ENGLISH GRAMMAR I

MODALITY
Mg. Prof. Juan Luis Stamboni & Trad. Prof. Lucrecia Zukowski, FaHCE, UNLP, 2006, 2009

As regards the semantic content of a sentence/utterance, F. R. Palmer distinguishes between the ‘proposition’, on
the one hand, and the ‘speaker’s attitude and opinion,’ on the other. A proposition describes a state of affairs which
may or may not involve the speaker him/herself, but modality has to do with the capacity the speaker has to
assert, question, deny, or merely suppose the content of such proposition. Palmer therefore defines modality as
the grammaticalisation of speakers’ (subjective) attitudes and opinions,1 and characterises modality in general as a category
of the language which expresses two basic features of meaning: subjectivity and non-factuality. A speaker can choose
to present the event described by the proposition contained in an utterance as a fact, that is to say, as something
which actually occurs, has occurred, or will occur in the world of facts, but he/she can also choose to present
that event as non-factual, i.e. as something wished for, or as a mere potentiality taking place in some ‘possible
world’.

Modality can be grammaticalised in various ways in the different languages, that is, each language offers different
resources to express modal meaning. In English, modality is mainly conveyed by means of MODAL
AUXILIARIES. From a morphological point of view, these have been traditionally considered anomalous or
defective verbs (i.e. with an incomplete inflectional paradigm).

The principal English modal auxiliaries can be grouped in pairs which, in earlier stages of the language, conveyed
tense -as well as modal- distinctions:
CAN / COULD
MAY / MIGHT
WILL / WOULD
SHALL / SHOULD
Others do not have a tense-related counterpart:
MUST; OUGHT
In order to make up for the absence of tense distinctions, or to express further shades of meaning, other verbs
have adopted modal meaning:
NEED; DARE; HAVE (to)
Nevertheless, MODALITY, in a broad sense, can also be expressed by other categories, such as adverbs (perhaps,
maybe, probably, certainly, etc); adjectives (likely, possible, certain); nominal constructions (There’s a chance that…); and
even some verbal phrases (I’m supposed to…; you’re not compelled to…), etc.
Palmer recognises two kinds of modality –using von Wright’s terms–:
Epistemic modality, which is concerned with matters of knowledge, certainty, belief or assumption rather than fact.
Deontic modality, concerned with the necessity or possibility of acts performed by morally responsible agents.

1 Palmer, F. R. (1988) Mood and Modality. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge.

  Epistemic modality is associated with the speaker’s attitude concerning the truth of the information
given in the proposition contained in an utterance:
- Mr Wilkins is the oldest person in the village.
(fact → zero modality)
- Mr Wilkins must be the oldest person in the village.
(you deduce it from the evidence shown by reality)
- Mr Wilkins might be the oldest person in the village.
(you think it’s possible)
 Deontic modality concerns the speakers’ attitude towards their own or other people’s actions. It also
has to do with the effect an utterance has on the speaker him/herself, and/or on a second or third person:
- I won’t go with Simon. (strong unwillingness)
- I can’t go with Simon. (negative permission)
- I mustn’t go with Simon. (prohibition)
- I shouldn’t go with Simon. (reasonable obligation, negative form)
Note: Many of the expressions containing modal auxiliaries can be pragmatically understood as requests, offers, etc.
However, in the chart below the examples are classified according to the core meaning of the auxiliaries.
Rhetoric is left aside.

EPISTEMIC MODALITY
MEANING MODAL AUXILIARY EXAMPLES
MUST I’m twenty-eight, so he must be twenty-seven.
1. Logical Necessity CAN’T It can’t be ten o’clock! We’ve only just arrived!
Deductions made in the SHOULD They should be home by now.
light of factual data OUGHT TO It ought to take about three hours by car.
WILL ( ′LL ) The game will be finished by now.
WOULD That would be her mother.
2. Possibility
COULD The road could be blocked.
What the speaker believes
MAY (NOT) He may never succeed.
to be a fact
MIGHT (NOT) What you say might be true.
3. Theoretical
CAN It can be very cold in Stockholm, so take a big
Possibility
coat. (this is a known fact)
What the speaker believes
Anybody can make mistakes.
to be usually the case.
4. Ability
CAN / CAN’T He can speak English but he can’t write it well.
Some personal skill
COULD(N’T) I never could play the banjo.
possessed by the doer
 (See below for restrictions on this use)
licenses the action.

