can, could and (be) able to Flashcards
1
Q
use can to say that sth is
A
possible or allowed
[I can go to play]
[‘I don’t have a pen.’ ‘You can use mine.’]
2
Q
use can to say that sb has
A
the ability to do sth
[Can you speak spanish?]
3
Q
be able to vs can
A
can is more usual
4
Q
can has only two forms
A
can (present) and could (past)
5
Q
sometimes could is the past of can. we use could especially with
A
see
hear
smell
taste
feel
remember
undestand
6
Q
use could to say that sb
A
had the ability to do sth
[I could play piano]
7
Q
use could to say that sb was
A
allowed to do sth
[We were totally free. We could do what we wanted. (= we were allowed to do)]
8
Q
was/were able to or managed to (not could)
A
to say sb succeeded in doing sth in a specific situation
I was able to beat the chinese in table tennis yesterday
