Complete the second sentence so that it means the same as the first, using the word in bold. Use between two and five words
0 I’m sure that’s Rob’s bag. must
That ......must be...... Rob’s bag.
1 Maybe he’s in the cafeteria, could
He........................... in the cafeteria.
2 Perhaps he’ll come back for it. might
He........................... back for it.
3 Maybe I won’t see him this evening. may
I ........................... him this evening.
4 Perhaps Jamie knows his address. Might.
Jamie ........................... his address.
5 I’m sure somebody has it. Must
Somebody........................... it.
7. Complete the letter. Use must, may (not), might (not), could or can’t There may be more than one possible answer.
Congratulations on your exam results! You (0) ......must...... be really pleased!
I’m, looking forward to seeing you next month. I’m thinking of things we can do. We (1) ........................ get bored here, so let's try to go to London. There (2) ........................ be a good show on. I’llcheck. We can also visit Jane in Scotland. I've never been- to her house, but I know it’s in a small village outside Edinburgh, so it(3) ........................be beautiful! It (4) ........................be big enough for all of us, though - I don’t know. If we can’t stay there, we can easily stay in a hostel. It (5) ........................be difficult to find one.
Speculating about the past
• We use must/may/might/could/can’t + have + past participle to speculate about the past, to show how certain we are that something happened.
• We use must + have + past participle when we are certain that something happened:
I sent the letter two weeks ago. He must have received it.
• We use may/might/could + have + past participle when we think it’s possible that something happened: She might have left.
• We use may/might not + have + past participle (but not couldn’t) when we think it’s possible that something didn’t happen: They may not have seen us.
• We use can’t + have + past participle when we think it’s impossible that something happened. Notice the difference between may/might not have and can’t have: She might not have passed her exam. (= It’s possible that she didn’t pass.) She can’t have passed her exam! (= It’s impossible that she passed.)
Complete the sentences. Use must have or might (not) have and the verbs in
Brackets.
0 I......might have bought...... the wrong book. Is this the one you wanted? (buy)
1 We...........................the door. I can’t remember. (not lock)
2 That party was amazing! They...........................a lot of money on it. (spend)
3 Michael’s finished his essay and he only started it last night! He...........................all night. (work)
4 He...........................your message. Why don’t you leave another one? (not get)
5 I...........................her phone number in my file. I’m not sure. (write)
6 That sounds awful! You...........................terrified! (be)
Circle the correct answer.
0 I can’t / might not have thrown away that letter. I never throw away letters.
1 They can’t / might not have gone to the zoo. I’m not sure if it was open.
2 I can’t / may not have brought my camera. I’ll go and look for it in the car.
3 There can’t / might not have been many people in town this afternoon. Everyone was watching the football match at home.
4 Sophie can’t / might not have taken these photos. I’m not sure she was at that party.
5 They can’t / might not have painted the whole flat in one day! It’s too big.
6 The cat can’t / might not have got out. All the doors and windows were shut.
10. Complete the conversations. Use must have, could have, might have or can’t
Have and the verbs in brackets.
A: Are you ready?
B: Um ... hang on a minute. I’m just looking for my MP3 player. I don’t know where it is. Maybe it’s in my bag. No, it isn’t. Oh dear! I hope I haven’t lost it.
A: Lisa (0) ......could have borrowed...... (borrow) it. She uses it sometimes, doesn’t she?
B: Yes, but she hasn’t been at home today, so she (1) ........................... (take) it.
A: Let me look in your bag. You (2) ...........................(not see) it. Ah, here it is!
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A: Why didn’t Lucy come to Kate’s last night?
B: I don’t know. She (3) ........................... (forget) all about it. Do you think Kate was upset?
A: She didn’t say anything, but she (4) ........................... (be) very disappointed. She really wanted Lucy to come.
B: Lucy’s often ill. She (5) ........................... (not be) well yesterday.
A: She (6) ........................... (be) ill. Ben saw her in the afternoon. She was fine.
Permission
• To express permission or lack of permission, we use can/can’t (present), could/couldn’t (past) and (not) be allowed to (all tenses): You can give me the money tomorrow. You can’t bring food into class. Can we/Are we allowed to talk in the library? When I was a child, I couldn’t/wasn’t allowed to stay out after nine. Next year, students will be allowed to use dictionaries in exams.
• May (not) is sometimes used in notices: Students may borrow CDs from the library. Visitors may not take photographs of the paintings.
• Compare the use of could and was/were allowed to: In my last job, I could/was allowed to start at ten. (general permission: could or was/were allowed to)
I was allowed to leave early yesterday, (on a particular occasion: was/were allowed to, not could)
• To ask for permission, we use can, could (more polite) or may (formal). We don’t use be allowed to: CanIgo now? CouldIuse your phone? MayIsit here?
To answer yes, we can say: Yes, sure/all right/of course/certainly.
To answer no, we can say: (No,) I’m sorry, but (+ a reason).