Frequency of Modal Verbs (LGSWE Corpus: Biber, Conrad & Leech, 2002)

Will Would Can Could May Should Must Might Shall0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

Freq

uenc

y pe

r mill

ion

wor

ds

Frequency of Modal Verbs Across Register (LGSWE Corpus: Biber, Conrad & Leech, 2002)

Will

Would Can

CouldM

ay

Should

Must

Migh

tSh

all

Be going t

o

Have to

Had better

Have go

t to

0

1000

2000

3000

4000

5000

6000

ConversationAcademic

Freq

uenc

y pe

r mill

ion

wor

ds

Frequency of Permission, Possibility and Ability Modal Verbs Across Register

(LGSWE Corpus: Biber, Conrad & Leech, 2002)

CanCould

May

Migh

t0

400

800

1200

1600

2000

PermissionPossibilityAbility

Freq

uenc

y pe

r mill

ion

wor

ds

CanCould

May

Migh

t0

500100015002000250030003500

PermissionPossibilityAbility

Conversation Academic

Frequency of Obligation and Necessity Modal Verbs Across Register

(LGSWE Corpus: Biber, Conrad & Leech, 2002)

Must Have to

Gotta0

200400600800

1000120014001600

ObligationNecessity

Freq

uenc

y pe

r mill

ion

wor

ds

Must Have to

Gotta0

100200300400500600700

ObligationNecessity

Conversation Academic

Frequency of Propriety Modal Verbs Across Register(Corpus of Contemporary American English Davies, 2006)

Should | Ought to | Had better | Better

0100200300400500600700800900

1000

SpokenFictionMagazineNewspaperAcademic

Freq

uenc

y pe

r mill

ion

wor

ds

Had Better | Better

Strongadvice

Should

Advice Expectation

Ought to

AdviceConversation

Expectation

May

PermissionPossibilityacademic

Can

Polite Request

AbilityAcademic

Conversation

PossibilityAcademic

Conversation

Could

Polite RequestConversation

AbilityConversation

Possibility

Must

NecessityAcademic

ObligationAcademic

Have to

NecessityConversation

ObligationConversation

Gotta

NecessityConversation

ObligationConversation