Can vs. May
Although, traditionally, can has meant “to be able” and may has meant “to be permitted” or to express possibility, both can and may are commonly used interchangeably in respect to permission.
Example: He can hold his breath for 30 seconds.
Meaning: He is able to hold his breath for 30 seconds.
Example: He may hold his breath for 30 seconds.
Meaning #1: It is possible that he will hold his breath.
Meaning #2: He has permission to hold his breath. (This meaning is unlikely.)
Example: May/Can I go to the mall tonight?
Regardless of whether you choose can or may here, it is clear that permission is being requested.
In spoken English, a request for permission is generally answered with can, cannot, or can’t, rather than with may or may not, even if the question was formed using may. (Although mayn’t is a word, it looks and sounds strange even to native speakers.)
Example of Dialogue:
“May I go to the mall tonight?”
“No, you can’t/cannot go.” OR “Yes, you can go.”
Occasionally, you may hear someone say something like, “I cannot but argue when you say such silly things.” The expression cannot but is actually a shorthand way of saying “cannot help but.” You may also hear the expression can but, which means “can only.”
Example: We can but do our best to arrive on time.
Pop Quiz
1. Can/May you imagine a world without war?
2. Can/May I call you for a date?
3. She can/may run faster than anyone else on the team. (able to)
Quiz Answers
1. Can
2. Can or May
3. Can
Posted on Saturday, February 24th, 2007 at 12:07 am
39 Responses to “Can vs. May”
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Larry, you are most welcome.
I am very happy to see that you make a distinction between may and can. I teach ESL students at the elementary and college levels. I had talked to the ” Grammar Lady ” a few years ago. She said that the rule had been relaxed and you could use can for permission. I refused to accept that and continued to teach the difference between the two. I had two elementary school teachers who taught grammar with a passion. I loved learning about grammar
and diagramming. I have found only two other people who feel the way I do about grammar. Thank you for the service you provide.
Larry E. Henry
Larry/Jane: I too am pretty passionate about grammar.
Now which one is more appropriate:
1. “May I speak to ….”
2. “May I speak with…”
3. “Can I speak to…”
4. “Can I speak with…”
5. “Could I speak with/to…”
“May I speak to…” and “May I speak with…” are both correct. “Can” is used for ability while “may” is used for permission, which fits with your example.
Thank you Jane. It’s crystal clear to me now.
It’s true that spoken language is often different from written language. Your examples with “can” and “may” are good ones.
When my children ask, “May I go outside?” Do I response “Yes, you can.”?
I’m sure that a simple “yes” is enough for them to go running out the door. However, I won’t sidestep your question. To help them understand the distinction between “can” and “may,” you may wish to say, “Yes, you may.”
Grammar lovers tend to love rules. Alas, grammar is often not nearly as cut-and-dried as these folks would like. Merriam addresses far more than the stark permission / ability dichotomy. In many contexts “can” and “may” are interchangable. “May” certainly may (sic) be used to denote possibility. Hence, the procedure “You may click the third link to open the PDF” is fine, despite all those that scream can! can! until the woman with the ruffled dress starts dancing with a high kick.
i have a colleague who, in emails, types, “may you (call this person, meet me at 3pm, etc.)” instead of, “can you”. it drives me crazy, because i know it’s not correct, but i don’t know how to tell her. could you give me the rule?
thanks!
“Can you” would be correct because these questions imply the ability to fulfill the request, not permission to do so. Example: You can eat cake. (You have the ability to eat cake.) You may eat cake. (You have permission to eat cake.)
Lol.
Wow! I’ve always wondered about this; I’ve recently started to use “may” a lot more (at the appropriate time of course). But, “can” seems, to me, to be more used informally used to mean can/may and “may” used formally to mean can/may. But that’s just me.
It doesn’t help though that other people still use “can” anyway to mean can/may.
Whenever my baby sister gets the chance to come around to my house, I insist on her using “May I?” whenever she wants something, hehe.
Good AND correct expression seems to be a priceless skill that many still need to acquire.
Good job Jane
Thanks for the compliment. You bring up a good point about “can” being used in place of “may” in informal writing. English is a living language; therefore, rules become outdated and vocabulary changes constantly. Thanks for writing.
Is it correct to answer a phone call with “How can I direct your call?” Or, is the only proper way “How may I direct your call?”
The word “may” is used for permission and “can” is used for ability. Therefore, “How may I direct your call,” would be correct.
