The Verb Poder (Can / to Be Able to) in Spanish – Lesson 28

Poder: can, to be able to

Welcome to lesson 28, a yellow lesson, which means: another verb! Today it’s poder, which means can or to be able to. It’s one of the most useful verbs in Spanish, because you’ll use it all the time together with other verbs: can I…?, I can’t…, can you help me?

As always: if you want, copy the table below into your notebook and fill it in yourself.

Poder conjugation: present tense

Pronoun	Poder	English
yo	puedo	I can
tú	puedes	you can
él / ella / usted	puede	he / she can, you (formal) can
nosotros / nosotras	podemos	we can
vosotros / vosotras	podéis	you all can (Spain)
ustedes	pueden	you all can
ellos / ellas	pueden	they can

Notice the o in poder becomes ue in most forms: puedo, puedes, puede, pueden. Only podemos and podéis keep the o. Sound familiar? It’s the same idea as querer (quiero, queremos): a stem-changing verb.

Yo puedo: I can

Hacer means “to do” or “to make”, and the -lo at the end means “it”. So hacerlo = to do it.

Tú puedes: you can

To turn it into a question, Spanish doesn’t change the word order: you just add the question marks (and raise your voice at the end). In English you have to flip it around: “you can” becomes “can you”.

Él / ella / usted puede: he / she can, you (formal) can

Why ser and not estar? Being friendly is a characteristic, so it’s ser. And for a woman, simpático becomes simpática.

Helper verbs: poder + another verb

Look at puede ser: two verbs next to each other. Poder is almost always followed by another verb, and it “helps” that verb out. A verb that helps another verb is called an auxiliary verb (or helper verb). We’ll go deeper into this later. For now, remember two things:

• Only the first verb changes with the person: puedo, puedes, puede…
• The second verb stays in its basic form (the infinitive): puedo hablar, never puedo hablo.

Nosotros / nosotras podemos: we can

To say can’t, just put no in front of the verb. Literally it’s “we not can help”.

Vosotros / vosotras podéis: you all can (Spain)

Sometimes you can just guess Spanish words: avanzar looks a lot like “to advance”, and that’s exactly what it means. It’s also used for “to move on” or “to move ahead”.

Ustedes pueden: you all can

Crecer means “to grow” by itself: a tree grows, a child grows, and you can grow as a person. But when you grow something, like vegetables, Spanish uses another verb: cultivar. Sometimes one English word is two Spanish words, and the feeling of a verb can be a bit different.

Ellos / ellas pueden: they can

Recap: poder (can, to be able to)

Spanish	English
yo puedo	I can
tú puedes	you can
él / ella / usted puede	he / she can, you (formal) can
nosotros / nosotras podemos	we can
■■■■■■■■	■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■■■	■■■■■■■■
■■■■■■■■	■■■■■■■■

+ 3 more verb forms

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Practice: poder

Fill in the right form of poder. Say it out loud, then click to check.

1. Yo ___ hacerlo. (I can do it.)

Yo puedo hacerlo.

2. ¿Tú ___ ayudar? (Can you help?)

¿Tú puedes ayudar?

3. Ella ___ ser simpática. (She can be friendly.)

Ella puede ser simpática.

4. Nosotros no ___ cambiar. (We can’t change.)

Nosotros no podemos cambiar.

5. Vosotras ___ avanzar. (You all can move ahead. Spain)

Vosotras podéis avanzar.

6. Ellos ___ colaborar. (They can collaborate.)

Ellos pueden colaborar.

7. Ask a stranger politely: “Can you repeat, please?”

¿Puede repetir, por favor?

Quiz: poder

10 questions. ¡Tú puedes!

Frequently asked questions

Is poder a regular verb?

No: it’s a stem-changing verb. The endings are the normal -er endings (-o, -es, -e, -emos, -éis, -en), but the o in the stem changes to ue in most forms.

What’s the difference between “¿Puedes…?” and “¿Puede…?”

¿Puedes…? is informal (tú), for friends. ¿Puede…? is formal (usted), for strangers, waiters or older people. Both mean “can you…?”

Before you go to the next lesson

Poder is a verb you’ll use every single day, so it’s worth learning it by heart before you move on. Grab the free reference sheet below and practice it a few times. ¡Tú puedes! See you in the next lesson.