Modal Verbs Total
Modal Verbs Total
Modal Verbs Total
MUST/HAVE TO
1.Fill each of the gaps with must or a form of have to followed by a suitable verb.
CAN/BE ABLE TO
2. Insert be able to or can in an appropriate form in the following sentences (sometimes both of them are
possible):
1. Tom ……………………………… (buy) a new house last month.
2. ……………………………… (they/play) tennis well?
3. She ……………………………… (not/understand) the question yesterday.
4. Fred ……………………………… (speak) Russian when he was six years old.
5. When ……………………………… (you/come) tomorrow?
6. Unfortunately, they ……………………………… (not/get) the bread this morning.
7. I ……………………………… (not / play) golf last Thursday.
8. ……………………………… (you / speak) Japanese?
9. ……………………………… (he / come) to the party next weekend.
10. They ……………………………… (get) tickets to the Rolling Stones concert last week.
11. How ……………………………… (you / convince) him to come to the exhibition last week?
12. She ……………………………… (enjoy) the concert because of the noise outside.
3. Fill in the blanks with the correct form of can, be able, must or have to.
1. One…………………………….. to pass certain exams to be accepted by this college.
2. Although the room was full of smoke, he ...................................... phone the fire brigade.
3. If I go by train, I ............................................ buy a ticket.
4. You ........................................... be careful with electricity.
5. As a child he ................................................... play squash for hours.
6. If you want to be a member of the club, you ................................................. register in time.
7. In the end we ................................................ use all the meat we'd bought so we threw it away.
8. She was so short she ........................................................ reach the door handle.
9........................................................ we really stay so late at the party?
10.Our father told us that we ...................................................... be home by 10 p.m.
MAY/CAN
4. Choose the best option:
1. You may/can swim in this river.
2. May/Can I leave the table?
3. Can/may I have a biscuit?
4. “May I speak to ….”
5. May/Can I go to the toilet, sir? - It's only ten minutes to go. You'll have to wait.
CAN/BE ALLOWED TO
5. Explain the difference between the following sentences if there is any.
I could go home early yesterday. vs. I was allowed to go home early yesterday.
I was allowed to stay up till ten when I was a kid. vs. I could stay up till ten when I was a kid.
Modal Verbs: Ability, Permission, Obligation, Logical Deduction, Possibility czerniakto@gmail.com
MUSTN’T
6. Use either 'must', 'have to', 'mustn't or 'not have to' in the following sentences.
1. Jack ……………………………… (go) home early last night.
2. ……………………………… (she/commute) to work?
3. Children ……………………………… (play) with cleaning liquids.
4. We ……………………………… (get) going it's already midnight!
5. When ……………………………… (you/arrive) for work last week?
6. You ……………………………… (do) the cleaning up this morning, I will!
7.They ……………………………… (visit) the doctor yesterday, as they were not feeling well.
MUSTN’T/NEEDN’T
7. Rewrite the following sentences using „mustn‟t‟ or „needn‟t‟.
1. You are not allowed to overtake on the inside lane.
2. It isn't necessary for him to wash up now; he can do it later.
3. He doesn't have to leave until 6 o'clock.
4. It isn't necessary for you to send a taxi to pick me up from the station.
5. Taking photographs in the museum is prohibited.
ASSUMPTIONS:
COULD/MAY/MIGHT (HAVE) vs. CAN’T/MUST (HAVE)
8. Make assumptions with modal verbs, be careful with the tenses!
1. Where is David? He ……………………………… (be) at school. Classes begin at 8.
2. She ……………………………… (think) that it is a good idea. It's crazy!
3. I'm absolutely sure!. They ……………………………… (arrive) yesterday, I saw their ticket.
4. Courses ……………………………… (begin) the fifth of September.
5. Are you joking! David ……………………………… (go) to Paris last week. He doesn't have enough
money.
6. They ……………………………… (live) in New York, but I'm not sure.
7. The concert ……………………………… (be) wonderful last night. Fiore is a great conductor.
10. Finish the following sentences without changing the meaning of the sentences printed before.
1. Perhaps he was feeling tired yesterday.
He ………………………………………………………….
2. I don't think he is revising for his test.
He ..................................................................................
3. I suppose you've already met Charlie.
Practical English – Grammar The John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin
Tomasz Czerniak, MA. Summer Term 2015
You ................................................................................
4. I'm sure the ferries leave once a day for that island.
The ferries .....................................................................
5. Perhaps they decided not to come after all.
They ...............................................................................
6. I don't think the hostages have been released yet.
The hostages ................................................................
7. Perhaps you'll need some help with that.
You ................................................................................
8. I don't think she was sleeping when you called her.
She ................................................................................
9. I think she's going abroad.
She ................................................................................
10. I suppose he's had a lot of experience in management.
He ..................................................................................
