могу / можеш

Present Forms of Can

Level 2Sounds Like moći: mogu; možeš

The modal verb моћи means 'can' or 'to be able to'. In the present tense, its 1st person singular ends uniquely in -у (могу) rather than -м, while the remaining forms use the stem мож- (except the 3rd person plural, which is also могу). In standard Serbian, it is most commonly followed by да + present tense of the main verb.

How It Works

The verb моћи expresses physical or mental capacity, opportunity, or external feasibility ('can', 'to be able to'). It is one of the most frequent verbs in Serbian.

1. Unique Conjugation Features
Alongside хтети, моћи is one of only two verbs in Serbian whose 1st person singular present ending is -у (могу) instead of regular -м. Notice that the 1st person singular (ја могу) and the 3rd person plural (они могу) share the exact same form. The other forms undergo palatalization from г to ж before the vowel е (можеш, може, можемо, можете).

2. Complementation: 'да' + Present Tense
In contemporary standard Serbian, моћи is primarily linked to an action using the connector да followed by a conjugated verb in the present tense matching the subject:
• Ја могу да радим. (I can work.)
• Ти можеш да спаваш. (You can sleep.)
Although an infinitive complement (могу радити) is grammatically permissible, standard Serbian strongly prefers да + present tense.

3. Negation: Written Separately
Just like most verbs in standard Serbian (except нисам, нећу, немам, немој), the negative particle не is written as a separate word:
• не могу (I cannot / they cannot)
• не можеш (you cannot)

4. моћи vs. знати
Use моћи for situational possibility, permission, or physical ability. Use знати for learned skills or acquired know-how:
• Могу да играм фудбал данас. (I can play football today — I have the time/opportunity.)
• Знам да свирам клавир. (I know how to play piano — learned skill).

Examples (4)

  1. Ја могу да дођем сутра на састанак.

    I can come to the meeting tomorrow.

    Word by Word: I can that come.1sg tomorrow to meeting.

    Uses the 1st person singular 'могу' paired with 'да дођем'.

  2. Можеш ли да ми помогнеш?

    Can you help me?

    Word by Word: Can.2sg whether that to-me help.2sg?

    A polite question formed with 'можеш' and the interrogative particle 'ли'.

  3. Они не могу да заврше посао данас.

    They cannot finish the work today.

    Word by Word: They not can.3pl that finish.3pl work today.

    'Не могу' is written as two separate words, and 'могу' here indicates 3rd person plural.

  4. Ми можемо да позовемо такси.

    We can call a taxi.

    Word by Word: We can.1pl that call.1pl taxi.

    Shows the 1st person plural 'можемо' agreeing with 'позовемо'.

Common Mistakes

  • Saying 'можем' or 'могем' for 'I can' by analogy with regular verbs.

    Ја можем да видим све.
    Ја могу да видим све.

    The 1st person singular ending of 'моћи' is irregular: it ends strictly in '-у' (могу), never '-ем'.

  • Using an uninflected infinitive directly after 'да'.

    Не могу да спавати.
    Не могу да спавам.

    The conjunction 'да' requires the following verb to conjugate in the present tense matching the subject ('ја спавам').

  • Writing the negation together as one word (*немогу).

    Ја немогу данас да дођем.
    Ја не могу данас да дођем.

    The negative particle 'не' is always written separately from conjugated forms of 'моћи': 'не могу', 'не можеш', etc.

How It Connects

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

могу / можешLevel 2Present Forms of Can

Learn This First

To learn the full present conjugation of 'моћи' (могу, можеш, може...), you should already understand standard present tense verb agreement and be familiar with the common chunk 'може'.

Words in This Pattern

моћи