may1 /meɪ/ ●●● S1 W1 modal verb 1 possibility 可能性PROBABLY if something may happen or may be true, there is a possibility that it will happen or be true but this is not certain 可能,也许 SYN might I may be late, so don’t wait for me. 我可能会迟到,所以别等我。
Some chemicals may cause environmental damage. 有些化学物品可能会给环境造成破坏。
There may not be enough money to pay for the repairs. 可能钱不够支付修理费。
Well, I may have been wrong. 好了,可能是我错了。
They may have called while you were out. 你出去时他们可能给你打过电话。
It may be that Minoan ships were built and repaired here. 米诺斯人的船可能就是在这里建造和修理的。
Your job may well involve some travelling (=it is fairly likely). 你的工作很可能有时需要出差。
2 possible to do STH 有可能做某事CAN if something may be done, completed etc in a particular way, that is how it is possible to do it 可以 SYN can The problem may be solved in a number of different ways. 这个问题可以用几种不同的方式解决。
3 allowed 允许 a) used to say that someone is allowed to do something 可以〔表示允许某人做某事〕 SYN can Thank you. You may go now. 谢谢,现在你可以走了。
There is a set of rules to show what members may and may not do. 有一套规定写明会员可以做什么,不可以做什么。
You may sit down or stand, just as you wish. 你可以坐着也可以站着,随你的便。
No one may own more than 10% of the shares. 任何人都不可以拥有超过10%的股份。
b) may I/we ...? spoken formal used to ask politely for permission to do something 我/我们可以…吗?〔用于礼貌地请求同意〕 May I come in and wait? 我能进来等吗?
May we use your office for a few minutes? 我们可以借你的办公室用几分钟吗?
4 in polite expressions 用于礼貌表达 spoken formal used to say, ask, or suggest something in a polite way 可以〔用于礼貌地说话、提问或提出建议〕 All these things, if I may say so, are entirely irrelevant. 所有的这一切,如果我可以这么说的话,都毫不相关。
Who, may I ask, is Wotherspoon? 我能问一下谁是沃瑟斯庞吗?
May I suggest that you consider the matter further before taking any action. 能否请你多考虑考虑再采取行动?
5 ALTHOUGHalthough 尽管 used to say that even though one thing is true, something else which seems very different is also true 也许,可能〔用于表示虽然一种情况属实,但是另一种似乎很不同的情况也属实〕 I may be slow, but at least I don’t make stupid mistakes. 我可能是很慢,但至少我不犯愚蠢的错误。
Although this may sound like a simple process, great care is needed. 虽然步骤也许听上去简单,但还是要非常小心。
Strange as it may seem, I always felt I belonged here. 尽管这好像很奇怪,但我总是觉得我属于这里。
6 may as well spokenSUGGEST used to suggest that someone should do something, because there is no good reason to do anything else 还是…的好,倒不如 SYN might as well If there’s nothing more to do, we may as well go to bed. 如果没有别的事要做,我们倒不如去睡觉。
You may as well tell us now – we’ll find out sooner or later. 你不如现在就告诉我们——我们迟早会知道的。
may as well• That may as well be a word from a foreign language.• In the end the mission controllers took the very pragmatic view that they may as well continue the mission to the Moon.• If Klepner's gonna get his job he may as well do the spiel.• I may as well explain here why he did this much-criticized and desperate deed of daring...• You may as well get used to it, Oakland.• Since we're just sitting here, we may as well have a drink.• I may as well have not bothered.• You may as well not turn it on, Cooper, until after the game.• You may as well play when you are in a scoring mode.• I may as well stick it out to the end. 7 may somebody/something do something formalHOPE used to express a wish or hope 愿某人/某事做某事〔表达一种希望或祝愿〕 We pray for those who died – may they rest in peace. 我们为逝者祈祷——愿他们安息。
It is a fine tradition and long may it continue! 这是个很好的传统,但愿能保持下去!
may somebody/something do something• Activities, such as walking, standing, sitting or bending, may have to be learned anew.• But I got lost in the doing of it, as navigators may, and we went beyond ourselves.• If you forget to move your turkey from freezer to refrigerator in time, you may thaw the turkey in cold water.• It may pay to be early at Catford where Dromina Duke looks the part in the second race.• It will cost hundreds of thousands of pounds, and may have a knock-on effect.• They also monitor the production run to make sure that it stays on schedule and correct any problems that may arise.• To deny this power is dangerous, for, suppressed, it will find another outlet and may erupt uncontrollably.• Worse yet, it may resort to additional expedient action to disguise or defuse the consequences of previous counterproductive actions. 8 purpose 目的 formal used after ‘so that’ or ‘in order that’ to say that someone does something in order to make something else possible 能够,可以〔用于so that或in order that之后〕 The hero sacrifices his life so that his friend may live. 主人公牺牲了自己的生命,让他的朋友能够活下去。
9 be that as it may formal in spite of what you have just mentioned 尽管如此 Perhaps there isn’t one single system that will work for everyone. Be that as it may, we all need order in our lives. 也许并不存在一个人人都适用的制度。尽管如此,我们的生活还是需要秩序的。
be that as it may• Be that as it may, all of us need order.• Be that as it may, blood-sharing in vampire bats seems to fit the Axelrod model well.• Be that as it may, Driesch concluded that Weismann was wrong, at least in part.• Be that as it may, his depiction was so convincingly done as to restore belief in the existence of centaurs!• Be that as it may, I shall attempt to explain the spiritual aspect in my own terms.• Be that as it may, terrible things clearly happened.• Be that as it may, the truth is plain: this is an exercise of arrogant power which stinks.• Be that as it may, Woolridge had his suspicions.
10 may well used to say that there is a good reason for a reaction, question, or feeling 很有理由〔作出某种反应、提出某个问题或产生某种情绪〕 ‘What’s all the noise?’ ‘You may well ask.’ “什么声音这么吵?”“你问得好。”
5 GRAMMAR 语法:may,mightMay is not used in questions about possible events or situations. Use might instead. 在询问可能发生的事情或情况的疑问句中不用may,而用might
Might there be problems?会不会有问题?
To say that it is possible that something happened, you can use may have or might have . 表示某事可能已经发生,可以用may have或might have
She may have been executed.她可能已经被处决。
If something was possible, but did not in fact happen, you can use might have , but not may have . 假如某事可能发生,而事实上并未发生,可以用might have,但不能用may have
He might have been misquoted.他的话可能被错误地引用了。
Had I been more perceptive, I might have noticed that she was not happy.我要是细心一些,可能就注意到她不开心了。
n GRAMMAR: ComparisonmayYou say
May I? when asking for permission:
May I ask you a question?
You say
you may when giving someone permission:
You may go now.
You say that something
may happen or be true:
I may be late.
He may be in his office.
You say that something
may have happened:
They may have already gone home.
You use
may not in negative sentences:
I may not be here much longer.
He may not have understood what you said.
mightIn everyday English, you can use might in the same way as may to say that something is possible.
You can say that something
might happen or be true:
I might be late.
He might be in his office.
You can say that something
might have happened:
They might have already gone home.
In everyday English, you can also use
might not or
mightn’t:
I might not be here much longer.
He mightn’t have understood.