Beginner · Grammar Reference
Unit 11 — We can do it!
can · adverbs
11.1 can
Positive
| Subject | | Verb |
|---|
| I / You / He/She/It / We / They | can | swim. drive. cook. run fast. |
Negative
| Subject | | Verb |
|---|
| I / You / He/She/It / We / They | can't | draw. speak German. play golf. |
Questions with question words
| Q. word | Auxiliary | Subject | Verb |
|---|
| What | | | you do? |
| When | can | I | go home? |
| How many languages | | he | speak? |
Yes / No questions and short answers
| Question | Yes | No |
|---|
| Can you swim? | Yes, I can. | |
| Can he play tennis? | | No, he can't. |
📌 Note
We don't use
do/does/don't/doesn't with
can.
I can't swim. NOT
I don't can swim.Can you cook? NOT
Do you can cook?She can't speak Spanish. NOT
She doesn't can…11.2 Adverbs
1 Adverbs give more information about verbs.
go fast draw well sing beautifully2 Notice the word order.
You speak English well. NOT You speak well English.He drives his car fast. NOT He drives fast his car.3 Regular adverbs end in -ly.
| Adjective | | Adverb |
|---|
| fluent | → | fluently |
| beautiful | → | beautifully |
| slow | → | slowly |
| careful | → | carefully |
| usual | → | usually |
4 Some adverbs are irregular.
| Adjective | | Adverb |
|---|
| good | → | well |
| fast | → | fast |
| late | → | late |
| early | → | early |
| hard | → | hard |