Might and may for possibility

When you use it

You use might and may when something is possible but you are not sure. It can be about now (Tom may be in the garden) or about the future (We might go to the lake on Sunday). For this meaning the two words are very close. Might is the more common one in everyday speech; may sounds a little more formal. Some speakers feel that might is a little less sure, but the difference is small, and in the exercises both are accepted.

Might and may sit in the middle between will (you are sure it will happen) and won't (you are sure it will not happen).

Could can also say that something is possible in a positive sentence: It could snow tonight. But could not is not the negative of this meaning, so for a possible "no" use might not or may not.

How it is formed

Might and may are modal verbs, like can, will and should. They follow the same three rules: one form for every subject, the base verb after them with no to, and no do in negatives.

• No -s: she might win, not she mights win or she might wins.
• No to: I might go, not I might to go.
• No do: the negative adds not straight after the modal: I might not go, not I don't might go.

Write the negative in full: might not, may not. (Mightn't exists in British speech but is rare, and mayn't is very old-fashioned.) A short answer is just the subject and the modal: Will you be at home tonight? — I may not.

Questions. In everyday English people rarely ask about possibility with might or may; Might it rain? sounds formal. The usual question is Do you think…?: Do you think Tom will come? Do you think it might rain? A question that starts with May I…? has a different meaning: it is a polite way to ask for permission (May I use your phone?). For asking permission, see also Can I…? in the lesson on can and can't.

Maybe or may be? Maybe is one word. It is an adverb that means "perhaps", and it usually comes at the start: Maybe Tom is at the gym. May be is two words: the modal may and the verb be. It comes after the subject: Tom may be at the gym. Both sentences mean the same, but the spelling and the word order are different. For a future action, maybe goes with will: Maybe I'll call you later means the same as I might call you later.

For a sure prediction, see the lesson on will. Later, at B1, you will use might and must to make guesses about the past (Tom might have forgotten); see modals of deduction.

Examples

• Take your umbrella. It might rain on the way home.
• Ask Anna about the bus times. She may know.
• We might go to the lake on Sunday, but we haven't decided yet.
• I might not finish this book this week. It's very long.
• The bakery may close early today because it's a holiday tomorrow.
• Anna may not come this evening. She has a cold.
• It could snow tonight, so drive carefully.
• Maybe Anna is busy. = Anna may be busy.
• Are you coming to the match? — I might. I'm not sure yet.
• Do you think Anna will win? — She might. She's very fast.

Common mistakes

• ✗It might rains. / ✗ She mights come. / ✗ I might to go.

  ✓ It might rain. / She might come. / I might go.

  Might and may never change, and the verb after them is the base form: no -s and no to. In Він, може, прийде the verb has a personal ending, and after можу comes an infinitive (можу запізнитися), so learners add -s or to. After might the verb stays bare. In Он, может, придёт the verb has a personal ending, and after могу comes an infinitive (могу опоздать), so learners add -s or to. After might the verb stays bare. German Er kommt vielleicht puts the ending on kommt, and that ending tends to move to the English verb. With might the verb stays in the base form: He might come.

• ✗I don't might come. / ✗ Do you might come?

  ✓ I might not come. / Do you think you'll come?

  Might makes its own negative with not, without do. For a question about possibility, Do you think…? is the normal choice.

• ✗May be Tom is ill. / ✗ Tom maybe ill.

  ✓ Maybe Tom is ill. / Tom may be ill.

  Maybe (one word) goes at the start and the sentence keeps its own verb. May be (two words) is the verb and comes after the subject. Ukrainian може means both "maybe" and "(he) can / may", so the two English spellings are easy to mix up. Russian может быть is two words but means "maybe", so learners write may be where English needs one word, maybe. German vielleicht is one word, like maybe. May be with a space is like kann … sein in Er kann krank sein: a verb, not an adverb.

• ✗Maybe I go to the party tomorrow. (you have not decided)

  ✓ Maybe I'll go to the party tomorrow. / I might go to the party tomorrow.

  For a possible future action that is not fixed, English uses maybe with will, or might alone. The present simple is used for the future mainly for timetables and programmes (The train leaves at six, The course starts on Monday). Може, завтра піду has a future form with the same endings as the present, so the present simple seems right. Может, завтра пойду has a future form with the same endings as the present, so the present simple seems right. Vielleicht gehe ich morgen hin is normal German with the present tense, but English needs will or might here.

• ✗Take a coat. It can get cold tonight.

  ✓ Take a coat. It might get cold tonight.

  Can in a positive sentence is for general possibility (It can get windy by the sea), not for a guess about one particular time. For that, use might, may or could. Може похолодати uses the verb могти, which is why can seems right. Может похолодать uses the verb мочь, which is why can seems right. German can say Es kann heute Nacht kalt werden or Es könnte heute Nacht kalt werden. Follow the second: English uses might or could.

Practice

The exercises go from easy to harder. Each answer is checked at once. If it is wrong, you get a hint and a second try.