Examples: She can speak Italian very well. I could swim, but I couldn't ride a bike when I was nine years old. You can play with Amy after you do your homework.

When use can and could?

Can, like could and would, is used to ask a polite question, but can is only used to ask permission to do or say something ("Can I borrow your car?" "Can I get you something to drink?"). Could is the past tense of can, but it also has uses apart from that--and that is where the confusion lies.

Can could sentence?

To express ability in the past

I could ride a horse when I was younger but now I can't. She could juggle eight balls when she was only 10 years old. He could read when he was three years old.