VOA慢速英语--Past Ability: Could, Was Able To, Managed To

 

Imagine that you are interviewing for a job you really want. Most of the questions are in your native language, but the job will require you to use some English. So, the employer¹ asks about your English skills. You might answer with the words, "I can speak English very well" or "I am able to speak English very well."

The two statements have the same meaning.

Both "can" and "be able to" are used to express ability. In a spoken exchange, "can" is far more common while "be able to" sounds less natural.

However, when we are talking about the past, the rules change a bit.

Today, I will show you how to express past abilities with "could" "was (or) were able to" and another phrase you may have heard before — "managed to."

The first thing to know is that, in the past tense, we express general abilities and abilities at specific times in different ways. That is important, as you will soon see.

General abilities

Let's start with general abilities. These are skills or talents a person once had. In the past tense, English speakers almost always use "could."

Listen to a few examples.

By the time he was four, Guillermo could read and write.

In high school, she could beat anyone in a running race.

I could mimic² bird sounds when I was younger.

Again, we are talking about general skills or talents – not about a specific occasion³.

Note that, in any of these examples, "was (or) were able to" is also possible but used less often. You could say, for example, "By the time he was four, Guillermo was able to read and write," and it would be fine. It also might sound a little formal in spoken English.

Specific occasions⁴

Now, let's talk about specific occasions. Here is where the rules change a bit.

When we are talking about a specific situation or when noting a specific achievement, we must use "was (or) were able to" or "managed to." Their meanings are very close.

We do not use "could."

Listen to some examples:

We were able to get a really good price on the car.

We managed to get a really good price on the car.

I was able to persuade her to volunteer at the show.

I managed to persuade her to volunteer at the show.

Now let's talk more about the meanings. "Was (or) were able to" and "managed to" both suggest effort. They mean someone succeeded in doing something that was a challenge or took a special effort. However, the phrase "managed to" puts a little more emphasis⁵ on how hard the challenge was or how much effort it took.

Note that "managed to" is fairly common in spoken English. You will hear it used almost everywhere.

Exception⁶ to the rule

Now, let's take a few minutes to quickly explore an exception to the rules we just discussed.

Earlier, I told you that we use "could" for general abilities. But there are two kinds of verbs where we also use "could" for specific occasions.

With sense verbs, such as "smell" and "taste," and thought process verbs, such as "believe" "decide" and "understand," we usually use "could" even when talking about specific occasions.

Listen to two examples of what I mean:

I walked past a market today and could smell the freshly baked bread.

We couldn't decide what to get for his birthday so we bought a gift card.

Note that the second example uses the negative form -- "couldn't."

Using the negatives

So, now would be a good time to talk more about negative forms.

The good news is that we can use "couldn't," "wasn't (or) weren't able to," or "didn't manage to" to express the same thing – inability on a specific occasion in the past. Listen to how these are used for the same statement.

He studied for months but couldn't pass the bar exam.

He studied for months but wasn't able to pass the bar exam.

He studied for months but didn't manage to pass the bar exam.

All three sentences mean that a person was not capable⁷ of doing something on a specific occasion.

Note also that sometimes, for the negative form of "managed to," we say, "couldn't manage to" instead of "didn't manage to." They mean the same thing:

He studied for months but couldn't manage to pass the bar exam.

Well, that's all for now. Luckily, I did manage to do something today: teach you how to talk about past abilities!

I'm Alice Bryant.

Alice Bryant wrote this story for VOA Learning⁸ English. George Grow was the editor.

Words in This Story

phrase – n. a group of two or more words that express an idea but do not usually form a complete sentence

specific – adj. precise⁹ or exact

mimic – v. to create the appearance or effect of (something)

formal – adj. suitable for serious or official speech and writing

achievement – n. something that has been done or achieved through effort

challenge – n. something that is hard to do

emphasis – n. special importance or attention given to something

baked – adj. cooked in an oven¹⁰ using dry heat

negative – adj. expressing denial¹¹ or refusal¹²

bar – n. the test that a person must pass in order to be a lawyer

1 employer   

n.雇用方，雇主

参考例句：

• My employer deducted ten pounds from my wages this week.我的雇主从我本周的工钱中扣除了十英镑。
• His monthly salary is paid into the bank by his employer.他的月薪由雇主替他存入银行。

2 mimic   

v.模仿，戏弄；n.模仿他人言行的人

参考例句：

• A parrot can mimic a person's voice.鹦鹉能学人的声音。
• He used to mimic speech peculiarities of another.他过去总是模仿别人讲话的特点。

3 occasion   

n.场合，时机，机会，诱因，理由；vt.惹起，引起

参考例句：

• Her dress was too showy for such a formal occasion.在如此正式的场合，她的服装过分华丽了。
• Her tears were fought back on such an occasion.在这种场合下她忍住了眼泪。

4 occasions   

n.机会( occasion的名词复数 )；时刻；原因；需要

参考例句：

• The prosecution stated that intercourse had occurred on several occasions. 控诉方称发生过数次性交。
• He has been late on numerous occasions. 他已经迟到过无数次了。

5 emphasis   

n.强调，重点，重要性

参考例句：

• The emphasis has shifted markedly in recent years.最近几年重点已经明显改变了。
• Particular emphasis will be placed on oral language training.将会特别强调口语训练。

6 exception   

n.例外,除外

参考例句：

• Everyone should keep discipline and you are no exception. 每个人都应该遵守纪律,你也毫无例外。
• There's an exception to every rule. 每项规则均有例外。

7 capable   

adj.有能力的，有才能的

参考例句：

• The new woman secretary was extremely clever and capable.这位新来的女秘书很是精明强干。
• Jim is capable at sports.吉姆擅长运动。

8 learning   

n.学问，学识，学习；动词learn的现在分词

参考例句：

• When you are learning to ride a bicycle,you often fall off.初学骑自行车时，常会从车上掉下来。
• Learning languages isn't just a matter of remembering words.学习语言不仅仅是记些单词的事。

9 precise   

adj.精确的，恰好的，极清楚的

参考例句：

• At that precise moment, Miss Pulteney came into the office.就在那时，普尔特尼小姐走进了办公室。
• A scientist must be precise in making tests.科学家做试验必须精确。

10 oven   

n.烤炉；烤箱

参考例句：

• You put food inside an oven to cook it.你把食物放进烤箱里热一下。
• She baked bread in an oven.她用烤炉烤面包。

11 denial   

n.否认；拒绝，拒绝给予

参考例句：

• The newspaper printed a denial of the untrue story.报社刊登了否认不实消息的声明。
• Her denial of my advice hurts me.她拒绝我的忠告伤害了我。

12 refusal   

n.拒绝

参考例句：

• He persisted in his refusal to pay the money.他坚持拒绝付钱。
• Our offer was met with a firm refusal.我们的报价被坚决拒绝。