Level Five
Lesson 54
past modals
Past modal verbs allow you to communicate ideas about past situations and past possibilities. There are three things you need to form a past modal:
- a past modal verb: could, would, should, might, etc.
- the verb “have”
- a past participle for the main verb
past modal + have + past participle
- You should have been in school yesterday.
- He could have avoided that accident.
- This would have taken much longer if I hadn’t prepared.
- They might have made a mistake.
He should have spent more time preparing for his test, but he didn’t, and he failed.
54a. could have _____
A person who could have done something, didn’t do it or didn’t have the experience.
could + have + past participle
singular
I could have done it.
You could have done it.
He could have done it.
She could have done it.
It could have done it.
plural
We could have done it.
You could have done it.
They could have done it.
Notice the way the verb “be” changes according to the subject.
When this is negative, it means that something wasn’t possible or likely in the past: He couldn’t have eaten that entire pizza, or could he?
- She could have waited. (She didn’t wait.)
- He could have become very rich. (He didn’t become rich.)
- I could have hurt myself with that knife. (Fortunately, I did not hurt myself.)
54b. would have _____
Use “would have” for past situations that are conditional and for considering past possibility.
singular
I would have _____
You would have _____
He would have _____
She would have _____
It would have _____
plural
We would have _____
You would have _____
They would have _____
should have been, should have done, should have gone, should have left…
To make the negative, add “not” to “would.” I wouldn’t have done that if I were him. This is a conditional sentence. It considers an alternate reality. I’m not him, and whatever he did was a mistake.
- I would have worked more hours if they had asked me. (They didn’t ask me to work more hours, so I didn’t.)
- You would have like that movie. (But you didn’t see it.)
- It would have taken hours to get there if we hadn’t taken the train. (We made a smart decision. We took the train and arrived early.)
54b. should have _____
Use “should have” when talking about mistakes that you have made and regrets that you may have. This is also used for expectations.
singular
I should have _____
You should have _____
He should have _____
She should have _____
It should have _____
plural
We should have _____
You should have _____
They should have _____
should have been, should have done, should have gone, should have left…
To make the negative, add “not” to “should.” shouldn’t have been, shouldn’t have done, shouldn’t have gone, shouldn’t have left… A person makes a bad decision: She shouldn’t have done that.
- I should have left earlier for work. Now I”m late. (mistake)
- He shouldn’t have done that. Now he’s in trouble. (regret)
- They should have received their package by now. (expectation)
54b. might have _____ / may have _____
Use “might have” and “may have” to talk about uncertainty. You aren’t sure if something happened or not. All you can do is speculate.
singular
I might have _____
You might have _____
He might have _____
She might have _____
It might have _____
plural
We might have _____
You might have _____
They might have _____
might have been, might have done, might have gone, might have left.
To make the negative, add “not” to “might” or “may.” might not have been, may not have liked, might not have wanted, etc. Do not contract “might” with “not.”
- They might have found it by now. (This is a past possibility.)
- She might not have liked that. (But I’m not sure.)
- It might have been good. (I don’t know if it was good.)