Modals ESL Worksheet

ESL Worksheet

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ESL Worksheet: Modals

Instructions: Choose the correct answer.

Q1 - You should know better
 
The speaker is giving a negative opinion of the other person's behaviour now
 
The speaker is giving a negative opinion of the other person's behaviour in the past
Q2 - I shan't tell her
 
The person has already decided not to tell her
 
The person is making a promise
Q3 - You must do it
 
The speaker is not the source of authority
 
The speaker is the source of authority
Q4 - May I come in?
 
The speaker is asking for permission to come in
 
The speaker is asking about their ability to come in
Q5 - 'Is that the doorbell?' 'That'll be Jim.'
 
The speaker is not sure if it's Jim because she hasn't seen him
 
The speaker is fairly sure it is Jim because he always arrives at the same time
Q6 - You'd better hurry
 
This is an order
 
This is a strong suggestion
Q7 - If I hadn't broken my wrist, I'd be playing in the volleball finals
 
The finals have already been played
 
The finals haven't been played yet
Q8 - I ought to leave
 
OUGHT TO means the same as SHOULD
 
OUGHT TO is stronger than SHOULD
Q9 - I ought to tell him
 
OUGHT TO is not as strong as HAD BETTER
 
OUGHT TO is stronger than HAD BETTER
Q10 - You needn't have done all that inputting alone
 
The person did the inputting alone
 
The person isn't going to do the inputting alone now
Q11 - He can't speak Dutch
 
The person is not allowed to speak Dutch
 
The person is not able to speak Dutch
Q12 - He might be there when you get there
 
There is a possibility that the person will be there
 
The person definitely will be there
Q13 - Surely, she can't have finished already!
 
The speaker is surprised and finds it hard to believe
 
The speaker is stating an absolute fact
Q14 - You needn't have bothered filling in all those forms
 
The person filled in the forms
 
The person didn't fill the forms in
Q15 - You oughtn't to have spoken to them like that
 
The speaker is referring to the present moment
 
The speaker is referring to the past
Q16 - I didn't dare go inside
 
The person lacked the courage to go in
 
The person wasn't allowed to go in
Q17 - We couldn't swim yesterday
 
The speaker wants to tell us that he and his friends did not know how to swim
 
The speaker wants to tell us that something stopped them from swimming
Q18 - You ought to try to phone her on her birthday
 
'Ought to' is stronger than 'should'
 
'Ought to' is as strong as 'should'
Q19 - You might have been killed!
 
The speaker is probably angry with the person
 
The speaker is pleased that the person was in danger
Q20 - I should be home by around nine so I'll see you then
 
The speaker has a fairly good idea of the time he'll be home, but is not 100% sure
 
The speaker is under a moral obligation to get home by nine o'clock
Q21 - You could hurt yourself
 
The speaker is giving permission to the other person
 
The speaker is warning the other person of a danger
Q22 - You have to get everything ready before the end of the day
 
The speaker is not the source of authority
 
The speaker is the source of authority

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