Quote:
Originally Posted by Tdol  Where would you rank 'may well win'? |
Hi Tdol.
'may well' and 'might' well' both sit at the top of their respective ranges, so a 'might well' can be virtually identical to a tentative [intonationally] 'may. In other words, there is a blurring at the "break points".
The numbers that I've used only represent a rough idea of the placement of these modals. It's hard to pin down exact cut off points and in speech and especially in writiing these modals usually only show a range, not a specificity.
So too, 'very likely + verb' sits at the high range of the 'should/probably/likely' grouping.