Common mistakes with modal verbs in English | Learn English with Cambridge
13,177 views ・ 2019-06-04
Please double-click on the English subtitles below to play the video.
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I’ve been a teacher
for more than 12 years,
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and over that time,
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I’ve noticed that students tend
to make the same mistakes
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as they are learning English.
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It’s something that’s
very normal in acquiring
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a second language,
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as we sometimes try to translate
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from our own native
language while speaking.
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Today we’re going to talk
about some common mistakes
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you can make with modal verbs.
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A modal verb is
an auxiliary verb
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that provides additional
and specific meaning
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to the main verb.
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Modal verbs in English
include can, may,
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must, shall, will,
might, and would.
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And one of my favourite ways
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to correct myself is
to see my mistakes,
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so let’s take a look
at the first situation.
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I need a volunteer to write
the answer on the board.
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01:01
I can to write
the answer, teacher.
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01:03
Well, a lot of learners add
the word to after a modal.
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Like I should to go.
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But in most cases,
after a modal,
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we use the base form
of the verb and no to.
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Such as, I should go,
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she can swim,
they might travel.
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I can write the answer, teacher.
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I want the homework
done by tomorrow.
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Oh, no.
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I will must do
my homework tonight.
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In English,
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we cannot have two modal
verbs together, such as,
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I will must do my homework.
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In this case,
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we replace the second
modal for a verb
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that has a similar meaning.
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Must is similar to have to,
so the phrase would be,
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I will have to do my homework.
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Oh, no.
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02:10
I will have to do
my homework tonight.
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Where’s Jessie?
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She was sick yesterday.
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She might comes later.
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It’s very common for learners,
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after they’ve learnt
the present simple with he, she,
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it, to start adding S or ES,
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to all the tenses
in the third person singular.
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But with modals,
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we use the base form of the verb
and never put S or ES.
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We say, he could see.
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She may come.
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It might rain.
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She was sick yesterday.
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She might come later.
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So, those were our three common
mistakes with modals.
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What do you need
to improve in English?
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Tell me in the comments section.
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I hope this video
has helped you.
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Don’t forget to like it
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and subscribe to our channel for
more tips on learning English.
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See you soon.
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Bye.
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