Chinese Grammar: Lesson: Being able to: learning when to use 会 or 能

There are different ways to express "can" in Chinese, depending on what type of ability you’re talking about. Two verbs, in particular, are used to express "being able" are 会 and 能. Let's see what the difference between 会 and 能 is!

2 key ways to express "can" in Mandarin Chinese

The two key verbs to express "being able" are 会 and 能. These auxiliary verbs both work the same way and are placed before the verb.

Structure

S + 会 or 能 + verb + O.

Knowing how to vs. being able to

Choosing whether to use 会 or 能 depends on what ability you want to express.

Expressing learned skills with 会

会 is used to express a skill that has been learned or studied. In this case, it means "to know how to".

Examples

我会说 汉语。
I can speak Chinese. = I know how to speak Chinese.

我会开车。
I can drive. = Ｉ know how to drive.

Expressing natural ability with 能

能 is used to express natural ability, i.e. when talking about activities that are not consciously learned or studied. It means "being able to".

Examples

他能帮助 你。
He can help you. = He is able to help you.

我 今天能去。
I can go today. = I am able to go today.

Expressing possibility

In addition to being used to express natural ability, 能 is also used to communicate possibility and is often used to ask for permission politely. In its negative form, 不能 means it's not possible (not allowed or not capable of).

会 can also be used to express possibility. 会 is used in cases where the possibility or the likelihood of it happening is higher. That's why we tend to regard 会 as a near future, and much closer in meaning to "be going to"or "will" in English.

These two examples will help you understand the nuance between the two:

我能和 你 一起 去。
I can go with you.
(You are expressing your availability to go but you have to wait for the permission to go. )

我会和 你 一起 去。
I will go with you.
(You are pretty sure that you will be going with that person)

Let's look at a few more examples.

Examples

我能坐 在 这儿 吗？
May I sit here?

你不能坐 在 这儿。
You can't sit here.

你 明天会回去 上班 吗？
Will you go back to work tomorrow?

是的， 我会。
Yes, I will.

If you want to say "I know how to cook but today I can’t. I’m too tired.", you first use "会" to say "I know how to" and then "不能" for “I can’t". Like so: 我 会 做饭 但是 今天 不 能 做 。我 太 累 了 。