I work in education. On our website’s main page is the question “How Can We Help?” Is this acceptable, or should the question read, “How May We Help?”
The word “can” implies ability; therefore, it is fine to say, “How can we help?” This means, “How are we best able to help?” This is probably closer to your intention than “may” because “may” implies permission to help, which presumably you already have.
There is a problem with determining use of can or may for editors: Sometimes you do not know the intent of the writer. Consider the following text from a training document from a course at a medical organization:
“The users (may/can) ask questions.”
In this case, it is unknown (and unknowable) whether the users have the ability or need to obtain permission to ask questions.
So, in this case both could be true. Obviously, everyone has the ability to ask questions, and trainees of a new process should always feel they have permission to ask questions in a seminar (to make sure those who have questions can get them answered).
In this case, wouldn’t either be correct?
As you mention, it is very likely that the trainees have the ability to ask questions, therefore, this is probably a statement that the users have permission to ask questions. Since both can and may are commonly used interchangeably in respect to permission, either would be correct.
Going along with the previously mentioned cannot, I have not been able to find an acceptable explanation for when to use “can not” vs. “cannot.” Any help on this would be most appreciated.
The use of cannot is far more common than can not, though either is correct. You are more likely to see the two word version in a sentence such as, “He can not only speak five languages, he teaches math and science as well.” (Admittedly, “He not only speaks five languages . . .” is a less awkward wording.)
What is correct, My said that I can go to the park or mother said I may go to the park?
Since you are suggesting that your mother is giving you permission, the correct usage would be “My mother said I may go to the park.”
Is this correct?
“May we request you to…..?”
Yes, since the word “may” implies permission, it would be correct.
And which is correct?
May we request you to please….?
We are requesting you to please…
We are requesting you to…
Thank you very much.. =)
Although they are all grammatically correct, I prefer the politely written “May we request you to please…?”
I find this funny as I had an ex-boss who would only respond to ‘may’. So if I asked ‘can I see the latest report’ the response would be ‘yes you could’ but unless I used the word ‘may’ the report would not be forthcoming.
Don’t remember ever getting taught this at school. Though I did sleep through most English classes much to the chargrin of my English teacher mother.
Language should be as simple as possible whilst avoiding ambiguity so ‘may’ should stay. Just think of the following statement:
“Miss Black, can I beat up little Johnny?”
Should teacher send me to detention or just point out that I probably could?
If you were sleeping through your English class and asking questions like that I would vote for detention!
is it ok to use May when you’re asking someone if they can do something?
example: “May you send me an email confirming our conversation?”
“Can you” or “would you” would be correct because this question implies the ability to fulfill the request, not permission to do so.
Jane, I love that you mention how English is a living language, and thus changes over time. We no longer use “gay” to mean happy. We use “mouse” to mean a squeaky animal or a part of your computer, and we determine which is which from context without throwing a fit. “Mean” originally meant “inferior/poor.” Then it developed into “stingy,” which is still the dominant meaning in British English, but I’ve never heard any strict American grammarians yelling at people to only use “cruel” instead of “mean.” Shakespeare’s “villains” were simply peasants or farmers. Things change, and I believe that many of these changes enrich the language, not destroy it.
my coworker asked, in regards to a task, “can we do it tomorrow?” I replied like pee wee herman, “i dont know. can we?” implying that he should have asked “may we do it tomorrow?” he then insisted that “may” cannot be used in a plural sense. i think he’s full of bull. anyone have an answer/opinion on this?
There is no rule saying that may cannot be used in a plural sense. As stated in our “Can vs. May” blog, “Although, traditionally, can has meant “to be able” and may has meant “to be permitted” or to express possibility, both can and may are commonly used interchangeably in respect to permission. Further, “In spoken English, a request for permission is generally answered with can, cannot, or can’t, rather than with may or may not, even if the question was formed using may.”
Is is grammatically acceptable to say, “I would like to have the extra juice” as opposed to saying “May I have the extra juice?” Thank you!
Either of the two sentences is grammatically acceptable, however, if you are concerned about etiquette, “May I please have the extra juice” is the polite way to phrase it.
Thank you so very much! You clarified a little difference of opinion that I had with a colleague of mine. He said it was not appropriate or correct to say and corrected one of my students. Etiquette and politness are what I work on with my students; however, I appreciate it when they are grammatically correct. Thanks again. DB
You are welcome.