I don't hear VS I can't hear

Question

Hi,Sorry for this naive question...I can't hear you very well -  that is what speakers of English sometimes say when talking on the phone (if the line is not good enough)?Can I say, I don't hear you very well instead?mus-te

Enoon · Accepted Answer

No, and I don't know why not.

Regards · Answer

Hi,

MUSCOVITEI can't hear you very well vs. I don't hear you very well.

Your question has a lot to do with idiomaticity.

While both versions are grammatical, I can't hear you very well is the version a native speaker would use.

Generally speaking, can't is used with verbs of perception such as see, hear, smell and taste instead of

don't. If a non-native speaker uses the version with don't, they will be understood. However, native speakers

would not speak that way. It's one of those idiosyncrasies of English, I suppose.

Regards

AlpheccaStars · Answer

These are natural:

My grandmother doesn't hear very well, but she refuses to get her hearing tested.
Don't go to Caravaggio's Bar and Grill if you want to have a conversation. The music is so loud that you can't even hear the person sitting next to you.

Regards · Answer

Hi A-

s,

There is no doubt that your answer is correct. However, I assume the OP's question requires a more

specific response. This is the original question:

I can't hear you very well - that is what speakers of English sometimes say when talking on the phone

(if the line is not good enough)? Can I say, I don't hear you very well instead?

Could you enlighten the OP about the case he or she described?

I'd be glad to hear what you think.

Regards

AlpheccaStars · Answer

Don't is more frequently used where the cause is a medical impairment. Grandma doesn't hear very well, so you have to speak up.
Can't is more frequently used when something external (volume of the sound or ambient noise) is the cause. The person in normal conditions is able to hear. There s a lot of noise on this line and I can't hear what you say. Please call back on another line.

Of course, these are not hard and fast "rules." The meaning is clear with either verb.

Regards · Answer

Hi A-

s,

Thanks. Now your meaning is clearer.

Regards

CalifJim · Answer

MUSCOVITEI can't hear you very well

It may be relevant to point out here that Palmer (The English Verb) mentions this usage of can. I quote:

Can is very commonly used with private verbs, especially verbs of sensation:

I can smell something burning.
I can see the moon.

Here there is very little sense of ability, ... it indicates that [the subject] does, in fact, experience the sensation rather than that he is able to experience it.

Can is also used with other types of private verbs, ... remember, understand, with minimal sense of ability:

I can't remember a thing.
I can't understand what he is saying.

These differ little, if at all, from:

I don't remember a thing.
I don't understand what he is saying.

CJ

Regards · Answer

Hi,

CalifJimCan is very commonly used with private verbs, especially verbs of sensation.

I'm glad to see that someone agrees with me.

Regards

MUSCOVITE · Answer

Thanks everybody for their most interesting comments!

I don't hear VS I can't hear

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