Questions · CEFR A1
“Do you can” or “Can you”? Questions with modal verbs
Incorrect
Do you can…?
Correct
Can you…?
Modal verbs make their own questions: move the modal before the subject. “Can you help me?”, not “Do you can help me?”
The rule
Question: modal + subject + base verb: Can you swim? Should we wait? Must I go?
Negative: modal + not: can’t, shouldn’t, mustn’t - no do/does.
Use do/does only with ordinary verbs: Do you swim?
Examples
✗ Do you can speak French?
✓ Can you speak French?
✗ Does she must come?
✓ Must she come? / Does she have to come?
✗ I don’t can go.
✓ I can’t go.
Why learners make this mistake
Learners learn “Do you…?” as the question pattern for everything, then apply it to modals too.
Remember
Modals do their own work - no DO needed.
Frequently asked questions
- Why can I say “Do you have to…?”
- Because have to is not a true modal - have is an ordinary verb, so it uses do.
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