Different uses of "can"

[Chagen]

Does your conlang distinguish these two uses? English doesn't.

The idea came from me giving an interesting modality distinction in Pazmat:

English:

"I can do it!"
"Yes, you can do it....but you can't do it."

In English, these two uses of "can" uses the same word. Pazmat, however, distinguishes them:

"Oya koi!"
[o-ya ko-i]
[do-INFIN can-1.SG]
"I can do it!"

"Ī, oya dicfe, ta oya kofeix."
[Ī, o-ya dic-fe, ta o-ya ko-fe-ix]
[Yes, do-INFIN can1-2.SG, but do-INFIN can2-2.SG-NEG]
"Yes, you can do it, but you can't do it."

"Dicja" means "to have the free time to do something". "Koya" means "to posess the ability to do something". So, the second Pazmat sentence means "Yes, you have the free time to do it, but you don't have the ability".

Do your conlangs distinguish these two? Do any natlangs do as well?

[Ear of the Sphinx]

There is another meaning in English, e.g. I bought a can of beer.

[Aevas]

Copypasta from a Russian dictionary:

(expr. ability or permission) мочь (impf.);
(expr. capability) уме́ть (impf.);

[Chagen]

I was specifically talking about the verb but since it has no infinitive, I couldn't specify that.

[Ear of the Sphinx]

Copypasta from a Russian dictionary:

(expr. ability or permission) мочь (impf.);
(expr. capability) уме́ть (impf.);

Polish is better:
· móc (to be able)
· umieć (to know how)
· potrafić (somewhere between the two)

[xinda]

できるよ！
dekiru yo!
do.POT assertion
" can (am able to) do it!"

できるけど、してはいけない。
dekiru kedo, shite wa ikenai
do.POT but, do.TE TOP go.POT-NEG
"[You] can (are able to) do it, but you may not do it"

[Avo]

Italian distinguishes them using sapere and potere:

Sai farlo, ma non lo puoi fare
know-2SG.PRS do-INF=it but not it can-2SG.PRS do-INF
You are able to do it, but you can't do it

[Xing]

Waʻtē distinguishes between the two:

'Can' in the sense of 'having ability' is kara.

'Can' in the sense of 'having permission' is kāmu

Xe kāmu ā nō maʻte ne elepanu - 'you can eat an elephant' (you have the permission to do that)
PRS can ERG 2s eat INDEF elephant

Xe kara ā nō maʻte ne elepanu - 'you can eat an elephant' (you have the ability to do that)
PRS can ERG 2s eat INDEF elephant

To express epistemic modality, one uses an adverb:

Ko maʻte ā xī ne elepanu, keuō - 'He may have eaten an elephant' ('Possibly, he ate an elephant')
PFV eat ERG 3s INDEF elephant possibly

[Ear of the Sphinx]

Emyt
There are two verbs: mų (more general) and sośtą (excluding the permission meaning).

• Ito-kurtatboś-mųren. - It is possible for me to do it.
  it-doing-can.PRES.1SG
  
  Ito-kurtatboś-sośtąren. - I am able to do it.
  it-doing-be.able.PRES.1SG

For expressing permission/prohibition, you use the verb darą (must, have to):

• Ito-kurtatboś-darąren. - I have to do it; it's ordered to me.
  it-doing-must.PRES.1SG
  
  Ito-kiśkurtatboś-darąren. - I mustn't do it; it's prohibited for me.
  it-not.doing-must.PRES.1SG
  
  Ito-kiśkurtatboś-kiśdarąren. - I can do it; it's not prohibited for me.
  it-not.doing-not.must.PRES.1SG

[Chagen]

Some of you guys are confusing things a little....I meant "can" not in the permission sense. I meant "can" in the "have the free time to do it".

Maybe the two are the same, and I'm just thinking in my wierd ways again.

[Xing]

So, it's like:

-Can you repair the car?

- Yes I can (=I have the general ability; I know how to do), but I can't (= I'm too busy right now, maybe another time)??

[Ceresz]

Wouldn't you normally just say something like "I can/could, but I'm too busy right now/I don't have time to do it right now" ?

[DanH34]

Zidhgebzhail distinguishes between 'able to' and 'permitted to' with modal suffixes, but 'have the time to' would require a separate clause:

You are able to do it.
dil mef Aunops.
d-il m-ef Ø-Au-n-o-ps.
2-ERG.SG.M 3.INAN-ACC.SG.M PRES-do-SIMPLE-REALIS-can
You can do it.

