mogu li / možete li

Polite Requests

Level 3

Use Mogu li for permission and Možete li for a polite request.

How It Works

These questions are the polite way to ask for things.

QuestionUse
Mogu li sjesti ovdje?May I sit here?
Možete li mi pomoći?Can you help me? (to a stranger or group)
Možeš li ponoviti?Can you repeat? (to a friend)

The little word li turns the sentence into a question. It comes straight after the verb, and a short word such as mi comes after li: Možete li mi pomoći?

The second verb is in the infinitive: sjesti, pomoći, dobiti. In speech, da and the present is also common: Mogu li da sjednem? Both are fine.

Add molim vas for extra politeness.

Examples (4)

  1. Mogu li sjesti ovdje?

    May I sit here?

    Mogu li asks for permission.

  2. Možete li mi reći koliko je sati?

    Can you tell me what time it is?

    Mi comes after li.

  3. Možeš li ponoviti, molim te?

    Can you repeat that, please?

    Možeš li, for a friend.

  4. Mogu li dobiti još jednu kafu?

    May I have another coffee?

    Dobiti means to get.

Common Mistakes

  • Learners put li at the end of the sentence.

    Možete mi pomoći li?
    Možete li mi pomoći?

    Li goes right after the verb.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

mogu li / možete liLevel 3Polite Requests

Learn This First

Polite requests use mogu and li.

Words in This Pattern

moćili