Question

He _____ pay you the loan he owes to you? (Fill in the blank with a suitable modal)
a. need
b. must
c. can’t
d. dare

Answer 1

Hint: The given sentence is emphasising on the payment of a loan owed to someone. Go through the options, recall what they mean and where they are used and choose the one which best fits the context of the sentence. Keep in mind that the sentence ends with a ‘question mark’, this will give you an idea of the tone of the given sentence.

Complete answer: A modal refers to a modal verb. They emphasise the function of the main verb that follows it. Examples of modal verbs are: can, could, should, must, etc. Always check if the modal verb is adding emphasis to the main verb. If the selected word is acting as the main verb, it cannot be a modal verb. Now, let us go through the options- (a) need- Need is not a modal verb. The word need is either a verb or a noun but does not qualify as a modal verb. We can use a modal verb along with need. It is the wrong answer.
(b) must- While “must” is a modal verb, it cannot be used in the given sentence with a question mark. Must as a modal verb is used either in an assertive sentence or in a sentence which starts with an interrogative word like why, what, when, etc.
(c) can’t- Can’t is a modal verb that can be used in the sentence because it also functions as a question word as well. He can’t pay you the loan he owes to you? In the sentence, the word “can’t” is emphasising on the verb “pay”. This is the right option.
(d) dare- Dare is not a modal verb. It does not add emphasis to the verb “pay”. It also does not make sense when used in the sentence: He dares pay you the loan he owes to you? This means that he made a mistake in paying the loan that he owed you.
The correct option is option (c).

Note: There are three categories of modals, namely, (i) Epistemic modals, which relates to knowledge; (ii) Deontic modals, which relates to ideals and (iii) Dynamic modals which relate to performance. For example; -“Can this really be happening?” (EPISTEMIC)
-“Can I use the restroom, please?” (DEONTIC)
-“I can do thirty push-ups.” (DYNAMIC)