We use ‘can’ when we talk about different things people are able to do.
- He can speak Mandarin.
- She can run really fast.
- He can play guitar pretty well.
To use ‘can’ in a sentence we need three parts.
- A subject.
- She can sing.
- The verb ‘can’ (which is always spelt the same).
- She can sing.
- And a second very (in base form).
- She can sing.
When we want to say that we are not able to do something we use ‘cannot’ or ‘can’t. ‘Cannot’ is used in formal, serious situations (like when talking to your teacher or writing something for school) while ‘can’t’ is used in informal, relaxed situations (like when talking to friends or sending an email).
- He cannot come to school today.
- I can’t help you with that.
- Tim can’t sing very well.