Modal verbs "can"
Hi everyone!
I can not make a difference between "be able to" and "can"?
for example
- Doon looked doubtfully at this bulky
arrangement. “Will you be able to climb
down, carrying her like that? Will you be
able to reach around her and hold on to the
rungs?”?
Recherche parmi différents professeurs en Anglais…
Réponses · 5
1
They have roughly similar meanings, but "can" is a modal verb and lacks some of the tenses most verbs, including "be" (or by extension "be able to") have. In particular, there's no future tense; you can't say "will you can".
1
When you are "able" to do something, it means that you have the skills to do it or the required tools to perform an action. In the case of "can", It often means that you are allowed to do something due to a permission. Both can be used interchangeably, but the first one is more formal.
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