EXPRESSING

ABILITIES
GRAMMAR
VERB + VERB IN INFINITIVE (BE
ABLE/UNABLE, (NOT) MANAGE)

 Be able/unable + main verb in infinitive

 Catherine is unable to play saxophone, she’s

been trying to learn for years.
 Catherine isn’t able to play saxophone, she’s
been trying to learn for years.
 Thomas was able to play the piano when he was
a boy.
 This form may be used, in positive or negative, for
general or specific ability.
VERB + VERB IN
INFINITIVE (BE
ABLE/UNABLE,  (Not) Manage + main verb in infinitive
(NOT) MANAGE)  Joshua manage to get in time everyday, even though he has
several activities.
 Gerry lost control of his car but managed to avoid a crash.

 This form is only used for specific ability: one time, one
situation.
  Can + main verb in base form

VERB + VERB IN  Catherine can play the flute.

BASE FORM  Thomas can’t play the flute.
(CAN, COULD)  Both of these forms may be used, in positive or negative, for
general or specific ability.
VERB + VERB IN BASE FORM (CAN, COULD)

 Could + main verb in base form

 When Jane was in Austria, she could speak

German.
 Could, in positive, is only used for general
ability.
 When Jane was very young, she couldn’t
speak German.
 Couldn’t is used for general or specific.
VERB + GERUND (BE CAPABLE/INCAPABLE
OF, BE GOOD AT, (NOT) SUCCEED IN)

 Be capable/incapable + gerund

 Luisa is capable of climbing a tree in a second.

 Robert was incapable of running the complete

marathon last summer.
 Robert wasn’t capable of running the complete
marathon last summer.
 Both of these forms may be used, in positive or
negative, to express if you have the ability needed
for a specific task or have the disposition to do
something.
VERB + GERUND (BE
CAPABLE/INCAPABLE OF, BE GOOD AT,
(NOT) SUCCEED IN)

 Be good at + gerund

 He is good at playing the piano.

 He wasn’t good at poetry, but now he is.

 When you want to express that you are well capable or

not of doing something, the usual collocation is “to be
good at something”.
VERB + GERUND (BE CAPABLE/INCAPABLE
OF, BE GOOD AT, (NOT) SUCCEED IN)

 (Not) Succeed in + gerund

 You succeed in getting started your own business.

 She did not succeed in learning German; it was too

difficult.
 We use it to say we achieve or not something that
we planned to do or attempted to do.