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How to Say ‘Can’ in Simplified Chinese

可以

kě yǐ

[kuh-yee]

💬 Usage Tip: [可以] often means more than "can" — it can also mean "that works" or "that's okay." So [我觉得可以] is often closer to "I think that should work."

Phrase Breakdown

可以

kě yǐ

[kuh-yee]

can; okay; possible

Used to express permission, possibility, or that something is acceptable.

Example

如果这个目标太难,我们可以先改小一点。

If this goal is too difficult, we can first make it a bit smaller.

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