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This paper focuses on interpretation of statements such as Il me fallait de la menthe when understood as a specific way to represent the viewpoint Il me faut de la menthe – the use of one tense instead of another marking the speaker’s attitude. In this approach, all statements are seen as discursive representations; modalisation itself is defined as a relationship between two discursive representations, one of them being a given viewpoint and the other one combining that viewpoint with the expression of the speaker’s attitude towards it. A possible classification of such devices – based on the linguistic features of the statements – is also discussed.