The term ‘epistemic’ should apply not simply to modal systems that basically involve the notions of possibility and
logical necessity, but to any modal system that indicates the degree of commitment by the speaker to the truth or falsehood of
what he says. It seems completely justified etymologically since it is derived from the Greek word ‘episteme’ meaning
‘understanding’ or ‘knowledge’, and so it is to be interpreted as showing the status of the speaker’s understanding
or knowledge of what he is saying; this clearly includes both his own judgments and the kind of warrant he has
for what he says.
 DEONTIC MODALITY
MEANING MODAL AUXILIARY EXAMPLES
WILL Will you please open the window?
1. Willingness
Shut up, will you? || He’ll help if you ask him.
Someone wishes (someone
Will you have another cup of coffee?
else) to do something.
WON’T We won’t stay longer than two hours.
WOULD Would you help me?
Negative form:
It’s your fault: you would take the baby with you.
Refusal to do something
SHALL I shan’t be long. || You shall do as I say.
He shall get his money. || We shall let you know.
SHOULD I should say no. || I should object.
MAY (old use) May God help us. || May the best man win.
May the Force be with you.

2. Permission CAN Can I smoke in here?

Someone is allowed or CAN’T You can’t open the door.
permitted to do something. COULD Could I speak to the manager?
Negative form: MAY You may borrow my car if you like.
Permission not granted on a MAY NOT Candidates may not leave the examination room.
particular occasion. MIGHT Might I ask something?
a. Compulsion:
3. Obligation MUST You must be back by ten o’clock.
Someone is compelled to do Must you go now? || I must go now (it’s late).
something. MUSTN’T You mustn’t talk to strangers.
HAVE [to] I have to go now (I have to catch the train).
Prohibition: someone is NEED Need you leave so soon?
compelled not to do SHALL (legal) The tenant shall inform of any changes.
something on a more --------------------- b. Reasonable obligation:
permanent scale. SHOULD You should do as he says.
SHOULDN’T He shouldn’t have said that.
OUGHT(N’T) [to] The rich ought to be heavily taxed.
--------------------- c. Lack of obligation:
NEEDN’T You needn’t have called me to thank me.
DON’T HAVE [to] You don’t have to go if you don’t want to.
DIDN’T HAVE [to] I didn’t have to go to the bookshop; they mail the
NEEDN’T HAVE books. cf: I needn’t have gone to the shop; when
I arrived they told me they had mailed my book.

Palmer uses the term ‘deontic’ to refer to those types of modality that are characterised as ‘containing an element
of will’. ‘Deontic’ modality is concerned with action, by others and by the speaker himself, i.e., Deontic
statements are ‘performative’, they actually initiate action by others or by the speaker. For that reason they will
always be related to the future, since only the future can be changed or affected as a result of them being
expressed2. At the time of speaking a speaker can get others to act or commit himself to action only in the future.
In this respect they are clearly different from epistemic modality, where the speaker can commit himself to the
truth of propositions in the past, present or future.
Note: In the examples featuring ‘Willingness’ you will find a subclassification of the expressions according to the
degree of willingness and/or the person features of the subject of the modalised event.

