Modal
Verbs / Modals / Modal Auxiliaries
PART 2
ü ‘Ought
to’ and ‘had better’ express advisability. But besides expressing advisability,
‘ought to’, as well as ‘should’, may suggest that care be taken in carrying out
the action of the verb. In addition, they may imply duty or responsibility in
carrying out that action.
Advisability- You
ought to stop here till the storm ends. You had better stay here till the storm
ends.
Suggestion- You should try harder. You ought to try
harder.
Duty
or responsibility- Children should follow the school’s safety
regulations. Children ought to follow the school’s safety regulations.
ü ‘Had
better’ is similar in meaning to ‘ought to’ and ‘should’, but it is usually
stronger. The auxiliary ‘had better’ often expresses a warning. It is followed
by the basic form of the verb and has either a present or future meaning.
Our
left front tire is almost flat. We had better stop to fill it with air.
ü Like
the auxiliary verb ‘had’, the verb ‘had’ in the auxiliary ‘had better’ can
contract with a subject pronoun: you’d better, they’d better and so on.
ü The
past form of ‘should’ - should have + past participle.
I had
an exam this morning. I didn’t do
well on it, because I read the wrong chapter. I should have been more attentive
in class.
It feels like I really hurt my ankle. I should not have played soccer for so
long this afternoon.
ü The
past form of ‘ought to’ - ought to have + past participle
I
ought to have read the right chapter.
You
ought to have thought about the consequences before you volunteered.
ü ‘Have
to’ and ‘have got to’ express necessity. Like ‘must’, they suggest that there
is no other choice.
All
candidates have to take the grammar test.
I
simply have got to get there on time.
ü In
informal conversation, ‘must’ usually carries a stronger connotation than ‘have
to’ and often indicates a sense of urgency.
I have
to speak to Robert. I was hoping we could get together for lunch.
I must
speak to Robert immediately. His brother was in a car accident.
ü The
past tense of ‘have to’ - ‘had to’
I have
to leave by tomorrow morning.
I had
to leave by this morning.
ü ‘Have
to’ and ‘must’, when in the negative, express lack of necessity or prohibition.
Do not have to indicates that something is unnecessary, while must not
indicates that something is not allowed.
Tomorrow
is Christmas, and we do not have to go to work.
You
must not tamper with that device.
ü ‘Be
supposed to’ and ‘be to’ express expectation. They suggest that someone is expecting
something about a scheduled situation, the fulfillment of conditions, or the
use of proper procedures. If ‘used’ in conversation, ‘be to’ is usually
stronger in meaning and more clear cut than ‘be supposed to’.
The
plane is supposed to land in an hour.
The
plane is to land at ten in the morning.
ü In the
first example, the speaker expects the flight to take off in an hour, because
that’s when
it is scheduled to depart. The second sentence is similar in meaning to the
first sentence, but it states a fact. The speaker knows with certainty when the
plane will be taking off.
ü ‘Be to’
and ‘be supposed to’ can also indicate expectation about behavior.
I am
supposed to go to this meeting. My director told me he would be pleased to see
me there.
I am
to be at this meeting. My director told us it is mandatory.
ü ‘Used to’ expresses a habitual action in the past, one
that is no longer performed or repeated. ‘Used to’ can be used interchangeably
with ‘would’ in this sense.
However, since ‘would’ also has other meanings, it requires an indication of past time to make sense. Compare the following sets of
examples.
I used to go surfing every summer.
When I was a teenager, I would go surfing every summer.
Before I broke my knee, I would run five miles every
morning.
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