1. Can
- ability
- permission
- circumstantial possibility
- conjecture
Examples.
- He can lift 500N.
- You can go home now.
- Even expert drivers can make mistakes.
Water can boil.
The absence of legs cannot disguise their affinities with mammals.
I can’t believe that we are faced with that sort of choice. (화자의 epistemic state에 의해 제한된 possibility)- She can’t be tired now.
2. May
- permission
- conjecture
- circumstantial possibility
3. Must, have
- duty: 어떤 주체가 해야할 의무
- necessity
- strong conjecture
Examples.
- You must do military service.
- I have to call my mom.
- He must be hungry.
4. Will
- will (의지)
- cooperativeness
- disposition (경향)
- 습성 (습관적)
- definite conjecture
Examples.
- I will lose weight.
- The door won’t open.
- After sad things, happy things will happen. (슬픈 일 뒤에는 행복한일이 생기기 마련이다.)
- I would sometimes travel alone. (나는 때로 혼자 여행을 하곤 했다.)
- He will be a doctor.
5. Should, ought
- expectation: normality와 상식을 기반으로 한 일반적 expectation
- duty
Examples.
- It should be obvious that humans walk on two feet.