PART 2: Modality

Absolute tenses

• Present progressive: situation as ongoing

• Present simple: punctual event/(near-) eternal truth

• Past simple: locate an event entirely in the past time-sphere

• Continuative present perfect: situation started in the past, continues in the present

• Indefinite present perfect: something took place at least once in the pre-present

• Simple future: neutral predictions, don’t depend on intentions

• Progressive future: a situation in progress at a future time

Characteristics of modal auxilaries

• no do-support

• no inflection in 3rd person singular

• followed by the bare infinitive

Epistemic modality

Degree of likelihood, never speaker/hearer oriented

Deontic modality

Obligatoriness of a situation

Strong necessity

(epistemic) must, need, have to

Logical impossibility

(epistemic) can’t/couldn’t

weak necessity

(epistemic): should/ought to

probability

(epistemic) will

possibility

(epistemic) theoretical: can/could, factual: may/might

strong obligation/prohibition

(deontic): Sp/H-oriented: must(n’t), need (not), non-Sp/H: (not) have to, need to, be to

Weak obligation/prohibition (=moral)

(deontic) Sp/H: should(n’t), not-Sp/H: ought (not) to

permission

(deontic) Sp/H: may, not-Sp/H: can

Ability

(deontic) Sp/H=capibility, non-Sp/H=opportunity, can in both cases