能 (néng) is the "can" of capability and circumstance — being able to do something because you have the physical capacity, or because nothing in the situation is stopping you. Where 会 asks have you learned it?, 能 asks can you actually do it right now — do the conditions allow it? This is the crucial split English speakers have to build from scratch, because English collapses "I know how to swim" (a skill) and "I can swim across today, the water's calm" (circumstance) into the single word can. Mandarin keeps them apart: the first is 会, the second is 能.
能 for physical capacity and circumstance
The everyday core of 能 is: the action is possible for me in this situation. My body is up to it, or the circumstances permit it. Nothing here is about training — it's about whether, here and now, the thing can be done.
我能搬这个箱子，你别累着。
wǒ néng bān zhège xiāngzi, nǐ bié lèizháo
I can lift this box — don't tire yourself out. (informal) — physical capacity in the moment, so 能.
今天我不能来，我妈生病了。
jīntiān wǒ bù néng lái, wǒ mā shēngbìng le
I can't come today — my mum's ill. (informal) — a circumstance blocks it: 不能.
手机没电了，我不能给你打电话。
shǒujī méi diàn le, wǒ bù néng gěi nǐ dǎ diànhuà
My phone's dead, so I can't call you. (informal) — the situation, not any lack of skill, prevents it.
Look at how naturally the "because" clause fits: 能 sentences almost invite a reason attached to them, because they are fundamentally about what the conditions allow. "I can't come today — my mum's ill." The circumstance is the whole point.
能 for requests: "can you…?"
Because 能 asks whether circumstances allow an action, it's the natural modal for requests — you're really asking "are you in a position to do this for me?" The A-不-A form 能不能 is extremely common and sounds friendly and neutral.
你能不能帮我一下？
nǐ néng bu néng bāng wǒ yíxià?
Can you give me a hand? (informal) — 能不能 is the everyday way to ask a favour.
明天你能早点儿来吗？
míngtiān nǐ néng zǎodiǎnr lái ma?
Can you come a bit earlier tomorrow? (informal) — asking whether their circumstances allow it.
This overlaps with 可以 for requests, but with a different emphasis: 能 asks whether it's possible for you, while 可以 asks whether it's permitted. Both are polite; the fuller comparison is on the choosing page.
能 for extent: how far, how much
Here is where 能 and 会 divide most sharply. 会 says the skill exists (yes/no); 能 measures how much of it you can deploy. "I can swim" (I learned how) is 会; "I can swim 1,000 metres" (I'm capable to that extent) is 能. Any time a number, a distance, or a degree is attached, you're in 能 territory.
他能一口气游一千米。
tā néng yìkǒuqì yóu yìqiān mǐ
He can swim a thousand metres in one go. (neutral) — extent, so 能, even though the skill itself would be 会.
学了一年，我现在能看中文报纸了。
xué le yì nián, wǒ xiànzài néng kàn Zhōngwén bàozhǐ le
After a year of study, I can now read Chinese newspapers. (neutral) — reaching a level of ability: 能…了.
That second sentence shows 能 marking a level reached — capability that has grown to the point where a task is now within reach. 会看 would just mean "know how to read (characters)"; 能看报纸 means "capable of handling a whole newspaper." The 了 signals the threshold has been crossed.
能 for recovered or restored ability
Closely related: when an ability is temporarily lost and then comes back, that's 能, because it's about the current state of your circumstances (health, permission, availability), not your training.
医生说我下周就能出院了。
yīshēng shuō wǒ xiàzhōu jiù néng chūyuàn le
The doctor says I'll be able to leave hospital next week. (neutral) — a circumstance (recovery) will make it possible: 能.
你能听懂上海话吗？
nǐ néng tīngdǒng Shànghǎihuà ma?
Can you understand Shanghainese? (informal) — 听懂 pairs a resultative with 能: are you able to succeed in understanding?
The 能 + resultative-verb pattern (能听懂 "able to understand," 能看见 "able to see") is one of the most useful frames in the language. It overlaps with the potential complement (听得懂), which is a separate structure covered on the potential complement vs 能 page — often the two are interchangeable (我能听懂 ≈ 我听得懂), but 能 additionally lets you talk about permission and circumstance in a way the bare complement can't.
