semi-modals and modal-like verbs

Modals

Modals are helping verbs which often express a speaker’s attitude or mood. Modals are mainly used when:

· the speaker wants to indicate the attitude towards he is saying;

· the speaker wants to indicate his attitude towards the things he intends to do, or intends not to do;

· the speaker is concerned about the effect of what he is saying on the person he is speaking to;

· the speaker is giving information to indicate how certain he is that what he is saying is true or correct;

NOTE	The verbs that show the strongest association with modal verbs usually express various emotions, attitudes or cognitive states, and thus they commonly co-occur with modals expressing a personal stance. I can imagine what it’s like. I can’t cope with it.

Modal verbs are used to express: obligation, duty, necessity, prohibition, permission, refusal, expectation, probability, possibility, certainty, promise, intention, ability, willingness, advice, criticism, logical assumptions, offers, requests or suggestions. That is the free or independent use of modal verbs.

Modal verbs convey a range of judgements about the likelihood of events. They function only as auxiliary verbs, expressing meanings which are much less definable, focused, and independent than those of lexical verbs. A modal verb in combination with the infinitive forms a modal compound predicate.

The European Union says its members must tighten their belts. (obligation)

They used to call her Das Maedchen – “ the girl.” Maybe now they should call her Das Messer – “the knife”. (habitual action; advice assumption)

That was the last thing he needed to hear. (necessity)

Some modal verbs (should / would) are used as auxiliary verbs to build up the analytical forms. Such verbs begin to be dependent on the structure of the sentence and on the lexical character of the predicate verb in the main clause. That is the structurally dependent use of modals.

Modals have functions which can be defined as:

· primary functions (obligation, necessity, possibility, inevitability, etc.);

· secondary functions (supposition).

Modals have special uses in 3 kinds of complex sentences and are used in report clauses, conditional structures and purpose clauses:

I stress that I would like to make a clear distinction between these organizations.

Even though the Sweden furniture chain IKEA PR blitz would have us believe otherwise, the issue at stake is the grounds where the chain would like to build for its store.

There are nine central modal auxiliary verbs in this subclass: can, could, may, might, must, will, would, shall, should with ought to, need (to) (= must), dare and used to (= would) having a very familiar meaning.

need (to) (= must), dare and used to (= would) are also referred to as modals or semi-modals.

There are four paired forms – can, could; may, might; shall, should; will, would; and four single forms – must, ought to, need, dare. dare can follow the grammatical patterns of either modal auxiliaries or lexical, ‘regular’, verbs, while need contrasts grammatically with the regular verb to need.

Modals are sometimes called defective verbs because:

· they lack forms ordinary full verbs have;

· they have no analytical forms (no future and present tenses, no past Subjunctive II)

· they cannot be used as infinitives and have no analytical forms (no future and perfect tenses, no past Subjunctive II);

· they have no -ing-forms;

· they take no -s in the third person singular and are followed by an infinitive without to except for ought to, have to, be to;

He must be at work. He ought to do what you asked him to.

· they come before the subject in questions and are followed by not in negations;

– Could you help me with the dishes? – I’m sorry, I can’t.

“You call this a fancy dress?” Mr. Geller asks, holding up the gown. “ Would you wear this to dinner?”

· each modal has a basic meaning of its own; different meanings may be associated with forms of the infinitive – simple and perfect (both in the active and passive forms), continuous and perfect continuous;

· in general, modals cannot occur with each other in the verb phrase.

Once the new reporting structure is in place, analysts said investors should be able to compare the growth and profit margins in Nokia’s new businesses with the company’s well-established business of churning out mobile phones. (should is a modal verb; be able to is a modal phrase)

After could / might / must / ought to / should and would, not is often shortened to n’t and is added to the modal. may not is not shortened at all. shall not, will not, can not are shortened to shan’t, won’t, can’t.

You couldn’t get suppliers. You couldn’t get space to let. You couldn’t get people to work at normal salaries.

They may no t be fully comfortable with him so much as impressed by his ability to stay afloat.

Every job is different, every character’s different. That’s what makes it interesting. Otherwise, you wouldn’t keep doing it.

Bankers say the scale of the debt will not ease investor appetite.

There is a danger that the new technology won’t live up to expectations.

