The class of auxiliary verbs that express mood or attitude and include must, can, could, will, would, may, might, shall, and should is called?

The class of auxiliary verbs that express mood or attitude and include must, can, could, will, would, may, might, shall, and should is called?

• A. Modal Auxiliary Verbs
• B. Auxiliary Verbs
• C. Lexical Verbs
• D. Prepositions

Answer: (A)

Modals express mood or attitude about the action—necessity, possibility, permission, ability, or obligation—and form a specific subgroup of auxiliary verbs. The words must, can, could, will, would, may, might, shall, and should show this modal meaning and are used with the base form of the main verb (you must go, she can swim, they will try). They don’t take -s for the third person, and they don’t use “to” before the main verb, and they create questions and negatives in distinctive ways (Must you go? You cannot swim; You may not). This combination of meaning and behavior distinguishes them from broader auxiliary verbs and from lexical (main) verbs or prepositions. So the correct label is Modal Auxiliary Verbs.