2 There are ways to express deontic modality in the past. Past obligation and past permission can be expressed as a result of ‘future in the past’ (She

told me I had to study more) or in reported speech (She said I could go with her).
 CAN

We must think of CAN in terms of something which is ‘permitted’ or ‘allowed’ in some way or another, or which
may take place if certain conditions apply. The possibility that something may or may not take place will depend
on three different scenarios:

1) PERMISSION AFFORDED BY A VOLITIONAL ENTITY or institutional regulation. In this case

permission is downright DEONTIC. The entity which allows someone to do something is a second or third
person. COULD is a more neutral (less informal) form of CAN in this meaning. This meaning of CAN does not
have a past form. Past permission is expressed by means of constructions such as ‘was/were allowed to’, e.g.:
1. You can borrow the car, but be careful.
2. Students can hand in essays at any time before midday on February 3rd.
3. Is there any way I could hand mine in after midday?
4. Can I help you? (this offer is built upon PERMISSION)
However, backshifting is possible in Reported Speech, e.g.:
5. The teacher said I could go to the toilet.

2) POSSIBILITY LICENSED BY CIRCUMSTANCE (of inanimate, non-volitional status). This is

EPISTEMIC MODALITY of THEORETICAL POSSIBILITY. The occurrence of the event is presented
as a potential outcome of a given circumstance, therefore it is hypothetical. For this reason, there is no past form
of this meaning of CAN. This meaning of CAN includes general truths, e.g.:
6. Even teachers can make mistakes.
7. It can rain quite a lot in Ireland in August.
8. Thai can be a very difficult language for Westerners to pronounce.
9. I’ll call Jim, who works for them, to help me take this stuff to Italy, before you can interfere.
10. You can hear the atmosphere in the stadium. (We’re not far away)
COULD means FACTUAL POSSIBILITY:
11. I wonder what changes the people you still share your days with could have noticed since
the moment we went to Future Shop to buy a digital camera.
12. Sharon and I were able to get special seats but we couldn’t hear a thing.
Note: The following offer is structured upon Theoretical Possibility:
13. How can I help you?
Note: The following request is structured upon Theoretical Possibility:
14. Can you spell that for me, please?

3) POSSIBILITY LICENSED BY SOME PERSONAL SKILL POSSESSED BY THE DOER. This

entails ABILITY, and we should consider it EPISTEMIC, e.g.:
15. Can you drive this type of truck?
16. Mary can speak Guarani quite well.
17. Can you see the post office on the corner?
18. I can guess what you’re thinking right now.
 19. I can just imagine how surprised they looked.
20. Liz can work right through the night.

The past of this meaning of CAN is COULD, but only when the ability is expressed as an imperfective event. To
express perfective ability we must use constructions such as ‘was/were able to’, ‘managed to’, ‘succeeded in’.
This restriction applies also to the negative form COULDN’T, e.g.:
21. When I was young I could stay up till the small hours of the morning.
Now I can’t.
22. The thieves escaped but the police were able to arrest them later that night.
23. When I arrived in Dacca I couldn’t speak Urdu.

NOTE: This particular scenario is strictly restricted to a skill or technique already acquired, learnt or possessed.
In certain cases there will be some overlap between this meaning and Theoretical Possibility. When interpretation
is ambiguous, we should favour Theoretical Possibility.

4) CAN/CAN’T is labelled as EPISTEMIC, LOGICAL NECESSITY, when it expresses the interrogative and
negative form of epistemic MUST, e.g.:
24. How can they be there already? They only left ten minutes ago.
25. That can’t be right. There must be some mistake.
26. All these fragile Chinese cups and the tall hock glasses can’t cross the ocean and arrive
on the other coast safe and sound!

COULD

1) As mentioned above, COULD expresses FACTUAL POSSIBLITY, present or future. This meaning of
COULD is EPISTEMIC, similar to MAY or MIGHT. The past form of COULD is COULD HAVE + PAST
PARTICIPLE, e.g.:
27. I think that could be the answer to the problem.
28. We could all be having holidays on the moon within thirty years.
With this meaning, COULD can be used to express:
– Suggestions:
29. I could just cook dinner tonight and then he could cook it some other night.
– Criticism:
30. You could have told me... Why did you keep it all to yourself?
– Requests:
31. Could you give me a ring if you can’t make it, Bob?
32. Could you just shut up for a minute?

