Asking and Giving Permission

English asks permission with a personal modal verb you conjugate: "may I come in?", "can we sit here?". Russian does it completely differently — and far more simply. There is no verb to conjugate at all. The entire permission exchange runs on one little impersonal word, мо́жно ("it's possible / it's allowed"), plus an infinitive — and its negative twin нельзя́ ("it's not allowed") for saying no. Once you see that "may I…?" is just Мо́жно + infinitive, the whole topic falls into place. This page covers asking, optionally marking who with the dative, granting, refusing, and the formal alternatives. The broader meanings of мо́жно/нельзя́ (ability, prohibition) are on мо́жно vs нельзя́.

мо́жно + infinitive = "may I…?"

The core pattern is Мо́жно + an infinitive. Мо́жно is an impersonal predicate — it doesn't agree with anyone, it doesn't change form, and the verb that follows stays in the infinitive. Literally it says "is it possible to…?", which in context means "may I / may we…?".

Notice there is no word for "I" in any of these — the speaker is understood. That is the heart of the impersonal construction: you ask whether the action is permitted in general, and the situation makes clear who wants to do it.

A few high-frequency short requests use мо́жно with just a noun, no verb:

мо́жно мне…? — marking who with the dative

If you want to make explicit who is asking — or to ask on someone else's behalf — add the person in the dative case: Мо́жно мне ("may I"), Мо́жно нам ("may we"), Мо́жно ему́ ("may he"). The dative names the person for whom the action would be allowed. This dative-with-impersonal-modal pattern is general in Russian; see the dative with impersonal modals.

The version with мне is a touch softer and more personal than bare мо́жно; both are polite. You'll hear children especially use Мо́жно мне…? when asking parents for things.

разреши́те / позво́льте — the formal request

For a more formal or deferential register — addressing an official, a senior colleague, or making a slightly ceremonious request — Russian uses the imperative Разреши́те or Позво́льте ("allow / permit [me]") plus an infinitive. These are genuine verbs in the imperative, addressed to вы, and they sound noticeably more formal than мо́жно.

"Do you mind if…?" — Не возража́ете…?

To ask whether someone objects to your doing something, use Не возража́ете, е́сли я + future tense ("do you mind if I…?", literally "you don't object if…?"). Unlike мо́жно, this puts a finite verb in the clause introduced by е́сли, and it's a particularly courteous way to ask.

Granting permission

Saying yes is short and warm. The standard affirmatives:

Note how the granting reply often adds an imperfective imperative (открыва́йте, проходи́те) to sound welcoming rather than clipped — the warm-invitation aspect explained on softening commands.

Refusing permission

To say no, the key word is нельзя́ ("it's not allowed / one mustn't") — the direct negative of мо́жно. Softeners like к сожале́нию ("unfortunately") cushion the refusal.

A short permission dialogue

Putting the pieces together, a natural exchange at someone's office door:

Common Mistakes

Key Takeaways

• Russian has no 'may I' verb to conjugate: ask permission with impersonal Мо́жно
  • infinitive (Мо́жно войти́?).
• Bare Мо́жно? with rising intonation is a complete polite "may I?".
• Add the person in the dative to specify who: Мо́жно мне / нам / ему́
  • infinitive.
• The formal request is Разреши́те / Позво́льте
  • infinitive; Не возража́ете, е́сли я…? = "do you mind if I…?".
• Grant with Да, коне́чно / Пожа́луйста / Коне́чно, мо́жно (often plus a warm imperfective imperative).
• Refuse with нельзя́ (the lexical negative of мо́жно) — never *не мо́жно — softened by К сожале́нию, нет.