You are permitted to do it.
dil mef Aunozb.
d-il m-ef Ø-Au-n-o-zb.
2-ERG.SG.M 3.INAN-ACC.SG.M PRES-do-SIMPLE-REALIS-may
You may do it.

You have time to do it.
dil montef Oun hong mef Aun.
d-il mont-ef Ø-Ou-n h-ong m-ef Ø-Au-n.
2-ERG.SG.M time-ACC.SG.M PRES-have-SIMPLE SUBORDINATOR-CAUSAL 3.INAN-ACC.SG.M PRES-do-SIMPLE
You have time for the purposes of do[ing] it.

[eldin raigmore]

Do you distinguish between
"can" = "have the skill or knowledge necessary to"
and
"may, might" = "have the strength necessary to"
?

[Trailsend]

Mandarin does

[eldin raigmore]

Mandarin does

Thanks.
Can or may or might you show as well as tell? (Thanks for that too.)

[xinda]

:roc:
你能做嗎？
Can you do it? (physical ability)
"Are you physically able to do it?"

你會做嗎？
Can you do it? (skill, mental)
"Are you able to do it?"

你可以做嗎？
Can you do it? / May you do it?
"Are you allowed to do it?"
可以 can also be used in a more general sense for "Can you do it?" (physical, mental, permissible)

[Trailsend]

To be a little more informative:


我会说汉语。
wǒ huì shuō hànyu
1 skill_mental_ability speak Chinese
I can (skill/mental ability) speak Chinese.

万能的神能不能创造一块重得连祂自己也拿不起的石头呢？
wànnéng de shén néng-bù-néng chuàngzào yī kuài chóng děi lián ta zìjǐ yě ná bù qǐ de shítou ne ?
omnipotent of god able-not-able create one MEASURE weight degree even also take not lift of rock huh?
Can (physical ability) an omnipotent God create a stone so heavy that even He may not lift it?

However, there's plenty of fuzziness in the pattern. Néng (physical ability) sometimes shows allowance or permissibility:

我们已经走了四个小时了，能不能消停下？
Wǒ-men yǐjing zǒu le sì gè xiǎoshí le，néng-bu-néng xiāo-tíng-xià？
1-PL already walk LE four MEASURE hour LE, ability-not-ability rest-stop-down
We have walked for four hours, can we take a break?

Or even mental ability:

这个理论太深奥了，您能不能讲得通透一点？
Zhè ge lǐlùn tài shēnào le，nín néng-bu-néng jiǎng de tōngtòu yìdiǎn？
this MEASURE theory terribly profound LE, you.formal able-not-able explain degree comprehensive a_little
The theory is too difficult to understand, can you elaborate on it?

[eldin raigmore]

Thanks, xinda and Trailsend.

[Creyeditor]

Kobardon

Den.
de-n
3SG.S-be.possible
'I can do it. (It is possible for me to do it.)'

Desak.
de-sak
3SG.S-be.allowed
'I can do it. (It is legal.)'

Abrengo.
a-breng-o
1SG-know.how-3SG
'I can do it. (I know how to do it.)'

Den sirat.
de-n sir-at
3SG.S-be.possible NEG-SG
'You can't do it. (It is not possible for you to do it.)'

Desak sirat.
de-sak sir-at
3SG.S-be.allowed NEG-SG
'You can't do it. (It is illegal.)'

Rebrengo sirat.
re-breng-o sir-at
2SG-know.how-3SG NEG-SG
'You can't do it. (You don't know how to do it.)'

Kobardon now distinguishes between three different roots for the uses of 'can': sak be permitted, n be possible, and breng be capable. I might add some construction for physical ability at some point. Also, one of my first accidental homphones (yay!). Den can mean 'It is possible' or 'he/she/it'. I also decided that some modal roots can be used adverbially in addition to being used as a modal verb.

Biruv fékam sakam.
bi-ruv fék-am sak-am
1PL.S-walk here-PL permittedly-PL
'We can walk here. (It is legal to walk here.)'

Semaf nam.
se-maf n-am
3PL.S-swim possibly-PL
'They can swim. (They might be swimming right now.)'