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Anonymous Posted 17 years ago
Grammar
May have done/ can have done.
Dear teachers
when I mention the event that happend in the past by using "may" or "can",
what's the difference in meaning betewen "I might do" and "I may have done" /
"I could do" and "I can have done" ?
thank you in advance.
when I mention the event that happend in the past by using "may" or "can",
what's the difference in meaning betewen "I might do" and "I may have done" /
"I could do" and "I can have done" ?
thank you in advance.
Top answer
"I might do it" - The event of doing it is in the future, and you are still considering if you will do it or not. "I may have done it" The event of doing it is in the past, and you cannot remember if you did it or not. "I could do it"- You have the ability to do it.
- "I might do it" - The event of doing it is in the future, and you are still considering if you will do it or not.
- "I may have done it" The event of doing it is in the past, and you cannot remember if you did it or not.
- "I could do it"- You have the ability to do it.
- This is frequently used with an if-clause: I could do it if I wanted to.
- I could do it, if I had the proper tools.
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9 Answers
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"I might do it" - The event of doing it is in the future, and you are still considering if you will do it or not.
"I may have done it" The event of doing it is in the past, and you cannot remember if you did it or not.
"I could do it"- You have the ability to do it. This is frequently used with an if-clause: I could do it if I wanted to. I could do it, if I had the proper tools.
"I may have done it" The event of doing it is in the past, and you cannot remember if you did it or not.
"I could do it"- You have the ability to do it. This is frequently used with an if-clause: I could do it if I wanted to. I could do it, if I had the proper tools.
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If Alphecca doesn't mind, I'll give my pitch too. 
Can can be used in Negative and Questions when one doesn't
Can can be used in Negative and Questions when one doesn't
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Thanks for the additional info, Fandorin.
The form you quote must be obsolete, because I have not seen it. Today we say:
John couldn't have done it. It's not like him. He is so kind.
Could he have said it? (How on the earth is it possible? I refuse to believe that).
The form you quote must be obsolete, because I have not seen it. Today we say:
John couldn't have done it. It's not like him. He is so kind.
Could he have said it? (How on the earth is it possible? I refuse to believe that).
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Alpeccastars is right. 'can have done' is bad grammar. It should be 'could have done' which is the past of 'could'. 'have done' has the meaning someone else, probably a professional, will do it. In that context 'can have done' is correct. I don't think the poster meant that though.
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I might do = I am able to do that but I do not know whether I will or not.
"I might have done that " sounds strange since it is used while expressing action when we don't know whether or not it took place.
"John might have been to the Alps. You had better ask him" (We assume John has been to the mountains since he is a climber).
I could do = I was able to do something
"I might have done that " sounds strange since it is used while expressing action when we don't know whether or not it took place.
"John might have been to the Alps. You had better ask him" (We assume John has been to the mountains since he is a climber).
I could do = I was able to do something
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Fandorin"I might have done that " sounds strange since it is used while expressing action when we don't know whether or not it took place.It's not strange - often used when we know something happened and are speculating who did it or how it happened.
Look, my passenger-side car door is scratched. I might have done that myself when I drove too clos
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Thanks for the reply, Alphecca. Perfectly reasonable to me. I should have thought about that.
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