May and might: uncertain possibility

May and might do not change with person: I may, she may, we might, they might. Use a base verb without to, -s, a past form or do-support: may come, might need, may be.

With be, the pattern describes a possible state or location: He might be busy. With a lexical verb, it describes a possible action or event: He might call later. Still, already and also normally follow the modal and precede the next verb: She may still be at work; The file might already be ready.

Do not combine may and might with one another or another modal in the same simple chain: not may might come or might will arrive. Choose one form matching the intention.

For the present, may/might be often precedes a location, state or adjective: The manager may be upstairs. The road might be icy. This is not past tense: might can refer to now in such sentences.

For the future, may/might precedes a base verb and can combine with a time expression: We may finish at five. The guests might arrive later. Do not add will after the modal.

Preserve the situation’s facts. A possibility about this delivery today does not become a general claim about all deliveries. After six does not become at six.

In many contexts, may, might and could express the same core idea: something is possible but uncertain. Differences depend on register, intonation, speaker and situation. May often sounds more formal, but this is not a universal probability scale.

Do not learn a formula such as “may = 60%, might = 30%”. Authoritative references recognise overlap, and speakers do not always rank the forms alike. Without a specified construction target or register, both may and might are often acceptable.

Could has other functions too. We could meet online can suggest an action; The meeting could be online can express speculation. This curriculum does not reject could as a possibility form; distinguish it from may/might only when the task explicitly requests a particular construction or establishes a suggestion.

May/might/could suits a particular unknown situation: This bus may be full after five. Can often describes general possibility or what sometimes happens: Buses can be full after work. The distinction is the claim’s scope rather than the word’s strength.

Will, present simple or ordinary be can present a confirmed fact, schedule or confident decision: The train leaves at 18:10. I will call at six. Do not silently replace may/might with these when the task explicitly says the information is unconfirmed.

Maybe is an adverb; may is a modal verb. Maybe normally comes at the start: Maybe the café will open later. In the modal construction, write may separately from be: The café may be open.

May I…? and May we…? normally request permission in modern English: May I use this chair? This is a different pattern using the same modal. The chair may be free describes a possible state without asking permission.

Might can form a direct possibility question through inversion: Might the meeting start later? This is grammatical but often formal or tentative. In ordinary conversation, Do you think the meeting might start later? and Is it possible that…? are natural alternatives.

Direct possibility questions with may are unusual in standard modern English; inverted may mainly suggests permission. Closed exercises therefore should not force an artificial May the bus arrive late? as the sole answer.

May not and might not can mean an event possibly will not happen, but that is the next lesson’s core. Negation is mentioned here only as a boundary; do not add it automatically when an affirmative possibility is requested.

May/might have + past participle speculates about the past and needs a separate explanation. This A2 material does not require producing it: its productive targets concern a possible state now or an event ahead.

Combine uncertainty with a practical response without inventing confirmation: The technician may arrive after three, so I’ll keep my phone nearby. The first part remains a possibility; the second states your actual decision.