Usage of "can"
1) Bobby Reynolds did not win at Wimbledon on Thursday, or did he?
The scoreboard showed the world No. 1 Novak Djokovic defeated Reynolds, 7-6 (2), 6-3, 6-1, on Centre Court, and after winning three qualifying matches and a gutsy five-setter in his opening round, Reynolds’s 2013 singles campaign at the championships was over.
He lost to a better player. He won in every other way one can imagine.
2) You/one can get very nasty skin diseases from bathing in dirty water.
Q1) It can be seen that both the underlined expressions start with the general subject "you/one". Do the two "can"s in (1) and (2) refer to timeless or general present, and NOT future, as in the following examples?
a) I can travel in July because my exams will be finished by the beginning of the month. ("can" refers to future)
To my friend:
b) You (=my friend) can buy a ticket from the Tourist Information Centre. ("can" refers to future,???)
Q2) Can I replace the "can"s in (1) and (2) with "could"s to make them sound more hypothetical/less assertive?
Top answer
Rizan Malik Do the two "can"s in (1) and (2) refer to timeless or general present I would say so, yes. Rizan Malik Q2) Can I replace the "can"s in (1) and (2) with "could"s to make them sound more hypothetical/less assertive? Yes.
- Rizan Malik Do the two "can"s in (1) and (2) refer to timeless or general present I would say so, yes.
- Rizan Malik Q2) Can I replace the "can"s in (1) and (2) with "could"s to make them sound more hypothetical/less assertive?
- Yes.
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Rizan MalikDo the two "can"s in (1) and (2) refer to timeless or general present
I would say so, yes.
Rizan MalikQ2) Can I replace the "can"s in (1) and (2) with "could"s to make them sound more hypothetical/less assertive?
Yes.
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