HOW TO EXPRESS CERTAINTY, PROBABILITY, AND POSSIBILITY | Effective Communication

Before knowing how to express certainty, probability or possibility, it is important to know the basics first.

There is a verb called “modal”. It is a type of auxiliary verb used to express modalities. It is the state or “modes” in which a thing exists in general, such as possibility, ability, prohibition, and necessity.

In this article, you will be taught how to express certainty, probability and possibility for effective communication.

Certainty

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, certainty means being free from doubt or being confident about something. There are modal verbs that express certainty. It can be used to express the present by using “must”, “can’t”, and “couldn’t”

Sentence examples:

1. You must go to the barangay health care today for COVID-19 vaccination.
2. I can’t go to school today because my head is aching.
3. I couldn’t find my laptop this afternoon.
4. Jenny must pass her assignments this evening.
5. I couldn’t trade my money for those fruits.

Meanwhile, it can be used to express certainty in the past by using “must have”, “can’t have” and “couldn’t have”. It must be used to mean that something was not possible in the past. Like, it would have been different. Thus, the formula for creating a sentence using this is: subject + can’t have / couldn’t have + past participle

1. I must have eaten before I went to school this morning.
2. He can’t have driven in Beverly Hills.
3. Jeff couldn’t have told me this morning because I was not there and I left my phone at my house.
4. I must have gotten the necklace earlier.
5. I couldn’t have all the things I want in life.

Probability

According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, probability means being probable or likelihood of something (event or circumstance). Like certainty, there are modal verbs that can be used to express either probability in the present or future by using “should” and “ought to”.

Sentence examples:

1. My brother should go to the doctor for treatment and medications.
2. I ought to buy a banana every day as a potassium source for my feet.
3. I ought to leave by now.
4. I should go directly to my husband’s office.
5. One hour ought to be enough time.

Also, it can be used when we talk about the past by using “should have” and “ought to have”. The formula for creating a sentence using it is: subject + should have / ought to have + past participle

1. I should have called Jenny sooner.
2. My clothes got wet yesterday when I went to school. I should have taken an umbrella with me.
3. They ought to have a waiting shed near the school.
4. I often think that I ought to have bought oranges, not apples.
5. Gary should have brought the printer.

Possibility

From the word “possible”, it means something that is able to be done. It can be expressed by using  “could”, “may” and “might to” to talk about the possibility of something either in the present or in the future.

Sentence examples:

1. I could buy you fruit when I go to the supermarket this afternoon.
2. I may go now.
3. I might see you this Wednesday or Thursday.
4. I might go to the dentist tomorrow for the adjustment of my braces.

Remember, when you write a formal paper for school or work, you should not shortcut “should not” or “could not”. In short, avoid using apostrophes in scientific and medical writing because it is considered informal.

By the next time you communicate to someone and you are in the state of certainty, being probable, or something that can be done either in the past, present, or future, you already know what to use and how to use the modal verbs.

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