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Modal verbs generally accompany the base (infinitive) form of another verb having semantic content. [1] In English, the modal verbs commonly used are can , could , may , might , shall , should , will , would , and ought .
The English modal auxiliary verbs are a subset of the English auxiliary verbs used mostly to express modality, properties such as possibility and obligation. [a] They can most easily be distinguished from other verbs by their defectiveness (they do not have participles or plain forms [b]) and by their lack of the ending ‑(e)s for the third-person singular.
One kind of modal word is the modal verb (should, can, might, and ought, as well as oblige, need, and require). Other types of modal words in English include modal adjectives ( likely , probable , necessary ), modal adverbs ( probably , perhaps , certainly ), modal prepositions ( despite , unless , if ), and modal nouns ( possibility ...
3 Two Word Semi-Modal Auxiliary Verb Phrases. ... This is a list of English auxiliary verbs, i.e. helping verbs, which include Modal verbs and Semi-modal verbs.
Within English, the modal verb will is also related to the noun will and the regular lexical verb will (as in "She willed him on"). Early Germanic did not inherit any Proto-Indo-European forms to express the future tense , and so the Germanic languages have innovated by using auxiliary verbs to express the future (this is evidenced in Gothic ...
Modal auxiliary verbs, such as the English words may, can, must, ought, will, shall, need, dare, might, could, would, and should, are often used to express modality, especially in the Germanic languages. Ability, desirability, permission, obligation, and probability can all be exemplified by the usage of auxiliary modal verbs in English:
Pages in category "English modal and auxiliary verbs" The following 3 pages are in this category, out of 3 total. This list may not reflect recent changes. E.
The first English grammar, Bref Grammar for English by William Bullokar, published in 1586, does not use the term "auxiliary" but says: All other verbs are called verbs-neuters-un-perfect because they require the infinitive mood of another verb to express their signification of meaning perfectly: and be these, may, can, might or mought, could, would, should, must, ought, and sometimes, will ...