can know

[joham]

None of my dictionaries contains the use of 'can know', so I'm not familiar with it. Does it mean 'know' or ' can learn' or anything else?

This sentence comes from BNC:
Firstly, you can know that you are an OK person because you are the most fantastically designed, ...

Thank you in advance.

 

[Anglika]

Without more context - you are aware that.....

 

[jctgf]

i would like to follow up this thread.
thanks.

 

[schmoozed]

Assuming this were a report on some one who's reading it, then can know is acceptable - as if the examiner is directly talking to the person. But it's better to say Firstly, you must/should know...

Can/Could means it may or may not happen. And this doesn't seem to be the case in this sentence (the assessor very much knows what is being written there)

 

[engee30]

None of my dictionaries contains the use of 'can know', so I'm not familiar with it. Does it mean 'know' or ' can learn' or anything else?

This sentence comes from BNC:
Firstly, you can know that you are an OK person because you are the most fantastically designed, ...

Thank you in advance.

The modal can is often used with the so-called verbs of thinking (or verbs of the mind), so instead of saying ...you know... you can say ...you can know... (meaning roughly the same).

 

[jctgf]

The modal can is often used with the so-called verbs of thinking (or verbs of the mind), so instead of saying ...you know... you can say ...you can know... (meaning roughly the same).

hi,
extremely interesting!
I wouldn't bet a single dime on it.
how common is this usage?
can I say "you may know" instead of it?
thanks.

 

[engee30]

hi,
extremely interesting!
I wouldn't bet a single dime on it.
how common is this usage?
can I say "you may know" instead of it?
thanks.

No way! That usage of can is related to the ability of the mind only!
Look at Anglika's first post in this thread:
https://www.usingenglish.com/forum/267721-post2.html

You may know... = Perhaps you know.../Maybe you know...

 

[stuartnz]

No way! That usage of can is related to the ability of the mind only!
Look at Anglika's first post in this thread.

You may know... = Perhaps you know.../Maybe you know...

I'm not a teacher, but I would say that in the context of the original quote "you may know" would fit almost as well as as "you can know".

"you can know that you are an OK person because you are the most fantastically designed, ..."

"you may know that you are an OK person because you are the most fantastically designed, ..."

As a non-teacher, I don't know the technical framework, but I hear the possibility of both similarity and difference. It would not be out of the question for someone to use "you may know" in this context. I would parse the phrase saying: "you can (or may) have confidence that" or "you can (may) rest assured that"

 

[engee30]

I am neither a native speaker of English nor a teacher, but, to my way of thinking and to my knowledge, the modal can cannot be substituted with may in this case, with the same meaning remained.