may
and might
? These words have a similar meaning and are usually used to talk about a possibility or to politely ask for permission. In this lesson, you’ll learn how these words differ from each other and how to use them correctly. I’ll teach you the common usages of may
and might
and show you examples of how they are used in sentences and expressions. I’ll also discuss maybe
and may be
—English learners and even native speakers often get confused with these. After watching, take the quiz to make sure you’ve understood everything!
202 COMMENTS
As always great lesson. Thanks
Yep! I absulutely agree with you; it was a phenomenal video lesson. I admire the way she explains grammar with great easy.
Talking abou t modal verbs, could it be possible for you Gill to develop a lesson on HAVE and must? As far as I can tell, there are also subtle differences in their use.
Thanks for sharing all this with us Gill. Take care.
Thannk you Gill!
Thank you Gill
greeting from Azerbaijan )
Hi Gill, I have a question about the order that may/might it’s place in a sentence. Can it be place after have,like in the example you gave (Do you think you may have dropped them in the street) can it be Doyou think you have MAY dropped them …….
Also I didn’t quite understood the difference between maybe and may be, May you help to understand that please?
I really enjoy watching your videos, it was a while since your last one :D
Hello Fernandabelen — thanks for your question. The word order must be ‘may have’ — it doesn’t sound correct the other way around. As I explained in the video, ‘maybe’ means ‘perhaps’, but ‘may be’ are two separate words meaning ‘could be’. Thanks for your kind words — I’m glad you find the videos enjoyable :-)
Hi Gill, I understood all the lesson without using subtitles. Your English is very clear and you are a nice, good teacher. Thank you so much.
you are wonderfull teacher gill. thanks for videos
but may ı ask => :) may be = could be ?
Very useful lesson, Gill. Thank you so much.
Thank you EngVid for this lesson
Great, thank you Gill.
Great lesson , thank you
It’s my first time 100 score. Thank you very much, Gill.
Thank Ms Gill for your lesson! but i’d like to ask more something. I think the sentence: maybe and may be have same meaning is correct. both of them are possible, they are different about position in sentence, when they are in first sentence it’s maybe, and when position of them in sentence they are may be. please explain more for me
Thanks Nguyen — as I said in the video, ‘maybe’ and ‘may be’ are different. Please see my reply to Fernandabelen above. Best wishes :-)
Perfecttt..Thankyou Gill
Hi Gill mam. Thank you for this wonderful lesson.
Clearly understood.
Thank you very much, Gill.
Great!!!
Thanks a lot!!!
10/10 How simply! Thank you very much!
Oh, really? You must be real good at grammar! See you around Irina.
I got 9/10, I am incorret in number 10. Thanks a lot ! Miss Gill, Your lesson very useful. that lesson was bitchin”!
Thanks
100% I got :) Thank you
10 out of 10 :-) Thanks a lot!
I might have known about the differences between may and might if could know about this video early.
Thanks, grandma.
Thank you Gill!
thank u madam Gill, your lesson was great!
Thanks Gill!!Great lesson!!
Very good lesson! Thank you very much Gill
You are so cute! Thank you Gill.
Thank you Gill! new learning for me.
I got 10, I can´t believe it!
Hi Gill! Thanks for this lesson! I didn’t sure about the use of the word “might”, you do clarify me the difference.
It’s a fruitfully lesson as usual, appreciate what you are doing to keep us more strong in understanding English language day after day .
My best regards Gill.
9 out of 10 hahahaha
Thank you so much to help with lessons!!!
This lesson was so helpful.
Thank you Dear Gill!
This lesson has been very helpful because we have reviewed two important modal verbs like “may” and “might”, and overall the difference between two expressions with the same sound but not equal in meaning, very useful this last explanation of “maybe” or “perhaps”, not verb, and “may be” that it’s used as a verb. Thanks a lot, teacher Gill, we are lucky people because your method of learning English is very pedagogic and amusing, we can enjoy listening to all the explanations.
Thank you for this helpful lesson Gill
Thank you very much the lesson was very helpful
Thank you so much! (^▽^) by the way,you are so cute~
It’s very clear my understanding …
9 of 10 Thank you !!!
It’s great!
thank you Gill
Thank you Gill,wish you a good health and a favorable job!
