kon ... het
Could Have: Kon ... Het
Use kon + ge- form + het for could have: Jy kon my gevra het! (You could have asked me!)
How It Works
1. The pattern. Put kon in second place, like any modal. The ge- form and het go to the end, in that order (see het + ge-):
- Hy kon dit gedoen het. (He could have done it.)
- Ons kon gewen het, maar ons was te moeg. (We could have won, but we were too tired.)
2. A chance that was missed. Often the thing did not happen. Said to someone, it can sound like a gentle complaint: Jy kon my gevra het! (You could have asked me!) A common phrase is Dit kon erger gewees het. (It could have been worse.)
3. Something that may have happened. Kon ... het can also be a careful guess about the past, often with dalk (maybe): Sy kon dalk verdwaal het. (She may have got lost.) For this meaning, kan ... het is also common.
4. Kon without het is different. Without het, kon is a plain past: Ek kon nie kom nie means I could not come, and I really did not come (see kon/moes/wou). With het, Ek kon gekom het means I could have come, but I did not.
5. In a subordinate clause the verbs stay together at the end, with kon first: Ek weet dat ek beter kon gedoen het. (I know that I could have done better.)
Tip: Kon ... het is built just like sou ... het (would have) and moes ... het (should have). Only the modal changes.
Examples (6)
- Hy kon dit gedoen het.
He could have done it.
Word by Word: He could it done have.
Either he was able to do it but did not, or it is possible that he did it. The situation tells you which.
- Jy kon my gevra het!
You could have asked me!
Word by Word: You could me asked have!
A gentle complaint about a missed chance.
- Ons kon gewen het, maar ons was te moeg.
We could have won, but we were too tired.
Word by Word: We could won have, but we were too tired.
- Dit kon erger gewees het.
It could have been worse.
Word by Word: It could worse been have.
- Sy kon dalk verdwaal het.
She may have got lost.
Word by Word: She could maybe lost-got have.
With dalk, the sentence is a guess about what possibly happened.
- Ek weet dat ek beter kon gedoen het.
I know that I could have done better.
Word by Word: I know that I better could done have.
In the dat-clause all three verbs stand together at the end.
Common Mistakes
Using the bare verb instead of the ge- form.
Hy kon dit doen het.Hy kon dit gedoen het.Het always needs the ge- form of the other verb: gedoen, not doen.
Putting het straight after kon.
Jy kon het my gevra!Jy kon my gevra het!Only kon takes second place. The ge- form and het both go to the end, with het last.
Leaving out the ge- form and het when you mean could have.
Ons kon wen, maar ons het nie hard genoeg geoefen nie.Ons kon gewen het, maar ons het nie hard genoeg geoefen nie.Ons kon wen means we were able to win. To say that a win was possible but did not happen, use the ge- form and het.
How It Connects
Learn This First
Kon ... het talks about what could have happened, built like moes ... het.
Related Patterns
- kon/moes/wouModals in the Past
Kon on its own is a plain past: Ek kon nie kom nie means I could not come.
Level 2 - sou ... hetWould Have: Sou ... Het
The same frame with sou means would have.
Level 4 - moet/kan ... hetGuessing About the Past: Moet ... Het
Kan ... het is another way to say that something may have happened.
Level 4 - het + kon/moes/wouModals After Het: Het Nie Kon Kom Nie
Het + kon + bare infinitive describes real past ability, not a missed chance.
Level 3 - het + ge-The Past Tense: Het + Ge-
Kon ... het uses the same ge- form as the normal past.
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice kon ... het in Bubblegum
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