Your Complete Guide to Pouvoir Conjugation in French

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Learning the verb pouvoir (to be able to/can) in French is important because it’s a common French verb that you’ll see and hear in daily conversation and writing. If you can master pouvoir conjugation in French, you’ll be able to talk about your abilities, make plans, give excuses, and make polite requests. 

Tell yourself Oui, tu peux le faire! (Yes, you can do it!). Learn the basics of pouvoir conjugation to use this helpful irregular verb with confidence. 

Conjugating pouvoir in the présent (present tense)

Pouvoir is irregular in the present tense, meaning it doesn’t follow patterns like regular -IR verbs in French. In some present tense forms, very few letters match the infinitive pouvoir. Don’t be concerned: You’ll recognize many of the forms of “can” in French in such a wide variety of situations that it will soon be second nature. 

pouvoir (to be able/can) – present tense

Very often, you’ll see a second verb that follows the conjugated form of pouvoir. The second verb will remain in the infinitive because of grammar rules about French verb conjugation.

Use pouvoir when discussing abilities and permission.

• Elle peut lire ce livre en dix minutes.= She can read that book in ten minutes. 
  
• Non, je ne peux pas la réparer. = No, I can’t repair it. 
  
• Tu peux toucher cette plante. = You can touch this plant. 
  
• On ne peut pas conduire ici. Il y a trop de neige. = We can’t drive here. There’s too much snow.
  

The verb pouvoir is helpful in common travel situations.

• Est-ce que je peux prendre ce bus pour aller au musée ? = Can I take this bus to go to the museum?
  
• Où est-ce que je peux changer de l’argent ? = Where can I exchange currency? 
  
• Est-ce que je peux faire une réservation ? = Can I make a reservation? 
  

This verb is essential for asking for or offering help.

• Est-ce que je peux vous aider ? = Can I help you? (formal/plural)
  
• Est-ce que je peux t’aider ? = Can I help you? (informal)
  
• Peux-tu m’aider? = Can you help me? 
• Mon père peut t’aider demain. = My father can help you tomorrow. 

Make polite requests in a fairly casual way with a form of pouvoir in the present tense.

• Est-ce que je peux avoir quelque chose à boire ? = Can I have something to drink?
  
• Est-ce que tu peux être là à vingt heures ? = Can you be there at 8 PM? 
  
• Est-ce que nous pouvons dîner à l’extérieur ? = Can we eat dinner outside?
  

You will need pouvoir for making plans and excuses.

• Est-ce que tu peux venir au concert ?= Can you come to the concert? 
  
• Non, je ne peux pas. Je suis occupé. = No, I can’t. I’m busy. 
  
• Non. Nous ne pouvons pas. = No. We can’t.
  

What about puis-je? 

You might encounter the phrase je puis (I can) or its inverted question form puis-je… ? (Can I…?) in place of je peux in the French present tense. This comes from an older form of the verb, but is still used today, particularly in very polite conversation or poetry. 

If you’re going to use inversion to form your question, stick with puis-je, but est-ce que je peux (can I) is perfectly acceptable and possibly preferred in casual conversation.

• Puis-je laisser un message au Dr Tan ? = May I leave a message for Dr. Tan? 
  
• Puis-je changer des euros contre des dollars ici ? = May I change euros for dollars here? 
  

Pouvoir conjugation in the past tenses

There are two main past tenses in French. The tense you choose will change the meaning slightly. 

Pouvoir conjugation in the passé composé (past perfect) 

When you use pouvoir in the French passé composé, it means that someone attempted to do something and was successful, or not successful in negative constructions. 

The passé composé refers to a specific event in the past, not a general ability or inability to do something. Use avoir (to have) as the auxiliary verb and the past participle pu. 

pouvoir (to be able/can) – passé composé

• On a pu voir ses tableaux dans des musées d’art à Paris, Rome et Londres.= We were able to see his paintings in the art museums in Paris, Rome, and London. 
  
• La fille n’a pas pu monter à l’arbre. = The girl wasn’t able to climb the tree. 
  
• Je n’ai pas pu réparer le skateboard, alors j’en ai acheté un autre. = I wasn’t able to repair the skateboard, so I bought another one. 
  

French conjugation for pouvoir in the imparfait (imperfect)

Using pouvoir in the French imparfait (imperfect) helps you express background information in the past about someone’s ability to do something. You aren’t referring to one specific occurrence or event in the past, but instead are describing the person’s ability over a wider timeframe.

pouvoir (to be able/can) – imperfect

• Quand j’étais jeune, je pouvais courir un kilomètre en trois minutes.= When I was young, I could run a kilometer in three minutes. 
  
• Quand j’étais petite, je ne pouvais pas jouer du piano sans regarder mes mains.= When I was little, I couldn’t play the piano without looking at my hands. 
  
• À cause de la tempête de neige, personne ne pouvait conduire. = Because of the snowstorm, no one could drive. 
  

Using pouvoir in the future tenses

If you wish to speak French like a native speaker one day, you could express your goal in the futur simple (simple future) of “to be able to” in French. 

• Un jour, je pourrai parler français couramment. = One day I will be able to speak French fluently. 

If you really have the time to invest, you might reach functional proficiency in as few as 30 weeks of full-time study, according to the US Department of State. 

pouvoir (will be able to) – simple future

• Après avoir mis les parties ensemble, je pourrai jouer avec mon nouvel avion. = After I have all the parts together, I will be able to play with my new airplane.
  
• Peut-être qu’un jour je pourrai concevoir de vrais avions. = Maybe one day I will be able to design real airplanes. 
  

Using the futur proche (near future) tense with pouvoir

The futur proche is another way to talk about events that haven’t happened yet. Conjugate aller (to go) and then follow with the infinitive pouvoir. 

• Demain, je vais pouvoir parler mieux qu’ hier. = Tomorrow I’m going to be able to speak better than yesterday. 

Conjugating pouvoir in the conditionnel (conditional mood) 

The French conditional tense (or mood) usually expresses the English idea “would,” as in “I would study, but I’m too tired.” With pouvoir conjugation in the conditional, the meaning is “could.” Use these conjugated forms to elevate your request in the case that you really want to be polite, or to talk about hypotheticals. 

pouvoir (could) – conditionnel

• Pourrais-je avoir un dépliant, s’il vous plaît ? = Could I have a brochure, please? 
  
• On n’a plus de lait. Est-ce que tu pourrais aller en acheter au supermarché ? = We don’t have any more milk. Could you go to the store to buy some? 
  
• Où est-ce qu‘on pourrait déjeuner ? = Where could we have lunch? 
  

You can use si (if) plus a verb in imperfect, followed by pouvoir in the conditional to discuss what could be done if certain conditions were met. 

• Si j’avais des ailes, je pourrais voler. = If I had wings, I could fly. 
• Si je le voulais, je pourrais gagner le jeu. = If I wanted to, I could win the game. 

Other French verb tenses with pouvoir

Recognizing other sophisticated French verb tenses and moods is as easy as learning a few key verb forms. Anytime you see puisse or similar, this is pouvoir in the subjunctive French mood. If you’re exploring French literature, even children’s books, you may encounter forms of the passé simple (simple past) such as pus, put, or pûmes. The context will likely make it clear that you’re looking at a French conjugation of pouvoir 

Common French expressions that use pouvoir

Beyond learning the French conjugation of pouvoir, learning typical French expressions is one of the most fun ways to sound like a native speaker. Learn these expressions as full phrases and chunks of meaning, rather than translating them word-for-word. 

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