Using 'May': How and When to Use in English
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Using 'May'
May is used to express:
• uncertainty, probability, possibility:
• uncertainty, probability, possibility:
Bruno may be in the board room. It's possible that Bruno is in the board room.
It's possible that dogs may not be allowed in the apartment. Perhaps dogs are not allowed in the apartment.
• when used to express permission, may is equivalent to can or could, but is more polite and formal:
May I have your name please? Could you please tell me your name?
May I smoke? Yes, you may. a more formal version of: Can I smoke? Yes, go ahead.
• desires and wishes:
May the force be with you! (Star Wars) I hope the force will be with you!
Note:
• May is the origin of the expression maybe (perhaps):
• May is the origin of the expression maybe (perhaps):
Maybe it's going to rain tomorrow. Perhaps it will rain tomorrow.
• May can refer to the future:
It may rain tomorrow. It might rain tomorrow.
• When it expresses uncertainty, may is not used in the question form. In this case it is replaced by the expression to be likely to:
Is it likely to rain tomorrow? Is there a strong chance of rain tomorrow? Is rain probable tomorrow?
Exercise 1
Use the words from this list to fill in the blanks below.
Some of the terms may be used more than once and some of the terms not at all. However, you should not leave any of the blanks empty!
may | may be | possible | possibly
'Did you hear that their company might go bankrupt?'
'I know. I read that the CEO even be charged with bank fraud! , the CEO's wife is involved too. These days, anything is .'
Some of the terms may be used more than once and some of the terms not at all. However, you should not leave any of the blanks empty!
may | may be | possible | possibly
'Did you hear that their company might go bankrupt?'
'I know. I read that the CEO even be charged with bank fraud! , the CEO's wife is involved too. These days, anything is .'
Use the words from this list to fill in the blanks below.
Some of the terms may be used more than once and some of the terms not at all. However, you should not leave any of the blanks empty!
may | may be | possible | possibly
'Did you hear that their company might possibly 1 go bankrupt?'
'I know. I read that the CEO may 2 even be charged with bank fraud! Possibly 3, the CEO's wife is involved too. These days, anything is possible 4.'
Some of the terms may be used more than once and some of the terms not at all. However, you should not leave any of the blanks empty!
may | may be | possible | possibly
'Did you hear that their company might possibly 1 go bankrupt?'
'I know. I read that the CEO may 2 even be charged with bank fraud! Possibly 3, the CEO's wife is involved too. These days, anything is possible 4.'
1 possibly: 'Possibly' is the best choice here because it is the only choice which can follow the auxiliary 'might'.
2 may: 'May' is the only choice which expresses probability and fits this sentence's construction. In this phrase, 'may' is an auxiliary, which expresses possibility. It precedes the main verb 'to charge', which is used in the passive voice here.
3 Possibly: 'Possibly' expresses probability here. It is the only choice which correctly fits the sentence's construction.
4 possible: 'Possible' is the best choice because it expresses probability and fits the sentence's construction. 'Anything is possible' is a common English idiom meaning that 'nothing is impossible'.
Exercise 2
Doctor: This isn't easy for me to say, Mr. Spitoon, but you have only a few days left to live.
Mr. Spitoon: Oh my. That's not very good.
Doctor: Also... I think I have accidentally dropped some chewing gum in your aorta.
Mr. Spitoon: Oh my. That's not very good.
Doctor: Also... I think I have accidentally dropped some chewing gum in your aorta.
Doctor: This isn't easy for me to say, Mr. Spitoon, but you might 1 have only a few days left to live.
Mr. Spitoon: Oh my. That's not very good.
Doctor: Also... I think I may 2 have accidentally dropped some chewing gum in your aorta.
Mr. Spitoon: Oh my. That's not very good.
Doctor: Also... I think I may 2 have accidentally dropped some chewing gum in your aorta.
1 might: We often use the auxiliary 'might' to express doubt or risk. "Might" can be used as the preterit form of 'may' and the two are typically synonymous. 'Might' is a little more emphatic. Example: I asked Horatio if I might smell the perfumes.
1 can: Although 'can' is grammatically incorrect here, it does not make much sense. If the doctor says 'you can have only a few days left to live', this means that the doctor 'decides' or 'allows' how long the patient will live.
1 have: 'You have have' is grammatically incorrect. We cannot use the same infinitive form of 'have' directly followed by another.
1 would: Although 'would' is grammatically correct here, the sentence is incomplete. We could say, however: 'You would have only a few days left to live, if you continue to act this way'.
2 may: We often use the auxiliary 'may' to express doubt or probability. Here it expresses the possibility that the doctor left his chewing gum in his patient's aorta. Example: He may have eaten a mouse by mistake.
2 had: 'I had have' is grammatically incorrect. 'I have had' is the present perfect, but it cannot be used here.
2 be: 'I be have' is grammatically incorrect.
2 will: 'Will have' is the future perfect tense, and it does not make sense here. The future perfect is usually used to express a future action that happens before another. For example: 'I will have finished all this wine by the time she gets home'.
Exercise 3
Bob was feeling sick yesterday, so he not show up at the meeting later today.
Bob was feeling sick yesterday, so he may not show up at the meeting later today.
may: 'May' is the correct choice because it correctly expresses doubt or possibility. It is the only option here which can express possibility in the future (we are speaking about the meeting later today).
must: 'Must' is incorrect because it expresses obligation or certainty. It is uncertain whether Bob will attend the meeting.
could: 'Could' expresses possibility, as well as the past tense of the auxiliary 'can'. Although the action in the first clause (Bob feeling sick) took place in the past (yesterday), the action in the second clause (the possibility that Bob will not attend the meeting today) takes place in the future. 'Could' can't be used to express this future possibility.
Exercise 4
Polly: What did you think about my report, Bruno?
Bruno: I noticed a few mistakes in it. You want to double check it.
Bruno: I noticed a few mistakes in it. You want to double check it.
Polly: What did you think about my report, Bruno?
Bruno: I noticed a few mistakes in it. You may want to double check it.
Bruno: I noticed a few mistakes in it. You may want to double check it.
may: 'May' is the correct answer. Bruno is politely suggesting that Polly double check the report. 'You may want to (do something)' is a common way of suggesting something without using the stronger imperative form.
could: We cannot use 'you could want' to make a suggestion. 'You could' generally means 'you would be capable of', for example: 'This job offers everything you could possibly want'.
must: The phrase 'you must want' expresses a strong sense of obligation, or an imperative statement. It is rare that we read or hear constructions with 'must want' together. If Bruno wanted to command or instruct Polly, he would simply say 'You must double check the report'.
Exercise 5
Horatio be the strangest person I ever met.
Horatio may 1 be the strangest person I have 2 ever met.
1 may: We use 'may' here to express the doubt or incertitude of the sentence.
1 have: We cannot use 'have' directly before 'be'. This is grammatically incorrect. However, we could say 'Horatio has to be the strangest man I have ever met.'
2 have: We must use the present perfect (have met) in this case.
2 may: We cannot use 'may' here because 'met' is in the preterit form. However, we could say Horatio may be the strangest man I may ever meet.
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