koto ga dekimasu - Can do something Sunday, Apr 23 2006
Level 3 1:53 pm
Today I will cover the use of “koto ga dekimasu” which means “can do something”.
Example
Can speak Japanese - Nihongo o hanasu koto ga dekimasu
Cannot speak Japanese - Nihongo wa hanasu koto ga dekimasen
Meaning : Hanasu (Speak)
The verb shall be the original form (third sound) and it has to be placed just before the “koto ga…”. In the example above “hanasu” (sa shi su se so).
Another Example
Q : Can you make Japanese food? - Nihon ryōri o tsukuru kota ga dekimasu ka?
A : Yes, I can make Japanese food - Hai, nihon ryōri o tsukuru koto ga dekimasu
A : No, I cannot make Japanese food - Iie, nihon ryōri wa tsukuru koto ga dekimasen
Meaning : Ryōri (Food), Tsukuru (Make)
It’s easy. Go on, practise it and you should be able to master the usage in a short time.
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January 10th, 2007 at 4:18 am
I have a question. I see that you use o for dekiru and wa for dekinai. So, what would you use for a sentence like “kyou wa gakkou ni iku koto ga dekinai”? I know you could say “kyou wa gakkou ni ikenai” but is it possible to use dekiru/dekinai here?
Thanks a lot for making this site! Good information!
January 10th, 2007 at 10:17 pm
Hi Adam
Yes, you can use dekinai but “wa” should be used instead of “ga”
kyou wa gakkou ni iku koto
gawa dekinai“ga” is used when for “dekiru”
Hope this help
January 13th, 2007 at 1:42 am
Ahh, I understand. Thank you!
January 13th, 2007 at 7:56 am
You are always welcome, Adam
April 27th, 2008 at 1:44 am
Hi, I have a question, what´s the exact meaning of “dekiru dekinai?”
as I understand… is it “can,can not?”
please correct me if I am wrong
April 27th, 2008 at 3:30 pm
Hi Hanna,
You are correct.