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present:i can . et au passé:i could ?
present:i can . et au passé:i could ?
There are only two cases I can think of, in which could can be considered as the past form of the verb can:
1. talking about general ability in the past:
I can cycle. [present]
I could cycle when I was ten. [past]
Even this is not an example of 'could' as the past tense of 'can', Engee. The connection here is not a syntactic one, it is a semantic one. [The Grammar Book: An ESL/EFL Teacher's Course, Second Edition]
All that is happening here is 'could' being used for one of its modal meanings, describing an ability that was present in the past. It isn't referencing a meaning of can and describing any specific past action, which is exactly what a past tense does.
A: I can do this neat trick with my fingers.
[A does the neat trick}
B: He could do that neat trick with his fingers.*
(the asterisk [*] denotes an ungrammatical sentence for the situation)
2. in reported/indirect speech:
She says her parrot can talk. [direct speech]
She said her parrot could talk. [reported speech]
:-D
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In modern English, modal verbs are tenseless auxiliary verbs.
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