Editor's Corner

Good morning to you all.

When talking or writing about events that are not actually happening now—but they will, could, or might happen—we English speakers have a few options to choose from, and these choices can be a bit confusing.

Today, at the request of my friend, Ike, I’m going to share three often confusing word pairs and explain how to make the best choice for your situation. At least, that’s my intention. Let’s see how it goes.

Here are the word pairs that Ike and I would like to share:

• can vs. could
• will vs. would
• might vs. may

First let’s look and can vs. could.

• Can is used to refer to something that has a strong possibility of occurring:

Yes, I can run five miles.

• Could is used to refer to something that has a weaker possibility:

I guess I could run five miles.

• When indicating ability or possibility, can is used for present tense and could is used for past tense:

When I was running every day, I could run 10 miles, but now I can only run five.

Next we’ll examine will vs. would.

• Will is used to express expectations, determinations, and capabilities.

I will beat my brother at the karaoke contest Saturday night.

• Would is used to express hypothetical statements.

If we were to enter a karaoke contest, I would beat my brother.

• Will is also used to form the future tense:

We will be having a karaoke contest at the next family get-together.

• Would is the past tense of will:

Last week, my brother and I would have had a karaoke contest, but I had laryngitis.

And finally, let’s explore might vs. may.

• May is used to indicate something that is likely to happen.

I may bring a date to Dori’s party.

• Might is used to describe something that is unlikely to happen or situations that did not occur but could have.

If I could gather enough nerve, I might ask Shawna to Dori’s party.

If I had seen Shawna today, I might have asked her to Dori’s party.

I hope that sheds some light

On how you may use might

And how you can use could

And how you will use would

Have a lovely day.

Donna Bradley Burcher |Technical Editor, Advisory | jack henry

Pronouns she/her/hers

Remote – CA

About Editor’s Corner

Editor’s Corner keeps your communication skills sharp by providing information on grammar, punctuation, JHA style, and all things English. As editors, we spend our days reading, researching, and revising other people’s writing. We love to spend a few extra minutes to share what we learn with you and keep it fun while we’re doing it.

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