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# can

«can» in Mova's school dictionary: **able to: I can swim** — its meaning for a pupil, its sense in the lessons and examples, with 5 sentences of Mova's corpora that use it.

### part of speech

modal verb (can, cannot, can't, could); noun (can, cans); verb (can, cans, canned — to put in cans)

### meaning for a pupil

1) Can means is able to: I can swim. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#m1)

2) Can means is allowed to: You can go out now. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#m2)

3) Can is used to ask politely: Can I have some water? [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#m3)

4) A can is a metal container for food or drink: a can of beans. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#m4)

5) Can shows what is possible: It can get cold at night. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#m5)

6) (casual) «Can't be bothered» means don't want to make the effort; «can do» means yes, I'll do it; «I can't even» (slang) means it is too much to deal with. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#m6)

7) (casual, US) «The can» is a rude word for the toilet; «in the can» means finished. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#m7)

8) (formal) The exam voice says «is able to», «is capable of», «may», «is permitted to», «has a capacity of». [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#m8)

### sense in the lessons

what an action is able to do; how many something is able to hold («each box can hold 6 eggs» = the size of one group); in class «Can you help me?», «I cannot do that»; in everyday life a can of soup, a watering can, a recycling can, a garbage can (US); in casual talk «can't be bothered», «can do»; in the exam voice «has a capacity of 30 passengers», «is permitted to», «may be assumed»

### examples

- Giving can make you have more or less: it depends on who gives to whom. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#x1)
- Student: I divide : I cannot do that (because of «each») [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#x2)
- A bus can carry 30 children. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#x3)
- Each box can hold 6 eggs. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#x4)
- Birds can fly, but penguins cannot. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#x5)
- Can I go to the toilet, please? [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#x6)
- Open a can of tomatoes for the soup. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#x7)
- You can play after you finish your homework. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#x8)
- can u grab 4 cans of coke on the way [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#x9)
- can't be bothered walking, it's only 2 stops [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#x10)
- «Can you set the table?» «Can do!» [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#x11)
- Each vehicle has a capacity of 30 passengers; determine the number of vehicles required for 90 pupils. [tree →](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/#x12)

### note

«can hold N» or «has a capacity of N» gives the size of one group, often for multiplying or dividing. No operation clue by itself. After «can» the verb has no -s or «to»: she can swim (not «she can swims», not «can to swim»). «cannot» is one word; short form «can't». Past: could. Trap: «can carry 30» is the most, not the real number on the bus. «can't be bothered» is about feeling lazy, not about being able.

### In the corpora

- [Shops, hospitals, buses and factories need people at all hours, so their workers follow a rota that can change every week.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/2-shifts-nights-and-other-ways-of-working/1/)
- [Some people go to work ill because they can't afford to lose the pay, which spreads germs to everyone else.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/2-shifts-nights-and-other-ways-of-working/12/)
- [A deposit for buying a home is often tens of thousands of pounds, and saving for it can take years.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/6-paying-for-a-home-and-the-bills/19/)
- [Most adults have some, like a mortgage or a car loan, and planned debt can be fine.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/8-borrowing-and-debt/1/)
- [Debt becomes a problem when the repayments are more than the family can afford.](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/school/adult-life/8-borrowing-and-debt/3/)

### Trees and pragmatics

[Every meaning and example of «can» parsed by Mova](https://md.mova.elamur.ai/free/en/corpora/dictionaries/school/C/can/), each sentence with its dependency tree and frames.