Giving advice is a good way to help those who are around us, especially when someone is in a problem and particularly when they ask for advice.
However, giving advice can become impolite or annoying for the listener if you do not say it in the right way to match with the situation and the type of relationship you have with the listener.
Sometimes, it is also not a very good idea to be too direct when you give advice. It might sound rude to the one who receives the advice. There are more polite ways to give advice rather than being too direct.
Modal verbs are popularly used to give advice politely. Let’s learn some important phrases you can use to give advice in a polite way using Modal Verbs.
Suppose, you are going to advise your friend who wants to improve her English. You can use the following modal verbs to advise her in a soft manner rather than being too direct in bringing out your opinions.
( Direct but not as strong as using “Must” )
(Encouraging to accept your opinion in a soft way)
We can use “could” to tell them about the alternatives they have. You can talk about the possible solutions to the problems they are in.
Here you are suggesting that it’s a good idea to do so.
You can use “might” to give advice in a neutral way. Your advice here is neither very strong nor very weak.
Eg: Based on Situation 2 mentioned above.
Structure:-
Structure:-
“Ought” is also a modal verb. It can be used in Present, Past or Future alike. The tense is defined by the verb that follows it. The idea is usually “obligation”.
There are certain instances where you need to give strong advice. Sometimes you will have to be stern and very direct when you give advice.
When a parent is trying to discipline his or her kid or when a superior wishes to strictly advise a subordinate, strong advice will be useful.
“Must”, “Have to” and “Had better” are some of the modal auxiliaries / semi modals you can use to give strong advice.
“You have to” is a pattern you can use to give strong advice. It suggests that you don’t have a choice but to accept this advice. It is a way of giving strong advice.
“Must” is a modal verb which is very often used to give strong advice. When we use”must” , it suggests the speaker’s authority towards the listener.
Must + base from of the verb
“Had better” is a very useful advice from. We use “had better” to refer to the Present or Future. The idea conveyed is “you better do this otherwise, there will be negative consequences”.
It is a very strong form of advice which includes a tone of warning as well. It suggests that if the advice is not followed, something bad could happen.
Verb form = Had Better + Base Form of the Verb
You had better in its contracted form - You’d better
Meaning:- Isn’t it better, if you do so?
A modal verb is a type of verb that indicates an opinion about something or someone. Modal verbs come under the category of Auxiliary verbs in English. Each and every modal verb expresses different opinions. This opinion or feeling is called “modality”......
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