Thank you Gill
Useful lesson now the difference is more clear to me thanks a lot.
thanks a lot for the lesson! very helpful
Thank you Mam Gill. Your knowledge is useful for me.
Thak you, Gill for your clear explanation. I am brazilian and I’ve a biggest difficult for studing english. Sorry, if you find some mistake!
Regards… Xoxo
Great Video. You are so charming. I learn a lot. Thank you very much, Gill!
. I’m not quite understand abou maybe 1 word ang May be two word. Can u describe it??
Thank you
Thanks Pypiiwutear — please see my reply to Fernandabelen above. Best wishes :-)
everything is clear. her pronunciation is very easy understanding. thank u, I sure it will helps me in future
Very helpful. Thank you
thanks
Thank you very much, Gill. As usual, it was a pleasure to listen to your lesson and to learn smth new.
thank you for you to make me understand that :)
It was great.
Thank you Gill,
I might become as rich as Bill Gates. Did I say might? Of course it’s not true lol. That’s absolutely impossible.
Thank you so much!!
I REALLY LOVE ALL THESE TEACHERS♥ THANKS AND GREETINGS FROM VENEZUELA.
perfect!!
Thanks Gill, this lesson was great and easy..:)
Thanks, Gill! Great!!!
Hello Gill .
Thank you for this lesson .
May I ask you something about the usage of “ask” .
” I ask you to make a suggestion ” or ” I ask you for making a suggestion ” ; may I use both sentences to say the same meaning ?
Thanks for your reply
See you
Hi tsamp — your first example is correct, but your second example doesn’t sound right in English. All the best :-)
I love this class^^ because very slow. I can listen to english well in this class.
Thank you.
Great Class Gill! Good explanations! It´s easier to learn English with you. Wow…I got 10 correct out of 10! Thank you so much! God bless you! Greetings from Fortaleza (Brazil).
Thank you!
Thanx so much Gill got a perfect score., its awesome/.
Many thanks for your superlative lesson, Gill! Sergio (Italy)
Thank you very much, Gill!
Hi Gill!
Thanks for this lesson! It’s always necessary to know these slight differences between similar words so that we can use them in the right way and make ourselves more clear.
May we have more videos like this one?
Best wishes from Rio de Janeiro!
PS: I have heard that the Past Participle of the verb “to forget” may be “forgot” or “forgotten”. Which one is used in the UK? Or both might be used indistinctly?
Hi Eduardo — thank you for your kind words! Some verbs have different forms in the past tense, and this applies to the verb ‘to forget’. So for the simple past tense we say ‘I forgot’, but in the present perfect (which requires the use of the past participle) we say ‘I have forgotten’. Some verbs have the same form for the simple past and the past participle, but other verbs have different forms. I’m sorry it’s so complicated! But here is a link that might be helpful: https://www.thoughtco.com/difference-between-a-weak-verb-and-a-strong-verb-1691036
All the best :-)
Thank you for replying Gill! It was very kind of yours. The website you suggested me is quite interesting as well. :)
Got 100. Gill , “may” we used just specifically for elders or someone whom we respect or generally for anyone in a polite way? Another thing gill. I didn’t get the clearer concept between maybe and may be . I found both more or less the same. Can you make it More easier for me?
Thanks Anne — ‘may’ is used for anyone you want to be polite to. Regarding your other question, please see my reply to Fernandabelen above. Best wishes :-)
I loved your video, Gill! Thank you very much for your helpful explanation!
may i thank you for the time you put into this clip.I might send this clip to my friend maybe I will show my brother to.I may be tied but I did manage to get 10 out of 10 on the quiz..THANK YOU
Got 100, thank you Gill! I will seeing your videos.
thanks mam for a great lesson
Its a nice class
Excellent! This is the first time that someone has managed to explain to me the subtle difference between the two verbs. Thank you very much.
Hi Gill, thanks a lot for this great lesson!
I’ve got a doubt.. Could I say “maybe it will be raining tomorrow morning”?
Thanks for your help.
Hi Gill,
Firstly I would like to thanks for the wonderful lesson.
May I have a question for the quiz.
I wonder about the question number 7.
” He might be coming to the party. ”
Is it mean the speaker does not sure that he is going to the party now (on the way). However, it is possible that he is on his way.
