MODAL VERBS (CAN, MAY, MUST, SHALL/SHOULD, WILL/WOULD) ♦ Caracteristici generale: 1) nu au decât formă de infinitiv scurt (fără prep. TO): to be, to have, to do, to work /vs/ Ø can, Ø may, Ø must. 2) verbul care urmează după un modal este la infinitivul scurt (fără TO1): -
I can Ø work. (! NOT: I can to work) You must Ø try again. (! NOT: You must to try again.) DAR: I refuse to work. // She wants to try again.
3) sunt verbe neflexibile - la Prezentul Simplu, au aceeaşi formă pentru toate persoanele (nu primesc terminaţia –s la pers. a 3-a singular – he/she/it): -
He can solve any problem. (! NOT: He cans solve …) She must get to work on time. (! NOT: She musts get …) DAR: He solves any problem. // She (always) gets to work on time.
4) formează interogativul şi negativul după modelul verbului TO BE, adică fără auxiliarul do – prin simpla inversiune (între subiect şi predicat), respectiv prin adăugarea negaţiei not direct la verb (modal): Question: (Wh- word) + MODAL + S + Verb I (1st form) ….? Negation: S + MODAL + not + Verb I (1st form) … -
-
What can I do? (NOT: What do I can do?) Where may I stay? When must you leave? He cannot / can’t speak English. (! NOT: He doesn’t can speak …) You may not / cannot enter there! You mustn’t smoke here. A: “Can you do that alone?” B: “Yes, I can // No, I cannot / can’t.”
5) sunt verbe defective, adică le lipsesc unele forme şi timpuri verbale, şi anume: participiul prezent (-ing), (deci nu se pot folosi la aspectul progresiv / continuu), formele II şi III (Past Tense şi Past Participle) şi deci nu pot forma timpurile perfecte sau compuse (Present Perfect, Past Perfect, Future Tense), fiind înlocuite la toate aceste timpuri prin perifraze verbale specifice (vezi mai jos).
1
Cu excepţia expresiei modale ought to (vezi should / ought to): You ought to know me better by now.
1
I.
CAN (= a putea) (Could - forma de trecut şi condiţional prezent a lui Can – pentru toate sensurile)
a) (physical and mental) ability (can = to be able to): -
-
I can’t drive a car. Can you? Can she speak French? I can see clearly now. (NOT: I’ m canning see now.) He will be able to drive a car next year. (Future Tense) (Ro: Va putea să …) Romanians will soon be able to travel freely all around Europe without a visa. Last year, he was finally able to / he could buy the house of his dreams. (Past Tense) (Ro: Anul trecut a putut / a reuşit în sfârşit să-şi cumpere casa…..) We could (= were able to) get a loan, but we couldn’t (= weren’t able to) pay it back in time. I’ve never been able to understand her. (Ro: N-am putut s-o înţeleg ... .) (Present Perfect) Can / Could you type this letter for me, please? (Ro: Ai putea să …?) (polite request) Can / Could I help you in any way? (Ro: Aş putea să vă ajut …?) (polite offer)
b) (asking for) permission (can = may): -
Can / May I smoke in here? (= Do you mind if I smoke?) Can / May I have the menu / bill, please? (polite request) Can / May I get you anything (to drink)? (polite offer)
c) possibility (can = may): -
A board meeting can / may last up to 4 hours if there are important issues on the agenda. He can / could / may be in trouble if he doesn’t get a job soon (enough).
d) impossibility / interdiction: CANNOT / CAN’T (can’t = mustn’t) -
II.