2) COULD is DEONTIC when it is used as a more polite alternative to CAN to express PERMISSION (see
CAN above), e.g.:
33. Could I talk to you for a moment?
 MOOD
M. D. Buergo - UNLP, 1987
Mood is one of the categories of the verb which denotes the style or manner of the action.
Mood = manner (latin)
There are three MOODS in English:
 INDICATIVE
 IM PE RATIVE
 SU B J U N C T I V E

The Indicative mood indicates that the action is a FACT (factuality). The indicative mood is the one we use most.
It represents something as a fact, in close relation to reality.
It is raining.
The sun sets every evening, but it shines during the day.
We would visit our grandma every Monday while she was ill.
She jumped and broke her leg.
The Imperative mood is used to express orders or commands for actions which may or may not be carried out
later on. Therefore, the imperative mood is NON FACTUAL. The subject of the imperative is always the second
person, but normally it does not have phonetic realisation:
(you) Give me that photograph.
(you) Let us begin.
(you) Tell them to wait.
Don’t (you) smoke here.
When reporting speech, we replace the Imperative by the Infinitive form of the verb.
The Subjunctive mood represents something not as an actual reality, but as a desire, a plan, a demand, or a
thought, which may or may not (have) occur(red). It is therefore NON FACTUAL. It describes the action or state as
a conception of the mind. It used to be in full use in the past (Early Modern English), but it is seldom used in
present-day English, where its use is restricted to a few specific occurrences. The formal mark in the present tense is
the absence of the inflection for the 3rd person singular (I take / you take / he take), so it resembles the uninflected
base form of a ‘bare infinitive’. The only clearly distinctive form in present-day English Subjunctive is the one
corresponding to the verb to BE:
present tense: I / you / he be
past tense: I / you / he were
The present tense subjunctive is rarely used in every day conversation, its use is rather formal and quite frequent
in literary, scientific or legal language:
If two angles of a triangle be equal...
They asked that she be there on time.
Be that as it may...
God bless America!
God save the Queen! We
wish you were away.
If I were only a bit older I would be accepted.
In present-day English there are three substitutes for the Subjunctive Mood:
a) Functional category, i.e. modal auxiliary verbs: may / might; shall / should; will / would
May God be trusted.
May we find peace and happiness!
It is surprising that you should be so witty this evening.
That’s exactly the kind of man he shall /should turn to be.
b) Infinitive verb form:
I wanted her to say that we’re not coming with them.
I told him to leave at once.
It’s good to find you here. ( = It’s good that you should be here)
 c) Conditional sentences. According to the degree of probability of the occurrence of the action involved, they
are divided into 3 types:
1) PROBABILITY: something will happen only if a certain condition is fulfilled, it is
considered as a potential fact, but for the time being it is non-factual:
It it rains he will stay at home.
Present Indicative / Future indicative
You will /can succeed if you work hard.
Future indicative Present Indicative
2) IMPROBABILITY: the probable result of a certain condition that we suppose or
imagine. The action expressed in the IF-clause is not actually taking place (non-
factuality), but it is possible to imagine a probable result.
They would be pleased if he came.
Present conditional Past subjunctive
If I had enough money I would buy a brand new car.
Past subjunctive Present conditional
3) IMPOSSIBILITY: the condition expressed by the verb in the past perfect form was not
accomplished, so the consequence implied has not taken place either. It refers to the
past tense and it is non-factual:
He would have met you if you had stayed at home.
Perfect conditional Perfect subjunctive
If you had waited, you would have caught the train.
Perfect subjunctive Perfect conditional
UNLESS = one of the clauses is always negative