May I say that it is possible that he does not want to go to the party? or I’m just thinking over.
great teacher
thank you!
thank you so much teacher.
T.Y
Gill srry i have enought time SRRY!!
I continue this tomorrow
OK bye GILL.
Thank you so much mrs. Gill
Thank you Gill for explaining the difference between may and might. And you are right, maybe and may be are easy to get me confused. I have been always liked your teaching style. Looking forward to seeing more videos from you.
All the best,
Joanne
Thanks Ms.Gill. I was really doubtful about the use of may or might in a sentence. Sometimes I say may in a sentence in place of might. But after taking lesson from you, I really have run out this difficulty. Thanks again Ma’am.
Also after taking your lecture I got 100% result. That means your way of teaching is helpful for everyone in getting rid of their respective difficulties.
Looking forward to see more from your side Ma’am. All the very best for that. !
Thanks Gill. I was a great class. you are very good
i got all right thanks :)
Thank you , Gill.
Thanks, Gill.Good lesson. I got 100
Thanks Gill.may I meet you face to face?
a million thanks from here in the Philippines! :)
Thank you so much Gill for this lesson.
Thanks a lot Gill
Hi Gill, I really love your lessons :).
I have a question for you:is it correct use”may” in this context?
“before your arrival we’ll help you giving you all the information you may need to reach it.”
The idea is that you “may” need my help because if you usually use navigators probably you don’t need my help to get to my house, otherwise you will surely need my assistance. Is it correct?
Thank you :)
I got 10!!! Yep!!!
THe EngVid is life! THe better Web Learning English that i saw. Thanks teachers without exceptions.
Very useful I got 10 out of 10. Thank you
Thank you, Gill~
Before starting the quiz I was thinking that, may I scored 100 marks? But after giving the test I came to know that I can score 100 marks and I do this and scored 100 out of 100.
You got 8 correct out of 10
Thanks again,Gill. I got 10/10. Great lesson,as usual.
It a nice lesson.. Thanks, Gill. You are a good teacher.
Great THank you so much
Thank you, I scored 9/10
This lection was so clear and helpful. Thank you very much teacher.
Thank you very much Gill
Girl thank I like you
Thank you
I got hundred but I really get confused with these
Never Give Up!
Gill, Thanks yo uso much !
Gill, thank you so much for your easy manner
Thank you Gill.
Thank you Gill.i need sentences using maybe and may be..please let me know if you have time..
Thank you! It’s great!
Very helpful! Thank you!!!
Thnak you so much for this useful grammar video. It’s so easy for me now to use these words correctly and without a doubt.
Thank you Gill you’re the best English teacher ever. I hope one day I’ll be a good teacher like you
wowow awesome lesson Miss Gill . Hugs
Great Teacher. It was really helpful.
Many thanks for your efforts.
You are an angel.
If I told my friends eight years ago i will become a quick learner and good student in English language they might they said your sight set too high but that what I did that what Gill did Gill were the change.You answered people hopes and because of you we are better stronger than we started learning English.
Thank you very much Gill. I love you teacher??❤?
Special thanks to Engvid teachers you are the best ever, we get benefit from your courses.
100 score thanks
you’re awesome thanks Grill
Thanks Gill.
Hi Gill !
Thank you for your videos which are so helpful.
I would like to ask you about an important subject related with teaching English. Is there any forum to have a discussion publically with other members (teachers ands students) ? Much Love :)
With the help of your explanation, I have got 80% on the quiz.
Thank you well
I got 10 correct out of 10 :D
Hello Gill! Thank you so much for the lesson.
Many hugs and all the best!
Thanks a lot madam.
Hello Gill! Thank you so much for a lesson. I have a question. Why I can’t say: “It can be cold late”? And: “It can be” instead “It might be”. What is the difference? Thank you!
Great English lesson!!!
Thx Gill, superb lesson I got 10/10
Thank you for the wonderful video! But I didn’t catch the difference between may be and maybe.
thanks
what a lovely class, i enjoyed every moment of it. thank you
Thank you for this explanatory lesson :)
Thank you Gill. You are amazing.
thanks gill for such a wonderful session. you are reaching style is magnificent. i have gone through all the comments and here most of them are confused with maybe and may be. so it is my humble request to you to please give us some piece of advice with the above mentioned point. thank you so much gill . hope to see you soon!!