You cannot / may not (= mustn’t) park (your car) here! (= it’s forbidden) Money can’t buy everything. (= it’s impossible) He can’t be serious! // He can’t (possibly) mean that! (= it’s impossible) I couldn’t agree more! (= Sunt întru totul de acord!) (expr. semi-fixă) MAY (= a putea, a avea voie; a se putea, a fi posibil)
a) permission (may = to be allowed / be permitted to) (may = can): -
-
May / Can I come in? (polite request) May / Can I help you? (polite offer) A: “May I be excused (now)?” (= Can I leave the table now?) B: “Yes, you may.” // “No, you may not.” I’m a pretty good doctor – if I may say so myself. (expresie semi-fixă) You’ll be allowed to use this line only in case of emergency. (= Vei putea / vei avea voie să ..) 2
We weren’t allowed / permitted to cross the border until we cleared customs. (Past Tense) b) possibility (a hypothesis): You may be right, but I still want to give it one more try. (= Maybe you’re right, but …) (= S-ar putea să ai dreptate, dar …) We may / might2 succeed, but then again we may / might not. Who knows what may / might happen? (may / might not = negative possibility) Be careful what you wish (for) – it may come true / you might get it. (saying) It may be a stressful job, but I really like it. (= O fi ea stresantă slujba asta, dar îmi place.) (= Although it’s stressful, I like it. - concesiv)
-
III.
MUST (= a trebui) (must = to have (got) to)
a) obligation / necessity: -
You must get to work on time. I must leave now. (NOT: I’m musting to leave now) DAR: I’m leaving (now). Must you go now? (= Do you (really) have to go now?) We must talk (= we’ve got to talk) immediately. • Mustn’t / can’t – interdicţie (prohibition, interdiction) /vs/ • Do(es)n’t have to // haven’t (hasn’t) got to – lipsa obligaţiei (lack of obligation) Needn’t (BE) / do(es)n’t need to – lipsa necesităţii (lack of necessity)
-
You mustn’t / cannot speak in the courtroom during the trial. (= It’s forbidden.) You can’t (= mustn’t) smoke in(side) the hospital. /vs/ We don’t have to stay overtime if we don’t want to. (= we’re not forced to do that) You don’t need to leave / you needn’t (BE) leave now; you’ve got plenty of time. He (has) had to make a quick decision. (Past Tense / Present Perfect) (Ro: A trebuit / a fost nevoit să ia o hotărâre rapidă.) Why did you have to resign / quit your job? (Past Tense) (Ro: De ce a trebuit să ...?) Will we have to wear a uniform all the time once we join the army? (Future Tense) (Ro: Va trebui să …?)
b) probability (a logical deduction): -
If she isn’t home, she must be out shopping. You must be joking! (BE) // You’ve got to be kidding! (AE) (= You can’t be serious!) There must be something we can do about this. (= There’s (got) to be …. )
IV.
2
SHOULD (= Ar trebui să …) Ought to (BE) (= Se cuvine / S-ar cuveni să …)
Might (forma de condiţional) – exprimă o posibilitate mai slabă decât may (o probabilitate mai redusă).
3
a) advice / recommendation: •
If you’ve got a cold, you should take an aspirin and stay in bed. You shouldn’t wear jeans and T-shirt at a job interview. It makes a bad impression. What sort of ink should / shall I use for this printer? (asking for advice) You ought to respect your elders. (ought to = moral obligation or duty) Had better – a warning (about a particular situation): You’d better hurry / leave now. (= Ai face bine / Ar fi mai bine să …)
c) probability (a logical sequence): -
He should be home (by) now. You should (normally) feel better after the treatment.
Notă: Should /vs/ must – în timp ce primul exprimă un sfat / o recomandare, cel de-al doilea exprimă obligaţia: e. g.:
I think you should give up smoking. It’s bad for your health. (= friendly advice) You must stop smoking, otherwise you’ll get lung cancer. (= doctor’s order)
V.
SHALL – forma de prezent a lui should a)
obligation / necessity (stilul formal): “Thou (= you) shall not kill.” (the 6th Commandment)
b) determination / certainty (promise or threat) (shall = will): We shall overcome! (M. Luther-King) c)
asking for advice (shall = should): Shall / Should I stay or shall / should I go?
d) proposal / suggestion / invitation: Shall we dance? // Let’s dance, shall we? WILL3
VI. a)
volition (= voinţă):
-
Will you marry me? (= Are you willing to / Do you want to …?) This (damn) door (just) won’t open. (= It resists opening – as if it had a will of its own) Check this address for me, will you? // Will you please check this address for me? (tag question - polite request) (Ro: Verifică-mi şi mie adresa asta (te rog), vrei?) Say what you will (= wish / want), I still think adultery is a crime. (Ro: Orice-ai zice (tu), eu tot cred că … ) Now if you’ll (= will) excuse me4, I really must leave / go.
b) habitual will: c) supposition:
VII. -
If something can go wrong, it will (go wrong). (Murphy’s law) Will that be all, sir / madam? (or will there be anything else?)
