Puedes completar la tarea.

Puedes is the present tense, second-person singular form of poder, which means to be able to / can.

So:

• yo puedo = I can
• tú puedes = you can
• él/ella/usted puede = he/she/you can

In this sentence, puedes matches an informal singular you: tú.

Spanish often drops subject pronouns because the verb form already shows who the subject is.

• Puedes completar la tarea.
• Tú puedes completar la tarea.

Both are correct. The version without tú is more natural in many everyday situations.

You would include tú mainly for emphasis, contrast, or clarity.

After poder, Spanish normally uses another verb in the infinitive.

So the pattern is:

• poder + infinitive

Examples:

• Puedo ir. = I can go.
• Puedes ayudar. = You can help.
• Puedes completar la tarea. = You can complete the task.

You do not say puedes completas or puedes completas.

La tarea usually means the task, the assignment, or homework, depending on context.

Common uses:

• in school: homework / assignment
• in general: task

So this sentence could fit both an academic context and a general work/task context.

La is the definite article meaning the.

Spanish uses articles very regularly, often more than English does. Here, la tarea means the task or the homework.

Also, tarea is a feminine singular noun, so it takes:

• la tarea
• not el tarea

Puedes is informal singular, used with tú.

If you want the formal singular version, you would say:

• Puede completar la tarea. = You can complete the task.
  This corresponds to usted.

In Spain, if you are speaking to more than one person informally, you would say:

• Podéis completar la tarea. = You all can complete the task.

Yes, sometimes puedes can express either:

• ability = you are able to
• permission/possibility = you may / you’re allowed to

So Puedes completar la tarea could mean:

• you are able to complete it
• you are allowed to complete it
• it is possible for you to complete it

The exact meaning depends on context.

The normal order here is:

• Puedes completar la tarea.

That is the most natural way to say it.

Spanish word order is somewhat flexible, but not every rearrangement sounds natural. For example:

• Puedes completar la tarea. = normal
• La tarea puedes completar. = possible in special contexts, but marked or emphatic
• Puedes la tarea completar. = unnatural

So for learners, it is best to keep poder + infinitive + object.

Yes, often you can, but there is a slight difference in feel.

• completar la tarea = complete the task, carry it out fully
• terminar la tarea = finish the task

In many contexts they overlap, but terminar often focuses more on reaching the end, while completar can sound a bit more like fully completing all required parts.

Tarea is pronounced in three syllables:

• ta-RE-a

The stress falls on RE.

A useful point for English speakers: the ea here does not become one English-style sound. You clearly pronounce both vowels:

• ta-RE-a

Yes. You just use question intonation and question marks:

• ¿Puedes completar la tarea?

This means Can you complete the task?

The words stay the same; the punctuation and intonation show that it is a question.

The infinitive is poder.

It changes to puedes because poder is a stem-changing verb in the present tense:

• yo puedo
• tú puedes
• él/ella/usted puede
• nosotros podemos
• vosotros podéis
• ellos/ellas/ustedes pueden

Notice that the o in the stem changes to ue in most forms, but not in nosotros or vosotros.

It is similar, but not exactly the same.

• Puedes completar la tarea = you can complete the task
• Eres capaz de completar la tarea = you are capable of completing the task

The second version focuses more on ability/capability, and can sound a bit more emphatic or descriptive. Puedes is the simpler and more common everyday structure.