grammatica 2t(hv) hoofdstuk 3

• Engels
• Middelbare school
• havo
• Leerjaar 2

can, could + (be) able to

By the end of the lesson you will know when to use can

when to use could 

and

when to use (be) able to

Ability/Possibility

Can you speak French?

Can you help me with my maths homework?

'I haven't got a pen.' - 'You can use mine.'

negative of can is can't or cannot

Most of the time there is no difference. 'Be able to' is more formal. 

We use can + infinitive 

can see

can speak

can play 

can read

can come

With 'able to' use the correct form of 'be'

I am able to see

You are able to speak

He/she/it is able to play

We are able to read

They are able to come

Can you phone me this afternoon? I would like to know how you are.

Are you able to phone me this afternoon? Or are you busy?

For future or with must, might use (be) able to:

I will be able to go to the party.

I might be able to go to the party.

They must be able to speak English. They lived in the USA for 10 years.

could is sometimes the past of can

We can see the lake from our  hotel window. (You are on holiday now.)

We could see the lake from our hotel window. (About a holiday in the past)

could is also for general ability

My grandmother could speak four languages.

She could ride a bike when she was three years old.

For a specific situation in the past used was/were  + able to:

The fire spread through the country, but fortunately everybody was able to escape.

(Not: everybody could escape.)

Peter was an excellent tennis player when he was younger. He could beat anyone.

James and Peter played tennis yesterday. Peter played well, but Mike was able to beat Peter.

We use could + infinitive 

could see

could speak

could play 

could read

could come

With 'able to' use the correct form of 'be'

I was able to see

You were able to speak

He/she/it was able to play

We were able to read

They were able to come

Exercises

Now do exercises 12 & 13 on page 70.

When two things happen together:

She _________(watch) a film on Netflix, when her friend_________(phone).

They_________(arrive), when we __________

(have) dinner.

I _________ (see) her, when she __________ (shop).

Tag questions:

You can’t play the piano, can you?

You can play the piano, can’t you?

She has got three sisters, hasn’t she?

She hasn’t got ten sisters, has she?

But:

You found your watch, didn’t you?

You go on holiday next week, don’t you?

She didn’t see him, did she?

She doesn’t like sushi, does she?

with ‘to be’, ‘to have (got)’, ‘can, could, will, would, might’ (modal verbs) use the same verb in tag
as in main clause: 

You can’t play the piano, can you?

with all other verbs use ‘do/don’t, does/doesn’t, did/didn’t’ in the tag:

You found your watch, didn’t you?