AUXILIARY VERBS

There are three types of auxiliary verbs in English:

A.- TO BE, TO HAVE, TO DO. * They are main verbs:

I am happy / We have it / We do the washing.
* But sometimes they are the auxiliary to form:
-- continuous tenses. I am writing.
-- passive voice. It is done.
-- perfect tenses. She has gone.
-- negative and interrogative sentences.
I don’t know. Does she go there?
B.- WILL, SHALL, WOULD. They are never main verbs. They are used to form tenses:
-- WILL, SHALL, future. It will rain.
-- WOULD, conditional. He would stay here.
C.- CAN, COULD, MAY, MIGHT, SHOULD, OUGHT TO, MUST, HAVE TO(**), NEED. They
are MODAL VERBS.
* They aren’t the main verb and don’t form tenses.
* They help the main verb to explain some aspects (ability,
possibility, prohibition …)
* They are followed by infinitive (without “to”)
* They are defective:
-- They haven’t got “s” in the 3rd. person singular.
-- “ “ “ infinitive, gerund, participle.
-- We don’t use DO in negations and questions.
-- Two modal verbs can’t be together in the same sentence.

(**)HAVE TO is a semi-modal verb. It may have a similar meaning to a modal,

but it takes “s” in the third person singular: He has to go now; negatives
and questions are formed with the auxiliary do: Do you have to go now?

SUGGESTIONS
PROHIBITION
POSSIBILITY

OBLIGATION
PERMISSION

DEDUCTION
NECESSITY

REQUESTS
ABILITY

OFFERS
ADVICE

WILL 
SHALL  
WOULD 
CAN   * 
COULD     
MAY   
MIGHT  
SHOULD 
OUGHT TO 
MUST  * 
HAVE TO  *
NEED 
 in negative form
 Uses

CAN Ability, capability and You can’t open the door. It’s closed
knowledge to do something Sarah can play three instruments
General ability in the past. But in When I was younger, I could run 10 km
COULD negative it’s for general and She couldn’t speak French.
ABILITY particular situation She couldn’t speak to me yesterday
When CAN or COULD aren’t
I will be able to study more
possible.
TO BE ABLE TO
In past it’s used in a particular When I saw the dog, I wasn’t able to
situation run
CAN Things that are (not) permitted The class is over. You can leave now
More formal. (in a shop) Could I have a look?
COULD
PERMISSION It isn’t used to give permission Of course, you can/may.
MAY Very formal May I ask you a personal question?
TO BE ALLOWED When the rest aren’t possible
I won’t be allowed to do that, sure.
TO
Only in present (when the subject
MUST You must stay here
puts the obligation
OBLIGATION In present when the obligation is
HAVE TO I have to stay in bed. Doctor’s order
external
NEED TO
for the rest of the tenses Did you have to buy this?
PROHIBITION MUSTN’T/CAN’T Obligation not to do something You mustn’t smoke here
In affirmative it’s a normal verb He needs to rest sometimes
NEED (TO) In negative you can use the normal You don’t need to carry heavy things
verb o the modal one You needn’t carry heavy things
NECESSITY
DON’T HAVE TO It’s not necessary You don’t have to carry heavy things
You’ll have to stay in hospital for
HAVE TO In future
surgery

ADVICE To ask for and give advice. You shouldn’t smoke so much
SHOULD
OPINION In past, use perfect infinitive You are ill, you shouldn’t have smoked
OUGHT TO Stronger than SHOULD You oughtn’t to smoke so much
CAN Certainty It could rain
COULD In negative means impossibility You couldn’t run a marathon
BE ABLE TO Speculating about the past You could have run faster last day
POSSIBILITY Less possible It may rain
MAY
Speculating about the past Yesterday it may have rained
Remote possibility. It might rain
MIGHT Speculating about the past Yesterday it might have rained

We are sure or for speculation I must have flu

MUST
DEDUCTION In past She must have had flu
We’re sure something isn’t true He can’t be your husband
CAN’T
In past. Disbelief He can’t have been/couldn’t have been
CAN Informal Can I borrow your pen?
REQUEST COULD Polite Could you close the door, please?
WOULD/WILL/MAY More polite Will you give me some money?

OFFERS WOULD Polite Would you like more coffee?

SHALL First person Shall I open the door?
SHOULD Similar to giving advice You should /ought to save more
SUGGESTION OUGHT TO money if you want to buy a car
SHALL / COULD First person Shall we dance?
 MODAL VERBS IN THE PAST (PERFECT MODALS)
Modal verb + HAVE + Past Participle

1.- could have done = we had the ability to do something in the past but did not do it.

 You could have told us about the new project!