NOTE	In orthographical representations of the spoken language, modals and fixed idiomatic expressions often occur as reduced forms: gotta, oughtta, etc.: Oh, shit, I gotta go into this meeting. So, anyway, see ya. The European Union is a basket case, but you’ve gotta love it.

Although modals cannot combine with tense, they can combine with marked aspect and voice:

· with passive voice;

It should be pronounced like a zee.

In these circumstances, Mr Major might be asked to stay on.

NOTE	Modals and modal-like verbs used in passive sentences are followed by be and the past participle of the main verb. These forms are called ‘modal passives’. The man could be identified with his passport. The man was able to be identified with his passport.

· with perfect aspect;

The way in which he did so might have been inappropriate, but if so, one could expect the voters to penalize him at the polls, as in fact they did.

Hakan should have been given a yellow card for his outrageous dive, or that Recber ought to have been sent off for his wild challenge on Dyer.

· with progressive aspect.

Perhaps that is why just when things might have been getting too earthy.

Depardieu will be traveling back and forth from France to Norway to film “I Am Dina” on a set in the countryside.

semi-modals and modal-like verbs

There are fixed idiomatic phrases with functions similar to those of modals. Certain verbs or expressions can be used with the same meaning as modals. These are: had better (= should), have (got) to (= must), be able to (= can), be supposed to, be going to, etc.

I’ ve got to the library.

Clerks had better tell the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

All that, promised the king, is going to change.

Modal-like verbs are two-word or three-word helping verbs which have very similar meaning to modals, but they have different forms. For example, the modal would is often combined with like to or rather to form a modal-like verb. The modal-like verb would like to means want to. The modal-like would rather means prefer to.

I would like to go to the dance tonight.

I would rather go to the dance tonight than go to a movie.

Many of the semi-modals can be marked for tense and person, and can occur as non-finite forms. They can sometimes co-occur with a central modal verb or another semi-modal.

Women will have to contend with men.

The future government will have to tackle a thornier issue.

However, T-Online is one business that may have to stay on the prowl.

And whoever did so would be able to enjoy, immediately, all of the economic benefits of freer trade.

The semi-modals have to, need (to), and be going to can occur in series following another modal or semi-modal.

Modal + have to is relatively common, esp. in combination with volition / prediction modal (will have to, would have to, may have to, shall have to, might have to, be going to have to, could have to, must have to, need to have to, used to have to).

In a column I wrote last summer about my teenage son’s first job, I promised in print to help him open a Roth. And now, I’ ll have to do it.

Again, those of us who’ve for years argued for the world to do something about Castro will have to take the good with the bad.

Modal + need to is restricted primarily to academic prose and fiction (will need to, would need to, may need to, be going to need to, can need to, might need to, must need to, shall need to, should need to).

Yes, you may need to write off some of the money owed as bad debt.

I could not bear to forsake the world in which you still lived and might need me... (G. Eliot. The Mill on the Floss)

I had my twenty-dollar gold piece and some other money, but I reckoned I better save it, because there ain't no telling how soon you are going to need it, away from home and amongst strangers, that way. (M. Twain. Adventures of Huckleberry Finn)

I shall need a long rest. (Ch. Dickens. Little Dorrit)

Modal + be going to (rare) can be attested only in fiction (may be going to, might be going to).

«I have some hope,» said Arthur, as they walked on together, «that we may be going to the same place, Mr. Doyce.» (Ch. Dickens. Little Dorrit)

I saw your lips move. I fancied you might be going to tell me I ought to be more attentive... (J. Austen. Mansfield Park)

There are a large number of other relatively fixed expressions with meanings similar to the modal auxiliaries: want to, be obliged to, be likely to, be willing to, etc.

I want to do something in interior design.

People here are curious and I don’t want to go on a holiday and turn my brain off. Lazing around a beach is not fun, interacting is fun.

The game is unlikely to be the answer to the company’s prayers.

But the search for who is to blame is not likely to end there.

Just as he is willing to rethink his own role in order to achieve reunion, he said, he is willing to rethink “the specific vocation” of the “Uniates.”

At the press conference he was unwilling to disclose the names of those who had sent ’black ball’ to his ministry.

Structurally, modal auxiliaries resemble the auxiliaries be, have and do in some ways and differ completely from them in others.

Дата добавления: 2015-10-29