Key Professional Skills and Modal Verbs in English
Key Professional Skills
I’m a person who:
Task Execution and Achievement
- I am a person who takes initiative.
- I am able to carry out my duties.
- I take on challenges.
- I make sure things are done well.
Time Management and Achievement
- I carry out my duties on time.
- I am adept at finding ways to speed up a task.
- I do my best.
- I meet deadlines.
- I manage projects on time and within budget.
Ideal Working Conditions
- Details are important to me.
- At work, I maintain order and cleanliness.
- I have a high tolerance for repetition and monotonous routines.
- I like planning the work from the beginning and seeing it through to the end.
- I promote changes.
- I work well under pressure and I’m able to make changes.
- I like challenges.
- I like to travel.
- I’m very good in emergencies.
- I have the courage to carry out my convictions.
Modal Verbs in English
Ability
- Now or generally/decisions made now about the future: CAN
- Past/present, future, or hypothetical situation: COULD
- Past hypothetical situation: COULD + perfect infinitive
- Infinitive, future, present perfect: TO BE ABLE TO
Be able to:
- Infinitive: to be able to
- Future: will be able to
- Present perfect: have been able to
Permission (Don’t use a modal for past permission / reported speech: COULD)
- Now, future, or generally: MAY, COULD, CAN
Advice
- Now, future, or generally: SHOULD, OUGHT TO
Criticism
- Past behavior: SHOULD, OUGHT TO + perfect infinitive
Obligation and Necessity (Future obligation: will have/need to // ?: have/need to // Infinitive, action happened: needn’t + perfect infinitive // Action did/didn’t happen: didn’t have to, didn’t need to // -ing: need)
- +: MUST, HAVE TO, NEED TO
- -: NEEDN’T, DON’T HAVE TO, DON’T NEED TO
- Past obligation: HAD TO
- – Past obligation: NEEDN’T + perfect infinitive, DIDN’T HAVE TO, DIDN’T NEED TO
Degrees of Certainty
- Now or generally: MUST, CAN’T, COULDN’T
- Past: MUST, CAN’T, COULDN’T + perfect infinitive
- Probability now, future, generally: SHOULD, OUGHT TO
- Probability past: SHOULD, OUGHT TO + perfect infinitive
- Possibility now, future, generally: COULD, MAY, MIGHT
- Possibility past: COULD, MAY, MIGHT + perfect infinitive
- Possibility hypothetical past: COULD, MIGHT + perfect infinitive
Telephone Conversations
Asking for a Telephone Number
- May I have your number, please?
- Is this Patxi’s number?
Inquiring
- Do you know when the seminar starts?
- At what time could I call you again?
- What time is the presentation going to end?
- I would like to make a collect call.
Checking Information
- Could you spell your name, please?
- Is this Miss Louren on the line?
- Is this [phone number]?
Informing
- He’s busy at the moment. Do you mind holding on for a bit?
- I’m afraid there’s no reply.
- This phone number is not available right now.
- It’s not available at the moment.
- She/He is on vacation this week.