be in the teacher’s office
May	To express a weak degree of certainty	Why isn’t Thea in class? She may be in library.
	To express formal permission	You may do the exercises now.
Will	To express 100% certainty	Q  He will be here at six Q  He wwilll come on time
	To express willingness	Rika : I need some flour now. Totok : I will get it for you
Would	To express polite request	¯  Would you move a bit ¯  Would you help me cook the food
	To express an action that was repeated regularly in the past	When I was a child, my mother would read me a story before bed