Analysis of a Grammatical Category in English—Modal Verbs

摘要

This article aims at introducing the modal verbs, analysing the difficulties in teaching and providing instructional implications for teaching modals from three aspects, namely, syntax, semantics and pragmatics. In particular, this article uses can to demonstrate the problems in teaching. Importantly, the in structional implications for grammar teaching are presented which orgran ised around the concept of form, meaning, and function. It is suggested that te achi ng modals could balance students’ ability of identifying the meaning and fu nction of modals appropriately and using them properly.