Modal Verbs of Probability

Put in 'must + infinitive' (for something that's likely about the present) or 'must + have + past participle' (for something that's likely about the past):

Put in 'must + infinitive' or 'must + have + past participle':

1) Keiko always does really well on exams. She ..... (study) a lot.

[ must study ]

2) That woman drives a very expensive car. She .......(have) a lot of money.

[ must have ]

3) You ........(practise) a lot before you gave your speech. It was really good.

[ must have practised ]

4) When Lizzie got home ...... yesterday there were flowers on the table. Her husband 
(buy) them.

[ must have bought ]

5) Where is my purse? I saw it earlier, so it ........(be) in this room.

[ must be ]

6) Sarah couldn't find her glasses. She thought she .......
(leave) them at her office.

[ must have left ]

7) It .........(be) cold outside. That man in the street is wearing a coat.

[ must be ]

8) All my plants .........(be) dead! I forgot to water them before I went on holiday.

[ must be ]

9) Susie is so late! She .....(miss) the train!.

[ must have missed ]

10) There's rubbish all over ...... my garden! A fox 
(be) in the bin.

[ must have been ]

11) Anna has a huge library in her house. She ........(love) books.

[ must love ]

12) Oh no, I don't have my keys! I ........(leave) them in the taxi.

[ must have left ]

13) When Lucy got home, she found the ice cream had .......... melted. It (be) too hot in the car.

[ must have been ]

14) If you haven't eaten all day, you .........(be) hungry.

[ must be ]

15) Jimmy and Louisa ......(be) very tired. They have a new baby.

[ must be ]

16) It .........(rain) a lot in the night. There are puddles everywhere.

[ must have rained ]

17) David .......(be) happy. His girlfriend just agreed to marry him.

[ must be ]

18) What an amazing kitchen you've got! You .....(like) cooking.

[ must like ]

19) John .........(eat) all the biscuits! There are none left.

[ must have eaten ]

20) When I got up this morning, the kitchen was spotless. Lily .......(tidy) it before she went to bed last night.

[ must have tidied ]


Models of Probability 2
put in 'must' or 'can't'

1) Why is that man looking around like that? He ......be lost.

[ must ]

2) That woman ........be a doctor! She looks far too young.

[ can't ]

3) John always fails the tests, even though he's clever. He ......
study enough.

[ can't ]

4) The food is really good at that restaurant. They ........have a great chef.

[ must ]

5) Who's that at the door? It .....be Susie - she'll still be at work now.

[ can't ]

6) This .......be John's house. This house has a red door and it's number 24, just like he said.

[ must ]

7) Julie .......have much money or she would buy a new car. Her old one is falling apart.

[ can't ]

8) He ........be at work now, can he? It's nearly midnight.

[ can't ]

9) What a lot of lovely flowers you have! You ......really like gardening.

[ must ]

10) David ........drink a lot of coffee. He's finished two packets already this week.

[ must ]

11) This .............be Jamie's coat. He's tall and this is tiny.

[ can't ]

12) Her life .........be easy. She has four children and very little money.

[ can't ]

13) Where's Lucy? She ......be at the library, as she often goes there at this time.

[ must ]

14) This bill ........be right! £50 for two cups of coffee!.

[ can't ]

15) Emma's amazingly good at the piano. She .......practise a lot.

[ must ]

16) The car in front is driving so slowly that I think they ......be looking for something.

[ must ]

17) You've already eaten enough for three people! You .....still be hungry!.

[ can't ]

18) This book
belong to the library. It's ...... certainly not mine.

[ must ]

19) It only takes three hours to fly from London to Sydney? That .......be correct!.

[ can't ]

20) There
be something wrong with the fridge! It's making a very ....... unusual noise.

[ must ]

Modal Verbs Exercises

Here's a list of all the modal verbs exercises 

Modal verbs of ability exercise 

Modal verbs of obligation exercise 

Modal verbs of probability exercise 

Past modals exercise 1 (could have, should have, would have)


Click here to return to the main modals page

Thanks for reading Modal Verbs of Probability