RSS
Home
Forbidden uses of the word "can't"
Print
Email
RSS
Subscribe
The importance of limiting the word can’t in your vocabulary is impossible to overstate. People frequently say things like “I can’t do double-unders”, or “I can’t lift that much weight”. A good test for the “forbidden” context of this four-letter word is to ask “why can’t I?”
Can’t #1: “I can’t play the piano.” A small number of people can’t play the piano due to physical limitations like arthritis. Most people can’t play the piano because they never learned how to play the piano. This is the Can’t #1 group. Their only barrier to piano proficiency is instruction and practice.
Can’t #2: “I can’t flap my arms and fly to the moon.” Due to physics, this is a fairly safe statement for most people to make.
Can’t #3: “I can’t make a left turn across a double yellow line.” This isn’t a can’t – it’s a “may not”. Don’t confuse the two.
The main thing to remember is that Heena Patel didn’t start off with a 204 lb bench press – she began with an empty barbell just like everybody else, and Buddy Lee had to put in the hours learning to time a jump rope. The next time you start to think that you can’t do something, remind yourself that the word can’t should never be used as a synonym for "I haven't learned/done/practiced that".
Related Articles:
Add a Comment
