Modals in the Past - Hypothetical Situations

Question 1

The server failed one second after the unauthorized update, and the audit found no other change. The update _____ the failure.

Options: might have caused, must have caused, can't have caused

Question 2

The memo was created two months after Dr Khan left the organisation, so she _____ it.

Options: must have written, can't have written, might have written

Question 3

The instructions were unclear, and nobody knows why the team used the old figures. They _____ the final note.

Options: must have misunderstood, might have misunderstood, should have misunderstood

Question 4

In its cautious formal report, the committee says the response _____ by a fault in the survey platform, but the cause remains unconfirmed.

Options: must have been affected, may have been affected, can't have been affected

Question 5

The analyst ignored the required final check, and the published total was wrong. She _____ the calculation before release.

Options: must have checked, might have checked, should have checked

Question 6

The director failed to disclose a conflict of interest, although professional standards required disclosure. She _____ it before the vote.

Options: must have disclosed, ought to have disclosed, may have disclosed

Question 7

The team had a tested backup plan but deliberately chose the slower manual method instead. They _____ the delay by using the backup.

Options: must have avoided, can't have avoided, could have avoided

Question 8

The panel rejected the application because it lacked evidence. It _____ it if the missing documents had been attached.

Options: must have approved, should have approved, would have approved

Question 9

Engineers confirm that earlier monitoring made prevention technically possible, though not certain. With those sensors, the leak _____.

Options: must have been prevented, can't have been prevented, could have been prevented

Question 10

Trying to sound restrained rather than openly angry, the chair says, “You _____ us that the figures were provisional.”

Options: must have told, can't have told, might have told

Question 11

When the fire alarm sounded yesterday, every employee _____ the building immediately under the emergency procedure.

Options: must have evacuated, had to evacuate, would have evacuated

Question 12

When the prototype was new, only Ana _____ it without assistance, although no one required her to do so.

Options: could have repaired, had to repair, could repair