Lesson 27
In the previous lesson, we learned how to use -(으)ㄹ 줄 알다 to say “to think/know that something will happen”. This sentence ending can be also used to express “can”, “to be able to”, or “to know how to”. The same meaning can also be expressed through -(으)ㄹ 수 있다; through this lesson, let’s find out how these two verb endings are used similarly or differently to express “can” or “to be able to”.
-(으)ㄹ 수 있다
This ending was introduced in Level 2 Lesson 17. This is the basic way to say “can” or “to be able to”. 수 basically means “possibility” or “method”.
Ex)
이거 할 수 있어요? = Can you do this?
언제 올 수 있어요? = When can you come?
여기에서 뭐 살 수 있어요? = What can I buy (it) here?
How to Say “can NOT”
If you want to say, “can NOT”, you can change 있다 to 없다 or add 못 to the sentence.
Ex)
갈 수 없어요. = I cannot go.
못 가요. = I cannot go.
-(으)ㄹ 줄 알다
This structure was introduced in the previous lesson as a sentence ending that means “to think/know that something will happen/be in a certain state”. When you are talking about “knowing how to do something” or “being able to do something”, 줄 here means “method” or “how”.
-(으)ㄹ 줄 = how/method
알다 = to know
-(으)ㄹ 줄 알다 = to know how to + Verb / to be able to + Verb
Ex)
운전 할 줄 알아요?
= Do you know how to drive?
= Can you drive?
* “운전 할 수 있어요?” has the same meaning.
김치 만들 줄 알아요?
= Do you know how to make kimchi?
= Can you make kimchi?
영어 할 줄 알아요?
= Do you (know how to) speak English?
= Can you speak English?
How to Say “can NOT”
If you want to say, “can NOT”, you need to change 알다 to 모르다. 모르다 means “to not know”.
Ex)
영어 할 줄 알아요? = Can you speak English?
영어 할 줄 몰라요. = I do not know how to speak English.
김치 만들 줄 알아요? = Can you make kimchi?
김치 만들 줄 몰라요. = I do not know how to make kimchi.
운전 할 줄 알아요? = Can you drive?
운전 할 줄 몰라요. = I do not know how to drive.
Difference Between -(으)ㄹ 수 있다 and -(으)ㄹ 줄 알다
-(으)ㄹ 수 있다 is the basic way to say “can” or “to be able to”, so it usually refers to one’s actual “capability” of doing something. On the other hand, -(으)ㄹ 줄 알다 means that you know how to do something, and you can do it, but in most cases, you have LEARNED how to do it. Therefore, there are some things that you CAN (-을 수 있다) do (potentially) but can NOT do it yet because you still do not know how to do it.
Ex)
아직 할 줄 몰라요. 그런데 할 수 있어요.
= I do not know how to do it yet. (I cannot do it yet.) But I am able to do it.
Sample Sentences
이거 할 줄 알아요?
= Do you know how to do this?
= 이거 할 수 있어요?
저는 영어 할 줄 몰라요.
= I do not speak English.
= I do not know how to speak English.
= I cannot speak English.
* If you know how to speak English, but cannot speak English at that moment, you would say, “영어 못 해요. = I cannot speak English (now).”
그거 한국어로 말할 수 있어요?
= Can you say that in Korean?
* You would use this if you know they can speak in Korean but are asking them to say what they said again in Korean.
그거 한국어로 말할 줄 알아요?
= Do you know how to say that in Korean?
자전거 탈 줄 알아요?
= Do you know how to ride a bike?
= Can you ride a bike?
자전거 탈 수 있어요?
= Can you ride a bike?
= Can you ride a bike (now/like that)?
How to Tell Which Meaning -(으)ㄹ 줄 알다 Takes
-(으)ㄹ 줄 알다 can mean either “to know how to” and “to know/think that something will happen”. There is no certain rule for this, but you can usually figure it out by context.
Examples
제가 올 줄 알았어요?
In the example above, if you interpret it as, “Did I know how to come here?”, it is a bit weird. So, you know it SHOULD mean, “Did you know I would come here?” or “Did you think I would come here?”
이거 만들 줄 알아요?
In the example above, if you interpret it as, “Do you think...” or “Do you know...”, you do not have enough information to figure out who’s going to make “this”. The meaning is usually not commonly used in the present tense, so you know it is easier to understand it as a question asking, “Do you know how to make this?”