 She could have called me when she arrived but she forgot.

2. could / may / might have done = it is possible that something happened in the past but we aren't sure.

 Laura hasn't arrived yet. She may/might/could have missed the bus.

3. needn't have done = it wasn't necessary to do something but we did it.

 You needn't have gone to the supermarket. I've already done the shopping.
 The weather was warm and sunny. I needn't have taken an umbrella.

4. should have / ought to have done = (a) it was the right thing to do but we didn't do it. (b) we expected
something to happen but it didn't.

 You should have told him the truth.

 They ought to have received the cheque by now.

5. must have done = we are almost sure something happened in the past

 Jane wasn't feeling well yesterday. She must have caught a cold.
 Bill didn't answer the phone when I called him. He must have fallen asleep.

can't have done = we are almost sure something did not happen in the past

 She can't have forgotten to send you an invitation. I gave her your address.
 They can't have gone to bed late. They were very tired.

6.- may / might have done = we can guess something of the past .

 I didn't see Paul at work. He may/might/could have been ill.

7. would have done = we wanted to do something but we didn't do it in the end.

 They would have emailed you but the Internet was down yesterday.
 I would have bought that DVD but I didn't have enough money.

1. Ability: COULD + HAVE + P.P. (it didn’t happen)

2. Possibility: COULD / MAY / MIGHT + HAVE + P.P.

3. Absence of obligation: NEEDN’T + HAVE + P.P. (it’s unnecessary)

4. Criticism / regret: SHOULD / OUGHT TO + HAVE + P.P.

5. Deduction: MUST (certainty it’s true)

COULDN’T / CAN'T + HAVE + P.P. (certainty it didn’t happen)

6. Guess: MAY/MIGHT + HAVE + P.P.

.
7. Undone desire: WOULD + HAVE + P.P.
NEED (TO)

Need
Note from the above examples that need can either act as a modal verb or as an ordinary verb.
When it acts as a modal auxiliary verb it is nearly always used in negative sentences, as the above
examples illustrate, although it is sometimes also used in questions as a modal verb:

Need you leave straightaway? Can't you stay longer?

Need I say more? I would like you to stay.

When it is used as an ordinary verb with to before the following infinitive and with an s in the third
person singular, it appears in both affirmative and negative sentences and in questions:

She's almost dehydrated. She needs a drink. She needs to drink something before she has anything to
eat. She doesn't need to stay in bed, but she should have a good rest before she sets off again. ~ Do I
need to stay with her? ~ Yes, I think you should

Needn't and don't need to

There is a difference in use when these verbs are used to describe present situations. We can use both
needn't and don't need to to give permission to someone not to do something in the immediate future.
We can also use need as a noun here:

You don't need to water the garden this evening. It's going to rain tonight.
You needn't water the garden this evening. It's going to rain tonight.
There's no need to water the garden this evening. It's going to rain tonight.

You don't need to shout. It's a good line. I can hear you perfectly.
You needn't shout. It's a good line. I can hear you perfectly.
There's no need to shout.. I can hear you perfectly.

However, when we are talking about general necessity, we normally use don't need to:

You don't need to pay for medical care in National Health Service hospitals.
You don't need to be rich to get into this golf club. You just need a handicap.

Needn't have and didn't need to

Both forms are used to talk about past events, but there is sometimes a difference in use. When we say
that someone needn't have done something, it means that they did it, but it was not necessary. Didn't
need to is also sometimes used in this way:

You needn't have washed the dishes. I would've put them in the dishwasher.
You didn't need to wash the dishes. I would've put them in the dishwasher.

But we also use didn't need to to say that something was not necessary under circumstances where it
was not done:

The sun came out so we didn't need to take any raincoat on the trip.
 Had Better / Should
HAD BETTER + INFINITIVE without “to” = es/sería mejor que + verbo en subjuntivo

 You'd better tell her everything.

Although had is the past form of “have”, we use had better to give advice about the present or future.

 I'd better get back to work.

 We'd better meet early.

The negative form is had better not.

 You'd better not say anything.

 I'd better not come.

We use had better to give advice about specific situations, not general ones and it is more coliquial. If
you want to talk about general situations, you must use should.

 You should brush your teeth before you go to bed.

 I shouldn't listen to negative people.

When we give advice about specific situations, it is also possible to use should.

 You shouldn't say anything.

 I should get back to work.

However, when we use had better there is a suggestion that if the advice is not followed, that something
bad will happen. You can also translate it MÁS VALE QUE + verbo en subjuntivo

 You'd better do what I say or else you will get into trouble.
 I'd better get back to work or my boss will be angry with me.
 We'd better get to the airport by five or else we may miss the flight.