8.22 Modal Auxiliaries
Modal auxiliaries are helping verbs that are used to express modes or conditions, such as future events, likelihood, ability, permission, recommendation, or obligation. Modal auxiliaries are most often followed by another verb in the infinitive form. Below is a chart showing the conjugation of modal auxiliary verbs. While all four verb forms exist for modals, the most commonly used forms are present tense and past tense. The past tense usually indicates greater politeness or caution rather than past time.
Infinitive |
Present Tense |
Past Tense |
Present Perfect |
| skulle | skal (shall, is going to) |
skulle | har skullet |
| ville | vil (wants to, will) |
ville | har villet |
| kunne | kan (can, is able to) |
kunne | har kunnet |
| måtte | må (must, has to) |
måtte | har måttet |
| burde | bør (ought to) |
burde | har burdet |
Here are some examples of various usages and meanings of modal auxiliaries:
Present |
Past Tense |
| Jeg skal lese i dag. (I am going to read today.) Planned future. |
Han skulle reise i dag. (He was going to leave today.) Expected future that didn’t happen. |
| Du skal rydde opp nå. (You are going to clean up now.) Demand |
Du skulle hjelpe ham. (You should help him.) Recommendation |
| Jon vil gå på fest i kveld. (Jon wants to go to a party tonight.) Volition. |
Per ville slappe av. (Per wanted to relax.) |
| Prisene vil øke neste år. (The prices will increase next year.) Expected (not planned) future |
Hun ville trives i USA. (She would thrive in the US.) Conjecture |
| Jeg må arbeide i morgen. (I have to work tomorrow.) |
Hun måtte dra klokka 10. (She had to leave at 10 o’clock.) |
| Jeg kan snakke norsk. (I can speak Norwegian.) Ability. |
Hun kunne ikke spille gitar. (She couldn’t play gitar.) |
| Du bør gå til legen. (You ought to go to the doctor.) More direct. |
Du burde slutte å røyke. (You ought to quit smoking.) More polite. |
NB! The main verb can be omitted when there is a clear destination or when asking about a destination with “hvor.”
Examples: Jeg skal til Tromsø i morgen. (I’m going to Tromsø tomorrow)
Hvor skal du? (Where are you going?)
Jeg må hjem nå. (I must go home now.)
Han vil til Tyskland i juni. (He wants to go to Germany in June.)