13. Underline the option that can best complete each of the following sentences. Sometimes two are possible.
1. I could/might speak Japanese when I was 40, good old days!
2. You‟ve got a broken tooth! You must have been/had to be in a fight again!
3. I‟m not sure how old she is but she might/can be in her middle fifties.
4. There were many people present but, fortunately, I was able/could talk to the President.
5. The outcome might/can rest on this last handful of votes.
6. She‟s always so tactful! She can‟t have meant/wasn‟t able to mean to insult you!
7. Mary could/was allowed to come to my party although usually she has to do her homework in the evenings.
8. I‟m not sure but it could have been/can have been Joe who woke you up.
9. Don‟t forget it may/can be chilly in Siberia in winter.
10.I must/have to start working-out, I can‟t stand this spare tire around my waist.
11.Where may/can she be?
12.But for your help, we may not have finished/couldn‟t have finished the project on time.
13.You may/could be taller than me, but certainly you aren‟t more skilful.
15. Rewrite the sentence using the modal verb which best completes the meaning (do not use should).
1.I don't believe Harry spent the whole evening studying for his French exam.
…………….
2.A wasp sting was sometimes a cause of death in those days.
…………….
3.It proved impossible to us to contact you last week.
…………….
4.I‟m sure this isn‟t the way to Norwich.
This ..........................................................................................................................
5.Perhaps these are the keys.
Practical English – Grammar The John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin
Tomasz Czerniak, MA. Summer Term 2015
These ..........................................................................................................................
6.The service in British restaurants is sometimes quite surly.
The service ...................................................................................................................................
7.Jim keeps giving me presents.
Jim ..........................................................................................................................
8.The police refused to do anything about my noisy neighbours.
The police ..........................................................................................................................
9.School uniform wasn‟t compulsory at my school.
We ..........................................................................................................................
10.I'm afraid it isn't possible to grow bananas in the British climate.
Unfortunately, you ........................................................................................................................
11.The lights are off so maybe he isn't at home.
He ................................................................................................................................................
16. State the difference (if any) between the following pairs of sentences.
1. She couldn‟t ring Harry, as the phone was out of order. She can‟t have rung Harry, as the phone was
out of order.
2. He was able to open the door. He could have opened the door
3. We may not get there in time for the speeches. We couldn't get there in time for the speeches.
4. They must have taken a short cut to get here. They had to take a short cut to get here.
17. Finish each of the following sentences in such a way that it is as similar as possible in meaning to the
sentence printed before it. You must use a suitable form of can, could, may or might in each sentence.
1 I'm very angry with you - you knew I was having problems with the car and you didn't bother to help me!
You ..............................................................................................................................................
2 Twenty years ago my neighbour offered me his apartment for $30,000 but I didn't buy it.
Twenty years ago I ........................................................................................................................
3 It would be possible for us to ¡ssue the tickets today if you gave us your credit card number.
We ...............................................................................................................................................
4 The service in British restaurants is sometimes quite surly.
The service ...................................................................................................................................
5 Might the disparity in the figures be due to a computer error?
Is it ..............................................................................................................................................
6 Don't worry, they'll probably be on the next train.
They .............................................................................................................................................
7 I'm certain he isn't responsible for the error; he looks too experienced.
He ................................................................................................................................................
8 Perhaps the shuttle bus isn't working at the moment - it is the low season.
The shuttle bus .............................................................................................................................
9 It's so annoying. You knew their phone number but you didn't give it to me!
You ..............................................................................................................................................
10 I'm afraid it isn't possible to grow bananas in the British climate.
Unfortunately, you ........................................................................................................................
11 Given some luck, our team has a good chance of winning the championship next month.
With any luck ...............................................................................................................................
12 Perhaps Jim took it; he was in the office all day yesterday.
Jim ...............................................................................................................................................
13 It's possible that the results will have arrived by tomorrow lunchtime.
The results ...................................................................................................................................
14 Who do you think is making all that noise next door?
Who .............................................................................................................................................
15 Perhaps there are other intelligent life-forms in the universe.
There ...........................................................................................................................................
16 Thanks to satellite technology, it is now possible to predict hurricanes quite accurately.
We ...............................................................................................................................................
Modal Verbs: Ability, Permission, Obligation, Logical Deduction, Possibility czerniakto@gmail.com
19. Replace the words in italics with a construction using one of auxiliary verbs, except where the change
can‟t be made.
1. Are you allowed to take your pet mice to school?
2. Charles refused to admit he was in the wrong. Although he‟s a nice boy, he is sometimes very
stubborn.
3. Is it possible that mankind will have no future, if it is unable to mend its ways.
4. Is it possible to spend hours looking for a parking place? The other day, when I was able to find one,
I was amazed.
5. Napoleon in exile on St Helena had the habit of standing for hours staring out to sea in the direction
Practical English – Grammar The John Paul II Catholic University of Lublin
Tomasz Czerniak, MA. Summer Term 2015
of France
20. Use the verb in brackets with a correct form of an auxiliary verb.
1. „Did you say that girl over there was your cousin Gerogina? It ............................ (be)! She looks far
too young. If it is, then she (have)....................................... some beauty treatment.
2. „You‟re fortunate, because in your kind of job you (get up)........................ early in the morning if you
don‟t feel like it.
3. Ouch! At least you (tell)................................... this handle was red hot! I nearly dropped the soup all
over the floor!
4. You (tell) ................................. me first you were going to pick it up, and then I would have warned
you.
5. He turned the radio down so that he (disturb)b..................................... the old lady downstairs.