MODALITY
REALIS IRREALIS
INDICATIVE MOOD
EPISTEMIC DEONTIC
LOGICAL NECESSITY OBLIGATION
POSSIBILITY REASONABLE OBLIGATION
THEORETICAL POSSIBILITY PERMISSION
HYPOTHETICAL EVENT WILLINGNESS

MODAL AUXILIARIES
MODAL SEMI-AUXILIARIES
SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD
IMPERATIVE MOOD

Marge Simpson: "Kids can be so cruel." (epistemic theoretical possibility)

Bart Simpson: "We can? Thanks, Mom!" (deontic permission)
VI Season’s "Homer the Great", aired on 8 th January 1995 / http://animatedtv.about.com/library/weekly/aa052200b.htm

Can we drink too much water? Yes. It can be dangerous to drink a lot of water.
Recently, a British actor nearly died after drinking 8 litres of water a day for several months.
[New English File: Elementary, p. 79] (I thought it was deontic, permission, but it's epistemic, possibility)
 ENGLISH GRAMMAR I

MODAL AUXILIARIES
are traditionally considered anomalous or defective verbs (i.e. with incomplete paradigm)
express different meanings: deontic modality, epistemic modality, ability, aspect
attitude to information  attitude towards the truth of what is said (i.e. a logical proposition):
-Mr. Wilkins is the eldest person in the village. (fact)
-Mr. Wilkins must be the eldest person in the village. (you have evidence favouring its factuality)
-Mr. Wilkins might be the eldest person in the village. (you think it’s possible)
attitude to one’s intentions or attitude to people’s actions
 effect of what is said on the person you are talking or writing to:
-I won’t go without Simon. (strong unwillingness) / I can’t go without Simon. (unwillingness + reason)
-I couldn’t go without Simon. (unwllingness because it's unfair or morally wrong)
-You must leave this place right now!
modals do NOT usually indicate time
shall & will are exceptions: future situation or event
could & would: past only in a few examples
-ability in the past: could: He could speak Russian
-reported speech: could and would: He said that he would/could come
-regularity in the past: would: She would sit crosslegged in her red robes.
future in a story: He would see Jane the next day.

T H E M E A N I N G S O F M O DA L AUXILARIES
ability permission possibility willingness intention insistence legal
be able/capable to/of be allowed to it is possible that / to weak intermediate strong
know how to be permitted to volition
CAN CAN CAN CAN
- formal theoretical + ability
COULD COULD COULD COULD
theoretical / factual + ability
MAY MAY
+ formal factual
: MUSTN’T CAN:  & ?
MIGHT [rare] MIGHT
SHALL SHALL SHALL SHALL
2nd-3rd person 1st pers / BrE
WILL WILL WILL
esp 2nd person / 1st pers/contracted stressed
+ downtoners
WOULD WOULD

