Can / Be able to

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Get This!

Listen and read.

Discuss!

Think about the last time you had to do something challenging alone.
  • What did you have to do?
  • Did you manage to do it?
  • How did you feel in the end?
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Can / Be able to

Can / Be able to

Can expresses a person’s ability[explanation: ability [əˈbɪləti] – võimekus, oskus] to do something. To talk about ability in the past, we use could.

Be able to is more formal than can and has all the tense forms.

Present Simple

Statements

I can speak English.
He can speak German.​

can + base form of the main verb

I am able to speak English.
He is able to speak German.​

am/is/are + able to + base form of the main verb

Negative sentences

I can’t speak Spanish.
He can’t speak Japanese.​

cannot + base form of the main verb

I am not able to speak Spanish.
He isn’t able to speak Japanese.​

am/is/are + not + able to + base form of the main verb

Questions

Can you speak Chinese?

(question word) + can + subject + base form of the main verb

Are you able to speak Chinese?

(question word) + am/is/are + subject + able to + base form of the main verb

Past Simple

Statements

I could speak English.
We could sing in Swedish.​

could + base form of the main verb

I was able to speak English.
We were able to sing in Swedish.​

was/were + able to + base form of the main verb

Negative sentences

I could not speak Spanish.
We couldn’t sing in Danish.​

could not + base form of the main verb

I wasn’t able to speak Spanish.
We weren’t able to sing in Danish.​

was/were + not + able to + base form of the main verb

Questions

Could you speak Chinese when you moved to China?

(question word) + could + subject + base form of the main verb

Were you able to speak Chinese when you moved to China?

(question word) + was/were + subject + able to + base form of the main verb

Be able to in other tenses:

She has been able to speak Swedish since she was five years old.

Jackson hadn’t been able to speak Japanese well enough.

Will Jackson be able to speak it fluently next year?

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Let’s Practise!

  • can
  • can’t
  • could
  • able to
  • is able
  • couldn’t
  1. Wow, look at her! She  ride a unicycle!
  2. I  solve this maths problem – it’s too difficult for me.
  3. When we were younger, we  travel much, but now we do it at least a few times a year.
  4. He  to play board games really well. In fact, he is the best in his family!
  5. She  already bake biscuits when she was five.
  6. They aren’t  attend the party tonight, I’m afraid.
  7. How many languages  you speak fluently?
  8. I really need some help – I  lift this box by myself.

Example: He can swim very well. → He is able to swim very well.

  1. I  play basketball very well, but I’m really good at tennis.
  2. My cousins think they  paint better than me.
  3. We  hear her very well – the music was too loud.
  4. How many languages  speak?
  5. What kinds of dishes  cook the best?
  1. I  swim when I was three years old.
  2. My dad  play video games better than me.
  3. I  draw very well with my eyes closed.
  4. I  count to 100 when I was five.
  5. My mum  run faster than me.
  6. I  learn a poem by heart in 20 minutes.
  7. I  name five irregular verbs in English.
  8. I  say when my best friend’s birthday is.

Pairwork 1

Talk to your partner. Compare and contrast your answers in Exercise 3 by asking Yes/No questions.

Could you swim when you were three years old?

No, I couldn’t.

  • horse
  • ?
  • Can
  • you
  • ride
  • a
  • ?
  • do
  • cartwheel
  • Can
  • you
  • a
  • you
  • Are
  • your
  • able
  • to
  • wiggle
  • ears?
  • watch
  • in
  • English?
  • films
  • Are
  • to
  • able
  • you
  • Could
  • you
  • were
  • five
  • when
  • you
  • ?
  • read
  • Were
  • an
  • you
  • instrument
  • child?
  • as
  • a
  • able
  • to
  • play

Pairwork 2

In turns, ask and answer the questions from Exercise 4. Give some details in your answers.

Can you do a backflip?

No, I can’t, but my brother can! He’s been trying to teach me to do it too.

Pairwork 3

A

Tell your partner in English what you and your friend can or cannot do. Use can and can’t. Then your partner says the same sentence using be able to. Switch roles.

I
He/She can ...
We​​

I am able to ...
He/She is able to ...
We​​ are able to ...

I
He/She can’t ...
We​​

I’m not able to ...
He/She isn’t able to ...
We​​ aren’t able to ...

B

Read a sentence to your partner. Then your partner says it back to you using be able to. Switch roles.
  1. When I was two years old, I could draw a tree.
  2. When my sister was nine years old, she could run really fast.
  3. When we were four years old, we couldn’t ride a bike.
  4. When my cousins were six years old, they couldn’t read very well.
  5. When my mum was younger, she could do a backflip[explanation: backflip [ˈbækflɪp] – tagurpidisalto].
  6. When my parents were at school, they couldn’t play an instrument.
Add your own examples.

Pairwork 4

Discuss the following questions with your partner.
  1. What can you do really well?
  2. What can’t you do at all?
  3. What is something you are able to do now but weren’t able to in the past?
  4. When was the last time you were able to stay up as late as you wanted?
  5. Would you be able to spend a week without your mobile phone? Why/Why not?
  6. If you could learn any new skill, what would it be? Why?
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How Am I Doing?

I can explain when to use can and be able to.

​I am able to use can and be able to in the correct forms in my speech and writing.

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