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German verb · CEFR A1

können

Meaning in English: can, to be able to

Rank 47 of 5,000verbLevel A19 forms in the list
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Example

Können wir uns morgen treffen?

Can we meet tomorrow?

Forms of können in the top 5,000

German verbs change their ending with the person and tense, and each form is counted on its own. These forms of können are also in the top 5,000:

kann#52
can (I/he/she/it)A1

Mein Sohn kann schon schwimmen.
My son can already swim.

könnte#246
couldA2

Könnte ich bitte die Rechnung haben?
Could I have the bill, please?

konnte#249
could, was able toA2

Gestern konnte ich nicht schlafen.
I couldn't sleep yesterday.

konnten#380
could, were able toA2

Wir konnten leider nicht länger bleiben.
Unfortunately we couldn't stay any longer.

könnten#483
could (we/they/you)A2

Könnten Sie das bitte wiederholen?
Could you repeat that, please?

könne#626
can, could (reported speech)B2

Sie sagte, sie könne heute nicht kommen.
She said she couldn't come today.

kannst#694
can (du form)A1

Kannst du mir bitte helfen?
Can you help me, please?

könnt#1,590
(you all) canA1

Ihr könnt gern bei uns übernachten.
You're welcome to stay the night with us.

How common is können?

können is number 47 of the 5,000 most common German words. In the texts the list is counted from it appears 2,669 times per million words — about once every 370 words.

Know every word down to this one and you recognise about 37% of the words in an ordinary German text. A1 means a beginner word, usually met in the first weeks of learning.

Next to it in the frequency list

  1. 43erhe, it (masculine)
  2. 44vorin front of; before; ago
  3. 45habento have
  4. 46zurto the (zu + der)
  5. 47könnencan, to be able to
  6. 48soso, like this, such
  7. 49aberbut
  8. 50nochstill, yet; more, another
  9. 51durchthrough; by (means of)

In these word lists

Translations, levels and examples were written with AI help and are awaiting review by a native speaker — how the list was made.