This presentation will give you a pretty good idea of the relative frequency of modals in speech and writing (there's no British/ American distinction though): http://www.slideshare.net/ebenimzo/modal-frequency-and-genre-6510671 Marie France > I have a niece in Germany married (for 15 years or so) to a > German. She tutors children in English and asks the following question: > > "Do you ever use "needn't or mustn't" when you speak? Maybe it's British > because it sure sounds weird to me. Kids have to learn this in 5th grade > and to me it seems like unnecessary vocabulary..." > > Both sound normal to me. But that might be because I lived and taught in > England for several years. > > Jane Saral > > To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface > at: > http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html > and select "Join or leave the list" > > Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/ > To join or leave this LISTSERV list, please visit the list's web interface at: http://listserv.muohio.edu/archives/ateg.html and select "Join or leave the list" Visit ATEG's web site at http://ateg.org/