Negating with 不能: unable, and forbidden
不能 (bù néng) covers two ideas. First, plain inability-by-circumstance — the mirror of everything above. Second, prohibition — "may not / mustn't" — because if a rule forbids something, the circumstances (the rules) don't allow it.
这里不能停车。
zhèlǐ bù néng tíngchē
You can't park here. (neutral) — prohibition; the rules don't permit it.
我喝酒了，不能开车。
wǒ hē jiǔ le, bù néng kāichē
I've been drinking, so I can't drive. (informal) — a circumstance forbids it, even though I know how (会开车).
That drinking-and-driving example is the cleanest single illustration of 会 vs 能 in the language: 我会开车 (I have the skill) and 我不能开车 (the circumstance forbids it right now) sit happily in the same breath. Skill intact, circumstance blocking. Keep it in your pocket.
Common Mistakes
1. Using 能 for a bare learned-skill claim. To state simply that you know how to do something — with no extent or circumstance in view — use 会, not 能.
❌ 我很喜欢运动，也能游泳。
Off — as a plain 'I know how to swim' claim, this should be 会游泳; 能 pulls in an unwanted 'circumstances allow' reading.
✅ 我很喜欢运动，也会游泳。
wǒ hěn xǐhuan yùndòng, yě huì yóuyǒng
I love sport, and I can swim too. — a learned skill, so 会.
2. Using 会 for a circumstantial block. When it's the situation stopping you, not a lack of skill, it must be 不能.
❌ 今天太忙，我不会去。
Wrong — you're perfectly able to go; today's schedule blocks it, so 不能去.
✅ 今天太忙，我不能去。
jīntiān tài máng, wǒ bù néng qù
I'm too busy today, so I can't go. — circumstance, so 不能.
3. Using 不会 for a prohibition. A rule that forbids something is 不能 (or 不可以), never 不会 — 不会 would mean "doesn't know how / won't happen."
❌ 这里不会抽烟。
Wrong — this reads 'this place won't smoke'; to say smoking is forbidden, use 不能 or 不可以.
✅ 这里不能抽烟。
zhèlǐ bù néng chōuyān
You can't smoke here. — prohibition, so 不能.
4. Using 会 where extent is involved. As soon as a quantity or distance appears, switch from 会 to 能.
❌ 我会跑十公里。
Off — 会跑 just means 'know how to run'; with a distance it should be 能跑十公里.
✅ 我能跑十公里。
wǒ néng pǎo shí gōnglǐ
I can run ten kilometres. — extent, so 能.
Key Takeaways
- 能 (néng) is capability and circumstance: able to do it right now because conditions allow. It reacts to the situation — health, tiredness, rules, a free afternoon.
- It measures extent: 会游泳 (know how) vs 能游一千米 (capable to that distance). Numbers and degrees pull you to 能.
- It's the natural modal for requests (你能帮我吗？) and for reaching a new level of ability (现在能看报纸了).
- 不能 means both unable (by circumstance) and forbidden (mustn't).
- The signature contrast: 我会开车 (skill) but 我喝酒了，不能开车 (circumstance). Compare all three modals on the choosing 会 / 能 / 可以 page.
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- 会 (huì): Learned Ability and LikelihoodHSK 1 — 会 (huì) covers two ideas English keeps apart: a learned skill — 我会游泳 'I can swim' — and a confident prediction about the future — 明天会下雨 'it'll rain tomorrow'. Negated 不会.
- 可以 (kěyǐ): Permission and PossibilityHSK 1 — 可以 (kěyǐ) is 'can' in the sense you're allowed — permission and viable options: 你可以走了 'you may go', 这儿可以抽烟吗 'can I smoke here?'. Negated 不可以 means 'not allowed', never 'unable'.
- Choosing 会 vs 能 vs 可以HSK 2 — English 'can' splits into three Mandarin words: 会 (learned skill / prediction), 能 (capacity or circumstance), 可以 (permission / allowed). One decision — skill, circumstance, or permission — tells you which.
- Potential Complement vs 能: Two Kinds of 'Can'HSK 4 — The potential complement (听得懂, 进不去) says whether an action reaches its result; the modal 能 (néng) covers permission, circumstance, and general capacity. English 'can' blurs them — Chinese keeps 进不去 (physically can't get in) apart from 不能进去 (not allowed in).