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能 (néng): Ability, Circumstances and Permission in Chinese

ChinesePath · Updated September 8, 2026

能 néng is the modal verb of feasibility: the action can actually happen — because the person has the capacity, because external conditions allow it, or because someone permits it. That three-way coverage is what separates it from its neighbors: 会 is about learned skill, 可以 leans toward permission, and 能 spans the middle ground of "is it doable, here and now?". Like all Chinese modal verbs it precedes the main verb, negates with 不, and forms questions as 能不能.

Use 1: personal capacity

能 measures what a person is physically or practically up to — including capacities lost and regained, where 会 cannot go:

• 他一分钟能打两百个字。Tā yī fēnzhōng néng dǎ liǎng bǎi gè zì. (He can type two hundred characters a minute.)
• 受伤后他不能跑步了。Shòushāng hòu tā bù néng pǎobù le. (After the injury he can't run anymore.) — the skill remains; the capacity is gone, so 会 would be wrong
• 他的腿伤好了，现在能走路了。Tā de tuǐ shāng hǎo le, xiànzài néng zǒulù le. (His leg has healed — he can walk now.)

Use 2: circumstances permit

能 also reads the external situation — equipment, signal, space, time:

• 这里能停车。Zhèlǐ néng tíng chē. (You can park here.) — room enough, or allowed; context decides
• 今天的信号不好，不能视频通话。Jīntiān de xìnhào bù hǎo, bù néng shìpín tōnghuà. (The signal is bad today — no video calls.)
• 你现在能来吗？Nǐ xiànzài néng lái ma? (Can you come now?) — asking about the person's situation, not their skill

Use 3: permission

In requests and rules, 能 is interchangeable with 可以:

• 我能坐这儿吗？Wǒ néng zuò zhèr ma? (May I sit here?) — same as 我可以坐这儿吗
• 你不能放弃自己。Nǐ bù néng fàngqì zìjǐ. (You mustn't give up on yourself.)

不能: one negation, several meanings

不能 covers the whole range in reverse — "lacks the capacity", "conditions don't allow", or "is not permitted":

• 她痛得不能说话。(In too much pain to speak.) — capacity
• 不能视频通话。(Video calls aren't possible.) — conditions
• 不可以在图书馆大声说话 / 不能大声说话。(No loud talking in the library.) — prohibition; 不可以 is slightly more clearly "not allowed", since 不能 might also mean "unable"

The 会/能/可以 sorting test

• Learned skill → 会: 我会游泳。(I know how to swim.)
• Feasible now → 能: 我今天能游泳。(I'm able to swim today — healthy, pool available.)
• Allowed → 可以 (or 能): 这里可以游泳吗？(Is swimming allowed here?)

A famous minimal pair: 我会游泳，但今天不能游 — "I can (skill) swim, but today I can't (circumstances)". One English "can", two Chinese modals.

Question forms

• 能不能 fronts requests politely: 你能不能小声一点？Nǐ néng bù néng xiǎo shēng yīdiǎn? (Could you keep it down a bit?)
• With 吗: 你现在能来吗？— but never both at once.

Frequently Asked Questions

What is the difference between 能 and 会?

会 is a learned skill; 能 is present feasibility — health, conditions, permission. 我会游泳 (I know how to swim) vs 我能游泳 (I'm able to swim right now). Losing a capacity uses 能: 受伤后他不能跑步了.

Can 能 and 可以 be used interchangeably?

Very often, yes — especially for permission and external possibility: 我能/可以坐这儿吗? Both work. The negatives differ slightly: 不可以 clearly means "not allowed", while 不能 can also mean "unable"; formal prohibitions prefer 不可以 or 不得.

What does 不能 mean?

Whichever flavor of impossibility is active: no capacity (痛得不能说话 — in too much pain to speak), no conditions (信号不好，不能通话), or no permission (不能大声说话 — no loud talking).

How do I make a polite request with 能?

能不能 + verb: 你能不能帮我一下? (Could you give me a hand?) The A-not-A form softens the request; adding 吗 on top is ungrammatical.

Does 能 ever mean "may I"?

Yes — in requests, 能 asks for permission just like 可以: 我能坐这儿吗? (May I sit here?). The answer, though, typically uses 可以 or 行: 可以。/ 不行。