Comparing "hui," "neng," "keyi"

This is one of the trickiest comparisons, as 会, 能, and 可以 are often translated as "can." Sometimes they are explained as: 会 means "know how to", 能 means "to be able to", and 可以 means "to have permission to." Actually, they overlap a little bit. In this article, we will look at their differences.

会 can mean "know how to"

会 can express an action that you had to learn or be trained in to do.

Structure

会 + Verb

Examples

• 他 会 修 电脑。 I know how to fix computers.
• 我 会 跳舞。 I know how to dance.
• 我 学 了 两 年 才 会 说 一点 汉语。 I studied for two years before I knew how to speak a little Chinese.

会 can also mean something is going to happen

会 can express something in the future will happen. It is often used to express trends or possibilities.

Structure

会 + Verb

Examples

• 明天 你 会 来 吗？ Will you come tomorrow?
• 你 太 过分 了，没 有 人 会 这么 做。 You're too excessive, no one will do it like this.
• 一会儿 会 下雨 吗？ Will it rain in a minute?

很会 means 'to be good at"

很会 expresses being very skillful at something, or doing something very well. It can be translated as "really can", as in "you can really speak Chinese!", in other words, "you are good at speaking Chinese."

Structure

很会 + Verb

Examples

• 这 个 女 孩子 很 会 唱歌。 This girl can really sing.
• 我 的 妈妈 很 会 做 饭。 My mother really knows how to cook.
• 他 很 会 骗 人。 He can really deceive people.

能 means "to be able to"

能 expresses having a certain ability or having obtained a certain requirement. It can also indicate that circumstances make an action not possible, or that an action is not allowed.

Structure

能 + Verb

Examples

• 你 能 吃 三 碗 米饭 吗？ Are you able to eat three bowls of rice?
• 你 能 记 住 所有 国家 的 名字 吗？ Are you able to remember the names of all of the countries you've lived in?
• 三 个 月 的 小 孩子 不 能 走路。 Three month old children are unable to walk.

可以 means "to have permission to"

可以 expresses having another person's permission. It can be thought of in the context of "allowed or not allowed".

Structure

可以 + Verb

Examples

• 我 可以 进来 吗？ Am I allowed to enter?
• 你 可以 帮 我 一下 吗？ Could you help me a bit?
• 不 可以 带 危险 物品 上车。 You're not allowed to bring dangerous things in the car.

Examples of similar expressions, but with different meanings

• 我 现在 能 跳舞 了，我 的 脚 伤 好 了。 I am able to dance now, my foot is better. (The condition changed)
• 我 现在 会 跳舞 了，我 学 了 两 个 月。 I know how to dance now, I studied for two months. (It's a learned skill)
• 我 现在 可以 跳舞 了，我 爸爸 同意 了。 I'm allowed to dance now, my dad agreed. (The dad gave permission)

Example dialog

• A: 我 可以 和 他们 一起 踢 足球 吗？ Can I play soccer with them? (Am I allowed?)
• B: 你 的 腿 还 没 好，现在 你 不 能 踢。 Your foot still isn't better. You can't go right now. (His rule prohibits it)
• A: 它 会 好 吗？ Will it get better? (会 indicates the future)
• B: 很 快 就 会 好 的。 It will get better soon.

For a good visualization on how these three overlap, check out the Chinese Modal Verb Venn Diagram.

See also

• Auxiliary verb "hui" for "will"
• Expressing a learned skill
• Expressing ability or possibility
• Expressing permission

Sources and further reading

Books

• 对外汉语教学语法释疑201例 (p.55,p.65) →buy
• Integrated Chinese: Level 1, Part 1 (3rd ed) (pp. 219-20) →buy

Dictionaries

• 现代汉语词典（第5版） (能p.989， 可以p.773，会p.610) →buy

Websites

• sinosplice: http://www.sinosplice.com/life/archives/2009/10/13/chinese-modal-verb-venn-diagram