Cambridge Grammar of English Hardback with cd-rom a comprehensive Guide

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539 Glossary for any unfamiliar terms

Speech acts | 693

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Negative forms of can, must and may in prohibitions

415c

Prohibiting or forbidding something may be realised with can’t, mustn’t or (more

formally) may not:

[speaker A is talking about learning how to use a computer]

A: I’m finding it fascinating, cos, like I say, I knew nothing about computers.

I’ve played on games consoles but that’s it. I knew nothing about it. But of

course, these computers, they tell you everything, you know, they’re totally

idiot-proof. You know, ‘No,

you can’t do that

! Press something else!’ you

know. So I like that. You see it’s teaching me as I’m going along.

B: Mm.

The + sign indicates an interrupted turn which continues at the next + sign

[friends chatting]

A: Everybody says every time you pass the railwaymen on the track+ 

B: They’re not doing anything. 

A: +they’re standing there. 

B: Right. 

A: Because when the train is passing 

they can’t be doing anything

. 

C: They can’t, no. That’s right. Yeah. 

A: Cos the law says they’ve got to stand in the tunnel. 

D: But everyone always says ‘looking at them they never do any work. Look at

them all chatting’. 

[laughs] 

A: 

You mustn’t be within eight foot of the train

. 

B: Ah.

[in the classroom: teacher (A) and young pupils]

A: Now, this is what you can do if you want to. You may do some maths if you

want to. You may do your language work if you want to. If you don’t want to

do either of those things and you are keen on writing a story, you may write

a story. 

B: Miss, I’ve written a story. 

A: Right. [to another pupil] No

you may not draw a picture

. This has got to do

with work.