May and Might: This post is presenting Use of May and Might valuable information but also try to cover the following subject:
-Use of May have and Might have
-Use of May be and Might be
-Basic English grammar
Today we will learn to use ‘May, May be, Might, Might be, May have, Might have’. Many people make the mistake of using them. I hope you will never forget to use them after today. I will try to teach you how to use them as easily as possible. If you want to speak English or learn English, you must know how to use them. So let’s get started –
May and Might examples:
➤ I may learn English.
➤ I might learn English.
➤ He may be learning English.
➤ I might be learning English.
➤ I may have learnt English.
➤ I might have learnt English.
Use of May:
Possibility:
He may come today.
Permission:
You may take the book.
May I come in?
Wishes and Blessings:
May you be happy.
May God bless you.
May be
May be + Verb+ing
➤ He may be learning English.
➤ She may be cooking now.
# Means her cooking is not over yet, may be in running condition
May have
May have + Verb3
➤ He may have helped the boy.
# Here we are not sure if he helped the boy, or did not help the boy but may have. That means our position is in a middle of the situation.
➤ I may have done the work.
➤ He may have married her.
➤ She may have given him some money.
Might
➤ He might come here today.
# Might is used in the sense of a relatively low probability. Probability means that the work may or may not happen again. If we have a 50% chance in the case of May, we can give a 30% chance in the case of Might. That means the chances are much lower.
➤ More uses of Might ➤
Possibility:
➤It might rain today.
➤He might go to office today.
To show dissatisfaction:
➤You might come little earlier.
➤You might take care of your sister.
Indirect speech:
➤He said that he might go to Mumbai.
➤She said that it might be true.
Permission:
➤Might I take your book?
➤Might I use your phone?
Might Be
Might be + verb+ing
# Might be + verb + ing is used if the work is running condition.
For example –
➤ I might be sleeping.
➤ He might be playing football.
➤ He might be reading the book.
# The difference between May be and Might be is – Might be is used in the sense of a much less possibility.
Might have
Might have + verb3
➤ He might have read the book.
➤ I might have learnt English.
# I mean I didn’t do it when I was supposed to do it, I’m sorry now that I could have done.
➤ He might have been happy.
➤ England might have won the match.
➤ I might have lost my wallet.
➤ I might have switched off the light.
➤ He might have bought a laptop.
May is mostly used to get request and asking for permission. Both May and Might are also used to give some polite suggestions.
Use of May and Might
It may rain.
May I come in?
May I go home?
May I help you?
She might come.
He might not be happy.
They might be taller than you.
May and might are both used to say something in the sense of Possibility.
Might is the past tense of May.
Many people think that May is used in Present Tense and Might is used in Past Tense
For example –
➤ He may go to work early. (Present Tense)
➤ He might have taken the mobile before going to office. (Past Tense)
But did you know that we can use Might instead of May and we can use May instead of Might. This means they are interchangeable.
For example –
➤ He might go to work early.
➤ He may have taken the mobile before going to office.
So today you learned that you can use May and Might interchangeably. There is not much change in the meaning.
More Examples:
➤ He may have drunk tea.
➤ He may have learnt English.
➤ She may have cooked food.
➤ They may have played cricket.
➤ You may have watched the movie.