Thank you Gill. This lesson was very useful.
Thanks teacher.
thank you very much for your lessons, Jill.
mmmmm i get 100 in quiz . thank you Gill
Thank you Gill. 10:10 again because your teaching is clear.
Wow! First time i got 100. Thank u for ur class. I like ur classes. I am a beginer so i need more help. Thank you
But i am still confusing about maybe and may be. I am keralite in my language malayalam both meaing shows same.
Thank you!
Great lesson, 100%
Thank you for this wonderful lesson.Be blessed.
Thank you Gill..you are a wonderfull teacher..love you ???
Clarifying one! So may shows possibility whilst might just a probability! :)
Hi Gill! Thank for another fantastic lesson!Grazie!<3.
Thank you
It may be I got it!
Thanks. It’s great! I got 10 out of 10. But I worry that I might mess up when it comes to actual conversation.
The first time I got a 100% second time I got 90% not bad. Thank you.
Thank you Gill
I was a excellent lesson
Finally, I found the lesson which contains “maybe and perhaps”,because i usually confuse both of them.Now i get it better.
thank you.
Thank you! It was very heplful
a great teacher.thanks so much
Great video
Hi Gill!
Great lesson, thank you!
Is there any difference in use of may/might when probability in the past (event that did or didn’t happen) is mentioned?
For example, I dropped my phone —
1) I might have broken its display. (I know I didn’t)
2) I may have broken something inside it. (I don’t know yet)
Are might/may interchangeable here?
Thank you , it seems i confused to use maybe and may be
Thank you Gill!
I never learned before with someone who explains in a easy and fun way. And absoluty love the quiz at the end of the videos. Thank you, Gill.
I got 80
I got 10/10. I hadn’t known of these slight differences before I watched the video. Now, finally I know where the difference is. By the way this distinction is barely visible. That’s why vast majority of people use it interchangeably.
All the best. Peace.
is great lesson and very useful thanks
Hi Gill, was a great class! I just have a question about the last point in the quiz, Isn’t possible writhe “we maybe going to…” ?
Thanks I love your lessons.
A very thankful for your outstanding lesson mam!it’s so useful,very clear, and more informative.I more attentive to each lesson of engvid.com.I felt delighted that my English is better than earlier.you are amazing,elegant,and great.I like your lesson as ever.
Gill, thanks for your useful lesson; it’s such an informative lecture. Your style of teaching is top-notch!
Thank You very much,Gill,for Your great lesson.It is very useful.I have got 100%
You are the best teacher.
I really enjoyed this video thank you so much ms.gill.It made me learn so much
Thank you Ms. Gill.
Very clear! Thanks, Ms Gill!
Full marks. Loved the lesson and I’m sure this lessons of Gill will help me. Thank you, teacher!
Thank you teacher Gill!
great lesson.Thank you Ms. Gill
yeah, 10 out ot 10 ?
Greetings from India ma’am!
You are teaching really well! I am no Crystal clear with might and may. But may you pls elaborate more in differentiating between maybe and may be? I am not clear with that part.
great job!
Hello, Gill. Thank you very much for this useful lesson. Thanks to this lesson I understood the difference between two almost identical words, a difference I didn’t understand before. You are the best English teacher in the world!
We have just posted a new video from Gill about two more commonly confused words, THEN and THAN!
These are though – maybe or may be!
My score is 80
And this one is funny –
I have an ear infection.
Ahhha!!!
First of all, I would like to say thank so much for video. However, I am confused about might have past participle. What kind of conditions shall I use might have + V3.
Very clear and straightforward explanation. Thanks!
I have learned half a month with you~I like you so much. Wish to learn more from you,Gill~
Thank you so much Gill. I got 10 correct out of 10.
Thank you for your lesson!
Oh,your accent…an extra lesson.Magnificent…
Great lesson,very well explained.Thank you,dear Gill.
Thanks for your lessons, Gill.
difference between “may be” or “maybe”
Thank you very much. I haven’t known the difference until I have come across this beneficial video.
Thank you very much.
yay i got 9 out of 10, i had learn alot…
Thank you Gill, RIP