Modals of Ability/Permission: Can, Could – English Grammar Exercises for A2
Choose the best answer (A, B, C, or D) to complete each sentence. The context of this test is a casual party where you are meeting new friends and talking about the special skills and hidden talents you all have.
1 I ______ play the guitar and sing at the same time. It’s my favorite hobby!
(a) can to
(b) am can
(c) can
(d) could
2 I am a terrible cook. I ______ even boil an egg properly!
(a) can’t
(b) don’t can
(c) couldn’t
(d) am not can
3 My brother is amazing. He ______ speak five different languages fluently.
(a) cans
(b) can
(c) may
(d) does can
4 Wow, that magic trick was incredible! ______ you teach me how to do it?
(a) Must
(b) Do you can
(c) Are you can
(d) Can
5 I am a very fast artist. Look, I can ______ a portrait of you in just five minutes!
(a) to draw
(b) drawing
(c) drew
(d) draw
6 I ______ hold my breath underwater for two minutes now, but I couldn’t do that last year.
(a) could
(b) can
(c) am can
(d) can to
7 I know you are a great dancer, but ______ your little sister dance well too?
(a) does can
(b) cans
(c) can
(d) should
8 Give me that puzzle! I ______ solve a Rubik’s cube in under thirty seconds. Watch me!
(a) can easily
(b) easily can
(c) could easily
(d) can to easily
9 I started playing chess very early. Actually, I ______ beat my dad when I was only six years old!
(a) can
(b) did can
(c) could
(d) could to
10 I can juggle three apples now, but I ______ do it a week ago. I practiced a lot!
(a) didn’t can
(b) couldn’t
(c) can’t
(d) wasn’t can
11 I can read people’s minds, or at least I ______ guess what they are thinking most of the time.
(a) am able
(b) to can
(c) could
(d) can
12 My parents are usually strict, but they say I ______ join the school’s talent show this weekend!
(a) must
(b) can
(c) could to
(d) am can
13 I have absolutely no sense of rhythm. I ______ dance to save my life!
(a) may not
(b) not can
(c) don’t can
(d) cannot
14 You say you are a human calculator. ______ you multiply 45 by 82 in your head right now?
(a) Can
(b) Could you to
(c) May
(d) Do you can
15 That card trick was mind-blowing! ______ you please show it to us one more time?
(a) Must
(b) Do you can
(c) Could
(d) Are you could
16 When I was a teenager, I ______ do backflips, but my knees are too weak for that now.
(a) can
(b) could to
(c) was can
(d) could
17 I am practicing the piano every day so that next year I ______ play Beethoven’s songs perfectly.
(a) will can
(b) could to
(c) can
(d) could
18 I can easily run five kilometers today, but I ______ even run one mile before I started training.
(a) shouldn’t
(b) didn’t could
(c) couldn’t
(d) haven’t could
19 I ______ mimic famous actors’ voices, but I am not very good at singing.
(a) might
(b) can
(c) am can
(d) can to
20 Back in college, I ______ stay up all night playing video games, but now I get tired by 10 PM.
(a) can
(b) could
(c) did can
(d) could to
ANSWER KEY & EXPLANATIONS
1 (c) “can”
Why it is correct: “Can” expresses a present ability.
Error Analysis: (a) “can to” is a Common Mistake; modals are never followed by “to”. (b) “am can” is a Structural Error; we do not use the “to be” verb with modals. (d) “could” is a Strong Distractor; it means past ability, which doesn’t fit the present hobby context.
2 (a) “can’t” (or cannot)
Why it is correct: It expresses an inability in the present.
Error Analysis: (b) “don’t can” is a Common Mistake; learners often try to use “do/does” to make modals negative. (c) “couldn’t” is a Meaning Trap; it is for past inability, but the sentence says “I am”. (d) “am not can” is a Structural Error.
3 (b) “can”
Why it is correct: “Can” remains the same for all subjects, even “he/she/it”.
Error Analysis: (a) “cans” is the most Common Mistake; learners wrongly add an ‘s’ for the 3rd person singular. (c) “may” is a Meaning Trap; “may” expresses permission or possibility, not a physical/learned skill like speaking languages. (d) “does can” is a Structural Error.
4 (d) “Can”
Why it is correct: To form a question, we simply invert the subject and the modal (“Can you…”).
Error Analysis: (b) “Do you can” is a Common Mistake. (c) “Are you can” is a Structural Error. (a) “Must” is a Meaning Trap; it asks about obligation, not requesting an ability demonstration.
5 (d) “draw”
Why it is correct: After any modal verb (can/could), we must use the bare infinitive (the base verb without “to”).
Error Analysis: (b) “drawing” is a Common Mistake. (a) “to draw” is a Structural Error. (c) “drew” is a Meaning Trap (past tense form used incorrectly after a modal).
6 (b) “can”
Why it is correct: The keyword “now” indicates present ability.
Error Analysis: (d) “can to” is a Common Mistake. (c) “am can” is a Structural Error. (a) “could” is a Strong Distractor; the second half of the sentence uses “couldn’t” for the past, so the first half must contrast it with present “can”.
7 (c) “can”
Why it is correct: The question is about the sister’s present ability. The structure is “Can + subject + base verb”.
