Ability – Lack of ability
Kim is five years old. She can read and write.When she was three, she could count to ten.She couldn’treach the top shelf, even though she tried.She couldn’tswim fast when she was young.
Permission
Asking for permission
Can I open the window, please? (informal)
Could I open the window, please? (more polite)
May/Might I open the window, please? (formal)
Giving permission
You can leave your luggage here. (informal)You may leave your luggage in this area. (formal)
Refusing permission
You can’t/mustn’t park here. (informal)
You may not park in this area. (formal, usually written notice)
Requests
Can you help me, please? (informal)
Will you get me my glasses, please? (familiar)
Could you make me some tea? (polite request)
May I have a glass of water? (formal request)
Offers
I’ll do the shopping if you like.
Shall I help you with your luggage?
Suggestions
Shall we go to the theatre?
We can/could go to the pub if you like.
Advice
You should stop smoking. (it is the best thing to do; I advise you to)
You ought to treat animals kindly. (ought to is sometimes used for advice based on laws, rules or generally accepted ideas)
Shall I tell him the truth? (asking for advice)
Criticism
You shouldn’thave been rude to her yesterday. (but you were)
You should have locked the car before leaving. (but you didn’t)
Obligation and Necessity
I mustlose some weight. (I say so)We ought to respect environment. (it’s the right thing to do)
Prohibition
You can’tpark here.You mustn’t tell anyone.
Logical assumption, possibility and probability
Mustis used in affirmative sentences and expresses positive logical assumptions.
It is Sunday. He must be at home. (=I’m sure he is at home.)
Can’t and couldn’tare used in negations and expresses negative logical assumptions.
It is Sunday. He can’t/couldn’t be at work. (=I’m sure he isn’t at work.)
I’m sure she knows him well.
She must knowhim well.
It is possible that he’s working late tonight.
He could be working late tonight.
I’m sure she’ll be working tomorrow.
She must be working tomorrow.
I’m sure he didn’t know the truth.
He can’t have known the truth.
Perhaps they have missed the bus.
They might have missed the bus.
It’s possible he had got lost.
He may have got lost.
I’m certain he was sleeping.
He must have been sleeping.
Perhaps she has been lying.
She may have been lying.
It’s likely they had been hiding.
They could have been hiding.
PASSIVE VOICE
1 The Passive is used when the person who carries out the action is unknown, unimportant or obvious from the context.
Mrs Archer’s ruby ring was stolen from her house last night.
2 When the action itself is more important than the person who carries it out,
as in news headlines, newspaper articles, formal notices, instructions, etc.
The teenagers were seriously injured in a car accident last night.
3 When we want to make statements more polite.
My new blouse is ruined. ( More polite than saying, ‘You’ve ruined my
new blouse.’)
Note: The Passive is used more often in written English than in spoken
English.
Active
Passive
Present Simple
it makes
it is made
Present Continuous
it is making
it is being made
Present Perfect
it has made
it has been made
Past Simple
it made
it was made
Past Continuous
it was making
it was being made
Past Perfect
it will make
it had been made
Future Simple
it will make
it will be made
infinitive forms
make
to make
be made
to be made
-ing form
making
being made
Personal / Impersonal passive constructions
The verbs think, believe, say report, know, expect, consider, understand, etc. are used in the following passive patterns in personal and impersonal constructions:
Active:
People say that he has lost his job.
Passive:
It is said (that) he has lost his job. (impersonal construction)
He is said to have lost his job. (personal construction)
Active
People know that he works hard.
Passive
It is known (that) he works hard.
He is known to work hard.
Active
People think he left the country last night.
Passive
It is thought (that) he left the country last night.
He is thought to have left the country last night.
REPORTED SPEECH
Change of tenses
When we report someone's words afterwards, the verb forms often move into the past. This is because what they said is now in the past.
Direct speech(actual words)
Reported(indirect) speech
Years ago, John said ...
A few years ago, John told me that...
‘I wantto get away from here.’ Present simple
he wantedto get away from there.
Past simple
‘I hadan awful time last year.’
Past simple
he had hadan awful time the previous year.
Past perfect
‘I’ve found a new job in Canada.’
Present perfect
he had found a new job in Canada
Past perfect
‘I’m leavingtomorrow.’
Present continuous
he was leaving the next day.
Past Continuous
‘I’m going to starta new life.’is / are going to
he was going to start a new lifewas / were going to
‘I'll writeto you when I get there.' will/won’t
he would writeto me when he got there, would I wouldn’t
‘You cancome and see me’ can/can’t
I couldcome and see him.could/couldn’t
Notice:
a The changes in place and time references in the reported statements.
here → there
last year → the year before
b Other modal verbs (would, could, should, ought, might) do not change in
reported speech
c The changes in pronouns used in reported speech.
