Modal Verbs: Can and Must

Modal verbs are verbs we place before other verbs; modals don't take suffixes. We are going to start studying modals by focusing on CAN and MUST.
We use CAN to express ability such as in He can play the piano fairly well.
We also use CAN to make a polite request such as in Can you pass me the salt, please?.
Finally, we use CAN to ask for permission such as in Can I go to the toilet?
That's all concerning the use of CAN.



Now let's move on to the use of MUST. It's a modal we use to show that it's necessary for somebody to do something. That is, it expresses necessity.
MUST expresses obligation such as in I must tidy my room.
It's also used for rules such as in You must be quiet in the library.
When we want to give advice, we can also use MUST such as in You're feeling slightly unwell, you must rest and call a doctor.
When we use the negative form MUSTN'T, we mean that something is forbidden and it isn't right to do it. For example, in You mustn't smoke here or You mustn't bring your mobile phones to school.



There are two exercises for you to practise. In the first, you have to complete ten sentences using MUST or MUSTN'T. The answers are in the second page of the document. You can also download it and print it if you wish. The second exercise is an interactive quiz where you will see pictures of celebrities and some questions about what they CAN or CAN'T do. If you haven't heard of them, you can search their names on the web and do the same if you aren't sure about the right answers. Some research work is good for your autonomy. Can you get 10 out of 10 in both exercises? I hope you can.

Must or Mustn't



CLICK ON THE LINK BELOW FOR THE INTERACTIVE QUIZ ABOUT CAN AND CAN'T

CAN or CAN'T By Pilar Super Quiz Multiple Choice Review Quiz