Error Analysis: (a) “does can” is a Common Mistake. (b) “cans” is a Structural Error. (d) “should” is a Meaning Trap; it asks for advice (“should she dance?”), not if she has the skill to do so.
8 (a) “can easily”
Why it is correct: Adverbs of manner (like easily) generally go directly after the modal verb and before the main verb.
Error Analysis: (b) “easily can” is a Common Mistake in word order. (d) “can to easily” is a Structural Error. (c) “could easily” is a Meaning Trap; “Watch me!” indicates this is happening right now, so we need present tense.
9 (c) “could”
Why it is correct: “Could” is the past tense of “can”. It expresses a skill the speaker had in the past (“when I was only six”).
Error Analysis: (d) “could to” is a Common Mistake. (b) “did can” is a Structural Error. (a) “can” is a Strong Distractor; using “can” creates a tense mismatch with “started” and “was”.
10 (b) “couldn’t”
Why it is correct: It expresses an inability at a specific time in the past (“a week ago”).
Error Analysis: (a) “didn’t can” is a Common Mistake. (d) “wasn’t can” is a Structural Error. (c) “can’t” is a Meaning Trap; it does not fit the past time marker.
11 (d) “can”
Why it is correct: The speaker is describing a current ability to guess thoughts.
Error Analysis: (b) “to can” is a Common Mistake. (a) “am able” is a Structural Error (it is missing the word “to”). (c) “could” is a Meaning Trap; we need present tense to match “I can read”.
12 (b) “can”
Why it is correct: “Can” is also used to express permission in the present (being allowed to do something).
Error Analysis: (c) “could to” is a Common Mistake. (d) “am can” is a Structural Error. (a) “must” is a Strong Distractor; “must” means obligation (they force me to join), whereas “can” means permission (they allow me to join).
13 (d) “cannot”
Why it is correct: “Cannot” is the correct and formal spelling of “can’t”. It is always written as one word.
Error Analysis: (c) “don’t can” is a Common Mistake. (b) “not can” is a Structural Error. (a) “may not” is a Meaning Trap; “may not” means you are not allowed to dance, but the context implies lacking the skill.
14 (a) “Can”
Why it is correct: Asking someone to demonstrate their current skill.
Error Analysis: (b) “Could you to” is a Common Mistake. (d) “Do you can” is a Structural Error. (c) “May” is a Strong Distractor; “May you” is used for asking permission or wishing someone well, not for asking about mathematical ability.
15 (c) “Could”
Why it is correct: “Could” is often used to make polite requests in the present. It is more polite and softer than “Can”.
Error Analysis: (b) “Do you can” is a Common Mistake. (d) “Are you could” is a Structural Error. (a) “Must” is a Meaning Trap; it sounds demanding and aggressive, not polite.
16 (d) “could”
Why it is correct: Refers to a physical ability that existed in the past (“When I was a teenager”).
Error Analysis: (b) “could to” is a Common Mistake. (c) “was can” is a Structural Error. (a) “can” is a Strong Distractor; it contradicts the past context.
17 (c) “can”
Why it is correct: We use “can” (or “will be able to”) to talk about future ability resulting from current practice.
Error Analysis: (a) “will can” is the most Common Mistake; you can NEVER put two modal verbs together. (b) “could to” is a Structural Error. (d) “could” is a Meaning Trap; “could” is used for the past or for hypothetical situations, not for a solid future goal.
18 (c) “couldn’t”
Why it is correct: Contrasts a present ability (“can easily run”) with a past inability (“before I started”).
Error Analysis: (d) “haven’t could” is a Common Mistake; modals don’t use Present Perfect forms. (b) “didn’t could” is a Structural Error. (a) “shouldn’t” is a Meaning Trap; it gives past advice (“you shouldn’t have done that”), not past ability.
19 (b) “can”
Why it is correct: Expresses a current, ongoing talent.
Error Analysis: (d) “can to” is a Common Mistake. (c) “am can” is a Structural Error. (a) “might” is a Meaning Trap; “might” means there is a small possibility, which ruins the confident tone of showing off a talent.
20 (b) “could”
Why it is correct: It highlights a past physical ability (staying up all night) that has been lost over time.
Error Analysis: (d) “could to” is a Common Mistake. (c) “did can” is a Structural Error. (a) “can” is a Strong Distractor; it ignores the “Back in college” time marker.
GRAMMAR POINTS TO REMEMBER
- The Golden Rule of Modals: Modals like Can and Could do not follow the rules of normal verbs.
- NEVER add an ‘s’ for he/she/it (He can, NOT He cans).
- NEVER use “to” after them (I can sing, NOT I can to sing).
- NEVER use auxiliary verbs like do/does/did to make questions or negatives (Can you?, NOT Do you can?).
- Present vs. Past Ability: * Use Can / Can’t to talk about your skills, talents, and abilities right now. (I can speak English.)
- Use Could / Couldn’t to talk about skills you possessed in the past but might not have now. (I could run fast when I was young.)
- Double Modals are Illegal: You cannot combine two modal verbs. If you want to talk about the future, you cannot say “will can”. You must use the present form “can” in certain structures (e.g., so that I can), or use the phrase “will be able to”.
- Polite Requests: Even though “Could” is the past tense of “can”, we frequently use it in the present to make a polite request. (Could you show me that trick again? is softer and more polite than Can you show me?).