kunnen

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See also: künnen

Danish

Pronunciation

IPA(key):

Verb

kunnen

  1. gerund of kunne.

Noun

kunnen c

  1. ability, competence

Inflection

Declension of kunnen
common
gender 		Singular Plural
indefinite definite indefinite definite
nominative kunnen - - -
genitive kunnens - - -

References

“kunnen” in Den Danske Ordbog

Dutch

Alternative forms

Etymology

From Middle Dutch connen, cunnen, from Old Dutch cunnan, from Proto-West Germanic *kunnan, from Proto-Germanic *kunnaną, from Proto-Indo-European *ǵneh₃-.

Pronunciation

  • IPA(key): /ˈkʏnə(n)/
  • Audio:(file)
  • Hyphenation: kun‧nen
  • Rhymes: -ʏnən

Verb

kunnen

  1. (auxiliary) can, to be able to
    Synonym: (formal) vermogen
    Hij kon goed rennen, omdat hij een getraind sportbeoefenaar was. ― He could run well, because he was a trained sportsman.
  2. (auxiliary) may, can, to be allowed to
    Synonym: mogen
    Je kan me altijd bellen. ― You can always call me.
  3. (intransitive) to be possible
    Synonym: mogelijk zijn
    Dat kan niet. ― That is not possible.
  4. (intransitive) can go, to be able to go, can get
    Ik kan mijn huis niet meer in! ― I cannot get into my house anymore!
  5. (transitive) to be able to do, to be capable of
    Ik kan dat niet. ― I am not able to do that.
  6. (intransitive) to be available (for any type of meeting or appointment)
    Ik kan morgenavond niet. ― I will not be available tomorrow night.

Conjugation

The original past participle was gekunnen, but this is today not used in standard Dutch.

Conjugation of kunnen (preterite-present)
infinitive kunnen
past singular kon
past participle gekund
infinitive kunnen
gerund kunnen n
present tense past tense
1st person singular kan kon
2nd person sing. (jij) kunt, kan, kun2 kon
2nd person sing. (u) kunt, kan kon
2nd person sing. (gij) kunt kondt
3rd person singular kan kon
plural kunnen konden
subjunctive sing.1 kunne konde
subjunctive plur.1 kunnen konden
imperative sing. kan
imperative plur.1 kunt
participles kunnend gekund
1) Archaic. 2) In case of inversion.

Derived terms

Descendants

  • Afrikaans: kan (from inflected form kan)
  • Berbice Creole Dutch: kan (from inflected form kan)
  • Javindo: ken
  • Negerhollands: kan, ka (from inflected form kan)
  • Petjo: kan, ken
  • Skepi Creole Dutch: can (from inflected form kan)

Swedish

Verb

kunnen

  1. (obsolete) second-person plural present indicative of kunna 2nd person form.
    • Och om I gören gott mot dem som göra eder gott, vad tack kunnen I få därför?
      And if ye do good to them which do good to you, what thank have ye? (Luke 6:33, 1917 translation)
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