[Grammar] I can/could travel in July

[NAL123]

1) I can travel in July because my exams will definitely be finished at the beginning of that month.

2) I could travel in July because my exams will probably be finished at the beginning of that month.

Do 1) and 2) both sound correct and natural, especially sentence 2), without any additional context?

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

1) I can travel in July because my exams will definitely be finished by the beginning of the month.

2) I might be able to travel in July because my exams will probably be finished by the beginning of the month.

Do 1) and 2) both sound correct and natural, especially sentence 2), without any additional context?

In sentence 1, could and can would mean the same thing. They mean you will be able to travel.

In sentence 2, "probably" tells us that you're not certain that you will be able to travel. But you might.

 

[Yankee]

Yes.

 

[NAL123]

In sentence 1, could and can would mean the same thing. They mean you will be able to travel.

Q1): So the difference between "can" and "could" in the sentence: I can/could travel in July because my exams will definitely be finished by the beginning of the month. is not expressed in the sentence itself but it exists in the speaker's mind and he can express it if he wishes to. Is my understanding correct?

In sentence 2, "probably" tells us that you're not certain that you will be able to travel. But you might.

2) I might be able to travel in July because my exams will probably be finished by the beginning of the month.

3) I might travel in July because my exams will probably be finished by the beginning of the month.

Are 2) and 3) the same or different?

 

[NAL123]

a) I can travel in July because my exams will definitely be finished at the beginning of that month.

b) I could travel in July because my exams will probably be finished at the beginning of that month.
It is not possible to give a precise response, because you have two differences in this pair of sentences:

can/could and definitely/probably. Can denotes a real possibility, could a more theoretical possibility. These are presented as contigent upon the certainty or probability of another situation.

OK. These sentences are correct and don't need any other context:

I can travel in July because my exams will definitely be finished by the beginning of the month. (real possibility)
I could travel in July because my exams will definitely be finished by the beginning of the month. (theoretical possibility)

Am I right?

 

[NAL123]

Yes.

Can I say that the difference between "can"(real) and "could"(theoretical) in the sentences in post #6, exists in the speakers mind and he doesn't have to express it? And both mean it is possible for him to travel, that is, the possibility is "open". Am I right?

 

[NAL123]

By selecting can' over 'could. or vice versa, the speaker has expressed a difference.

Yes the speaker has expressed a difference, but the listener does not know exactly why the speaker has selected "could" over "can". He can only guess. Am I right?

 

[NAL123]

I don't think I have anything useful to add to what I have already said.

I meant when the speaker says, "I could travel..." instead of "I can travel...", the listener understands that the speaker is a little uncertain or you could say the former shows "hesitation" on the speaker's part. But exactly why the speaker is being uncertain, the listener does not know. Am I right?

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

I meant when the speaker says, "I could travel..." instead of "I can travel...", the listener understands that the speaker is a little uncertain or you could say the former shows "hesitation" on the speaker's part. But exactly why the speaker is being uncertain, the listener does not know. Am I right?

Could and can have different meanings and uses.

But as I said in #2: In that context, they mean the same thing:

You: Can you travel in December?
Me: Yes, I can travel then.

You: Can you travel in Demember?
Me: Yes, I could travel then.​

Do you see that both answers mean the same thing? They mean I will be able. They do not mean I might be able.

 

[NAL123]

Could and can have different meanings and uses.

But as I said in #2: In that context, they mean the same thing:

You: Can you travel in December?
Me: Yes, I can travel then.

You: Can you travel in December?
Me: Yes, I could travel then.​

Do you see that both answers mean the same thing? They mean I will be able. They do not mean I might be able.

What has led the speaker to choose "could" over "can" when they both mean the same thing?

 

[Charlie Bernstein]

What has led the speaker to choose "could" over "can" when they both mean the same thing?

We can't read the minds of fictitious people.

Again, you're right that the two words don't mean exactly the same thing. Few do. (Skillet and frying pan come to mind.) And you're right that can generally has a stronger connotation than could. I'm just saying that it's not always stronger. As in all language, context matters.

There is not one right way to say we can travel in December. I could have just said, "Yes." That would mean the same thing. Or I could have said, "I'll be able to travel then." Or: "There's nothing on my calendar yet for December."

They all mean that travel is a possibility.

Actors take lines of dialogue and practice saying them in different ways. Try it with "Yes, I can travel then" and "Yes, I could travel then."

You'll see that inflection tells more about what a speaker is thinking than the actual words. For example:

- YES! I could travel then! (I'd love to take that trip! I thought you'd never ask!)

vesus:

- Yes . . . I can travel then . . . . (I suppose so, though I'm really worried about Covid 19.)​

Context!