Vèb modal yo : can, should, must ak have to

Vèb modal yo — can, could, may, might, should, must — eksprime sa ki posib, nesesè, pèmèt oswa swetab, e yo tout gen menm gramè. Distenksyon moun plis konfonn : must se pwòp otorite moun k ap pale a, have to se yon règ ekstèn oswa yon sikonstans (I have to wear a uniform at work.) ; mustn't vle di « entèdi », don't have to vle di « pa obligatwa ». Yo koresponn apeprè ak kapab, dwe ak fòk an kreyòl, men koresponn lan pa egzat, sitou pou negasyon an.

Gramè jeneral

Tout vèb modal fonksyone menm jan :

• Yo pa janm pran -s nan twazyèm moun : She can swim. (pa janm « cans »)
• Yo swiv ak fòm debaz vèb la, san to : You should go. (pa janm « should to go »)
• Negasyon ak kesyon pa bezwen do : Can you help? / I can't come.

Sèl eksepsyon an se have to, ki konpòte l tankou yon vèb òdinè : She has to go. Does she have to go?

Kapasite : can / could

• I can speak three languages. (prezan)
• I could swim when I was five. (kapasite nan tan pase)

Kreyòl la di « Mwen konn naje » ak konn (konnen kijan), men an angle ou di I can swim ; ou pa sèvi ak know pou yon kapasite : ❌ I know swim.

Pou yon reyisit presi e ponktyèl nan tan pase, ou bezwen was/were able to oswa managed to :

• ❌ The exam was hard but I could pass.
• ✅ The exam was hard but I was able to pass.

Could dekri kapasite an jeneral ; yon ka presi ki reyisi vre mande yon lòt fòm.

Pèmisyon : can / may

• Can I borrow your pen? (komen, chak jou)
• May I borrow your pen? (fòmèl e pwoli)

Demann ak òf èd

Fonksyon	Soti nan mwens fòmèl rive nan pi fòmèl
mande moun ou ap pale avè l la yon bagay	Can you…? · Could you…? · Would you mind…?
mande yon bagay pou tèt ou	Can I…? · Could I…? · May I…?
ofri èd	Shall I…? · Would you like me to…?

Konsèy : should / ought to

• You should see a doctor.
• You shouldn't work so late.

Should se mo òdinè a pou bay yon konsèy : pwòch, san mete presyon. Ought to vle di menm bagay la, men li parèt mwens souvan e li sonnen yon ti jan pi fòmèl. Yon konsèy ki pi ensistan : You'd better see a doctor. (li fè konprann ke sinon, ap gen konsekans) Kreyòl ou ta dwe (kondisyonèl dwe) koresponn ak should, pa ak must (ou dwe).

Obligasyon : must oswa have to

Se egzakteman distenksyon sa a ki pi brouye moun.

	Sans	Egzanp
must	Pwòp otorite moun k ap pale a, oswa yon santiman fò	I must call my mother — I keep forgetting.
have to	Yon règ ekstèn oswa yon sikonstans	I have to wear a uniform at work.

Nan pratik, have to pi souvan nan lang chak jou a. Sèvi ak must pou règ ou enpoze tèt ou, ak nan anons ekri : Passengers must not smoke.

Remake tou ke must pa gen fòm pase ni fòm lavni — se have to ki kouvri yo : I had to work late. · I'll have to ask.

Pèlen negasyon an

Isit la, de vèb sa yo separe nèt — e prèske tout moun twonpe yo :

• You mustn't park here. → sa entèdi.
• You don't have to park here. → sa pa obligatwa (ou ka fè l si ou vle).

Mustn't se yon entèdiksyon. Don't have to se absans obligasyon. Yo prèske opoze. Kreyòl la fè diferans lan ak pa dwe (entèdiksyon) ak pa oblije / pa bezwen (pa gen obligasyon) ; difikilte a se jwenn vèb angle a, e moun souvan di ❌ You don't must park here oswa ❌ You no must park here, paske nan kreyòl pa vini devan vèb la. Needn't konpòte l tankou don't have to : You needn't wait.

Posibilite : might / may / could

• It might rain later. (posib, san presizyon)
• She could be at home. (posib)

Nan nivo B1, twa a eksprime yon degre ensètitid ki trè pwòch.

Modal pou fè sipozisyon : degre sètitid ou

Menm mo yo ranpli yon dezyèm fonksyon — yo montre degre sètitid ou sou yon bagay k ap pase kounye a.

Modal	Sètitid	Egzanp
must	prèske sèten wi	He must be tired — he's been up since five.
might / may / could	posib	She might be in a meeting.
can't	prèske sèten non	That can't be right — I checked it twice.

Remake : kontrè must sipozisyon an se can't, pa mustn't.

Epi menm bagay la, men pou pase a

Ajoute have + patisip pou konstwi yon sipozisyon sou pase a :

• He must have missed the train.
• She might have forgotten.
• You can't have seen him — he's abroad.
• I should have asked first. (regrè pou yon bagay ki pase)

Yon sèl fòm, de fonksyon — must se swa yon obligasyon (you must wear a helmet), swa yon sipozisyon (he must be exhausted). Se sèlman kontèks la ki fè diferans : li sitiyasyon an, pa mo a.

De fonksyon yo nan menm konvèsasyon

A : Do I have to book in advance?

B : You don't have to, but you should — it can get busy.

A : It's Tuesday. It can't be that bad, surely?

B : You'd be surprised. They must have had a review somewhere.

Have to ak should — obligasyon ak konsèy ; can't ak must have — sipozisyon.

Mete sa ou fèk li a nan epreuve

Tès ki anba a pale de distenksyon ki vrèman bay erè — sitou mustn't ak don't have to.