Scribd
Upload
140 views2 pages

Probability in The Past

The document discusses the use of modal verbs like must, may, might, can't and couldn't with the present perfect verb form to indicate varying levels of certainty about whether a past situation occurred or did not occur. Specifically, it notes that these modal verbs followed by have and a past participle are used affirmatively to show certainty that something happened in the past, while modals followed by not, the base verb and past participle indicate uncertainty about whether something in the past did not occur. Examples of sentences using these constructions are provided.

Uploaded by

Роман Миллер
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
140 views2 pages

Probability in The Past

The document discusses the use of modal verbs like must, may, might, can't and couldn't with the present perfect verb form to indicate varying levels of certainty about whether a past situation occurred or did not occur. Specifically, it notes that these modal verbs followed by have and a past participle are used affirmatively to show certainty that something happened in the past, while modals followed by not, the base verb and past participle indicate uncertainty about whether something in the past did not occur. Examples of sentences using these constructions are provided.

Uploaded by

Роман Миллер
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 2

Probability in the past

Must, may, might, can’t andcouldn’t are used with a present


perfect verb form to show how certain a speaker is that a past
situation happened or didn’t happen.

Affirmative.
Formula: MODAL + HAVE + PAST PARTICIPLE (to show how
certain the speaker is that something happened)

Negative.
Formula: MODAL + NOT + BASE VERB + PAST PARTICIPLE (to
show how certain the speaker is that something didn’t happen)

https://youtu.be/1PY6xIDkIj4

https://youtu.be/WRUjQvBjkRA

@_english_cake_
Probability in the past
Exercise instructions.
Fill in each gap using must have, can’t have, could have, may have or
might have. There is a grammar explanation at the bottom of the
page.

Example.

Someone was ringing. I’m sure it was my brother – he promised to


call.
Someone was ringing. It been my brother – he promised to call.

1. I am sure he was here. I saw his car in front of the building.


He ... been here.

2. A: Where is James? He should already be here, shouldn't he?


B: Yes, he should but I don't know why he isn't here - he ... missed the bus.

3. I'm not sure if I passed the exam. I don't feel very sure that I passed.
I ... passed the exam.

4. A: Last summer I took four exams and failed them all!


B: You ... been very disappointed.

5. She speaks excellent French. I'm sure she's lived in Paris for a long time.
She ... lived in Paris for a long time.

6. A: Their plane was delayed and they had to wait 36 hours in the airport.
B: They ... been very happy with the airline.

7. Someone told me that Mark was in Mexico last week, but I saw him here so he ... been
in Mexico.

8. A: I saw John yesterday - he looked very pleased with himself. He didn't say why but I
think he got that job he applied for.
B: He ... got that job he applied for.

9. They gave me very little time to do the job. It's possible I'd have finished if I'd worked all
night, but I'm not sure.
They gave me very little time to do the job. I ... finished if I'd worked all night, but I'm not
sure.

10. We agreed to meet yesterday, but when I got there I didn't see him. It's possible he was
waiting elsewhere.
We agreed to meet yesterday but when I got there I didn't see him. He ... waiting
elsewhere.

@_english_cake_

You might also like