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How To Use The Verb Pouvoir (Can)
How To Use The Verb Pouvoir (Can)
“Pouvoir” is a powerful verb. Once you know it, you can easily ask people to do something, and express what you can do.
Here is how to conjugate and use “pouvoir”.
Contents
1 Conjugation of avoir (to have)
1.1 Present
1.2 Future
1.3 Imperfect
1.4 Subjunctive
1.5 Conditional
1.6 Passé composé
1.7 present participle
2 How to ask a question using the verb pouvoir
3 How to use pouvoir to create sentences
4 French expressions and idioms using the verb pouvoir (can)
4.1 J’en peux plus
4.2 Je n’y peux rien
5 Over to you
Je puisse pourrais ai pu
Tu puisses pourrais as pu
present participle
pouvant
These three sentences all have the same meaning, “can you come please?”. But they are used in different situations.
You use the first and second sentences in formal conversations. The third sentence is a bit more informal. But since it’s used with “vous” (the
formal you), it remains polite. If you are not sure which construction to use, use the first construction, you can not go wrong with it.
If you talk to a friend or someone you know well, you can use “tu” instead of “vous”. This means you need to conjugate “pouvoir” accordingly.
Do you understand how it works now? Create your own sentence and post it in the comment section below this article.
You use “j’en peux plus” to say you can’t stand a situation anymore, or you are exhausted. You can only use this expression in an informal
setting.
In this sentence, what you can’t do anymore isn’t clearly expressed, so it depends on the context. It could be for example that you have been
working all day, and are exhausted, so you say “j’en peux plus” to say you need to take a break.
You use this expression to say you are not responsible for something, or there is nothing you can do.