Intermediate Grammar
Master English grammar one unit at a time. Clear notes, then 40+ interactive exercises with instant feedback — based on the topics in English Grammar in Use (Intermediate).
May and might 1“may be / might be · may have done / might have done” — 44 interactive questions
📖 Grammar Reference — May and might 1
Study the notes, then work through the six exercises.
A may / might — possibility (now or future)
Use may or might + base verb when something is possible but not certain. Both words work in most situations. Might often sounds slightly more uncertain, but the difference is small.
| may + base verb | It may rain this afternoon. (= perhaps it will rain) |
| might + base verb | She might be at work. (= perhaps she is) |
| after past tense | I thought it might be difficult. (NOT may here) |
💡 Always use the base verb after may/might — never add to: (not may to be).
B may not / might not — negative possibility
To say something is possibly not true, use may not or might not. Do NOT use mayn’t or shorten may not.
C may / might be doing — continuous possibility
Use may/might be doing to say something is possibly happening right now or will possibly be happening at a future time.
| now | Don’t disturb him — he may be sleeping. |
| future | I might be working on Saturday — I’m not sure yet. |
| past guess | She might have been waiting for hours before we arrived. |
D may / might have (done) — past possibility
To say something possibly happened in the past, use may/might have + past participle. You are not sure — it’s a guess.
💡 Say might have, never might of. They sound the same in fast speech, but of is always wrong in writing.
E may / might vs must / can’t
Made with care for English learners · allenglish4u.com
Original practice material inspired by the English Grammar in Use syllabus (Cambridge University Press). Example sentences and exercises are written by All English 4U.