Could

Could is an auxiliary verb, a modal auxiliary verb. We use could
to:

  • talk about past possibility or ability
  • make requests

Structure of Could

subject + could + main verb

The main verb is always the bare infinitive (infinitive without “to”).

 

subject

auxiliary verb

main verb

+

My grandmother

could

swim.

-

She

could not

walk.

couldn’t

?

Could

your grandmother

swim?

Notice that:

  • Could is invariable. There is only one form of
    could    .
  • The main verb is always the bare infinitive.

The main verb is always the bare infinitive. We
cannot say:

 

Use of Could

could: Past Possibility or Ability

We use could to talk about what was possible in the past, what we were
able or free to do:

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