obligation logical necessity subjunctive hypothetical condition prediction habit

SHOULD SHOULD SHOULD SHOULD SHOULD
- categorical - categorical 1st pers / BrE
WILL
-specific
-timeless
-habitual
WOULD WOULD
probability -it was customary
-it was typical
MUST MUST
- needn’t don’t CAN: ?
have/not obliged
OUGHT TO OUGHT TO
- categorical - categorical
USED TO
-would
-formerly
-once + past
 Examples
1. They should be home by now. They ought to be here by now.
logical necessity There must be a mistake. ( There cannot be a mistake)
The game will / must / should be finished by now.
2. probability That would be her mother.
3. The road can be blocked. Anybody can make mistakes.
The road could be blocked. That could be my train.
possibility
The road may be blocked. He may never succeed.
What you say might be true.
4. I am sorry that this should have happened.
subjunctive
It is odd that you should say this to me. It is a pity
5. conditional If you should change your mind, please let us know.
6. hypothetical We should love to go abroad if we had the chance.
7. He can speak English but he can’t write it very well.
ability
8.
I never could play the banjo.
9. Can I smoke in here? May I smoke in here?
Could I smoke in here? Might I smoke in here?
permission
You may borrow my car if you like.
You mustn’t / may not / are not allowed to borrow my car.
10. He shall get his money. You shall do exactly as you wish.
willingness Will you please open the window? Go out, will you? Would you excuse me?
weak volition Will you have another cup of coffee? He’ll help you if you ask him.
Can you do me a favour? Could you do me a favour?
11. intention I shan’t be long. We shall let you know our decision. We shall overcome.
intermediate volition I’ll write you as soon as possible. We won’t stay longer than two hours.
12. You shall do as I say. He shall be punished.
insistence
strong volition He ‘will do it, whatever you say… ( He shall do it whatever you say…)
It’s your fault: you ‘would take the baby with you.
13. legal obligation The vendor shall maintain the equipment in good repair
14. You should do as he says. You must be back by ten o’clock.
obligation You needn’t /don’t have to /are not obliged to be back earlier.
15.
You ought to start at once.
16. timeless: Oil will float on water.
Imperfective aspect
habitual: He’ll always talk for hours if you give him the chance.
present tense
refusal: The door won’t open.
17. Imperfective aspect Every morning he would go for a long walk. (customary)
past tense John would make a mess of it. (typical). He used to fish for hours.
MODAL AUXILIARY DEONTIC MODALITY EPISTEMIC MODALITY
 reasonable obligation  logical necessity
should  willingness (intention)  subjunctiveness (hypothetical meaning)
ought  reasonable obligation  logical necessity

must  obligation (compulsion)  logical necessity

 logical necessity (can’t)
can  permission  theoretical possibility
 ability
 willingness  theoretical possibility
could  permission  factual possibility
Provide an example of Deontic Modality expressing:
1) OBLIGATION [/absence of OBLIGATION]
a) Reasonable obligation: (should / ought to / had better: convenience)
The rich ought to be heavily taxed
You ought to write to Aunt Alice
I ought to have gone to the butcher’s yesterday
b) Compulsion: (must: obligation (internal) / mustn’t: internal prohibition / have to: external / had to)
You must do what I’ve told yo
Must you work so hard?
You must go now (I want to go to bed)
What a pity you have to go now (It’s time for you to catch your train)
You mustn’t smoke in the library
c) Absence of obligation: (not need to (don’t / didn’t need to) / needn’t have / do, etc)
You needn’t have called me to thank me
My tea was already sweetened, so I needn’t have put any sugar in it.
cf. My tea was already sweetened, so I didn’t need to put any sugar in it

WILLINGNESS [/REFUSAL]
WILL Weak volition: Stop talking, will you?
Strong volition: He will do it whatever you say.
Intention: I’ll write soon. He will help you.
COULD Could you stop talking? Indirect speech act
WOULD Would you pardon me?
(would rather) I’d rather she didn’t speak Spanish.
SHALL Weak volition: You shall do exactly as you wish.
Strong volition: He shall do it whatever you say.

MAY (formal): May he never set foot here again. May the best man win!
WON’T Refusal: The door won’t open. He won’t answer my questions. (se niega/rehúsa a...)

3) PERMISSION [/PROHIBITION]
a) CAN Can I close the door?
b) CAN'T You can’t open the window.
c) MAY May I leave early tomorrow? / You may use these books for reference, if you wish.
d) MAY NOT Negative permission (not allowed to):
Candidates may not leave the examination room without the supervisors’ permission.
e) MIGHT (be allowed to / be permitted to): Might I ask something?

Provide an example of Epistemic Modality expressing:

1) LOGICAL NECESSITY
u r

You should be ready by now.

POSSIBILITY
Theoretical Possibility
( Can-Could ) (NO ability): Even expert drivers can make mistakes.
But ‘You can do it’ can express: permission

ability
Factual Possibility

Note: Can-Could meaning ‘be able to’ ‘be capable of’ ‘know how to’ express Ability (for some it is factual!)

3) HYPOTHETICAL EVENT (low certainty)

If I were younger I would go to Africa