WOULD5 - forma de trecut / condiţional a lui will They couldn’t find anybody who would (= was willing to) do the job. (Sequence of Tenses) Would6 / Will you have dinner with me tonight? (= invitation)
3
Will este şi auxiliarul timpului viitor (Future Tense), la toate persoanele. Ca verb modal, will poate apărea în subordonată condiţională (IF Clause) şi în cea temporală (when). 5 Would este şi auxiliarul modului condiţional (IF Clause – II & III), la toate persoanele. 6 Would este mai slab (deci mai politicos) decât will în astfel de contexte (vezi mai sus – can & could). 4
4
Would / Will you do me a favour? (= polite request) A: “Is she the boss’s wife or his daughter?” B: “I wouldn’t know.” (Ro: N-am de unde să ştiu.)
•
Would like (to) – este un echivalent politicos al verbului want (= a vrea, a dori). La afirmativ, se foloseşte pentru a exprima o cerere politicoasă, iar la interogativ, pentru a formula diverse întrebări (cereri) sau oferte / invitaţii politicoase: -
•
I’d like two tickets for the 8.45 train / flight, please. (= Aş dori…) (polite request) Would you like some (more) coffee? (= offer) What would you like to eat / to drink, sir / madam? (= polite question) I’m having a party tonight. Would you like to come? (invitation)
Would rather /’d sooner….(than + short infinitive) (= prefer + V-ing … to … V-ing) – expresie care arată preferinţa (pentru o anumită activitate în dauna alteia): -
He’d rather / ’d sooner read than watch TV. (= He prefers reading to watching TV). I’d (much) rather to be a cleaning lady than a secretary.
♦ MODAL PERFECT Afirmativ: S + MODAL + HAVE + Verb (Past Participle) Interogativ: MODAL + S + HAVE + Verb (Past Participle)…? Negativ: S + MODAL + NOT + HAVE + Verb (Past Participle) I.
Modalul perfect arată o acţiune reală atunci când vebul modal este folosit cu sensul său secundar (posibilitate, imposibilitate, deducţie logică, presupoziţie). În asemenea cazuri, modalul perfect este singura modalitate de a exprima ideea de trecut: -
II.
I may / might / could / can have met her, but I’m not sure. (= posibilitate) (Ro: Se poate / E posibil să o fi întâlnit, dar nu sunt sigur.) She can’t / couldn’t have done such a thing, I refuse to believe it. (= imposibilitate) (Ro: Nu se poate să fi făcut ea asta, refuz să cred! ) I seem to have lost my wallet – I must have forgotten it in the cab. (Ro: Se pare că mi-am pierdut portofelul – trebuie să-l fi uitat în taxi.) (= probabilitate, deducţie) She must / should have arrived by now. (Ro: Trebuie / Ar trebui să fi ajuns deja.) She will have finished by now. (presupoziţie / presupunere) (Ro: O fi terminat / Va fi terminat …) Dacă folosim infinitivul perfect în combinaţie cu un verb modal la sensul de bază (abilitate, permisiune, obligaţie / necesitate sau interdicţie), această construcţie arată întotdeauna o acţiune ireală (“contrary-to-fact” event) şi implică un reproş / o critică:
-
You could / can have warned me about the danger I was in! (but you didn’t) (Ro: Puteai să mă fi avertizat ... ) He must / should have told me everything from the beginning - now it’s too late. (Ro: Trebuia să-mi fi spus / Ar fi trebuit să-mi spună totul …) You shouldn’t have lied to him. (but you did it) (Ro: N-ar fi trebuit să-l minţi – dar ai făcut-o.)
5