Can vs. Should — What's the Difference?
Edited by Tayyaba Rehman — By Fiza Rafique — Updated on September 27, 2023
"Can" denotes the ability or capacity to do something, while "Should" indicates a recommendation, obligation, or expectation.
Difference Between Can and Should
Table of Contents
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Key Differences
"Can" and "Should" are both auxiliary verbs, but they convey different implications. While "Can" expresses a person's capability or potential to perform an action, "Should" offers advice or denotes something deemed appropriate.
In practical scenarios, someone might say, "I can swim," indicating a learned skill or ability. Conversely, "You should swim" is advice or a recommendation to take up swimming, maybe for health benefits.
When discussing permissions, "Can" signifies allowance or feasibility. For example, "Can I take this book?" asks for permission. "Should," on the other hand, won't be used in this context. Instead, it might be applied in a scenario like, "You should read this book," suggesting the book's potential value or importance.
"Can" can also represent possibilities or options. For instance, "It can rain today" refers to a possibility. However, "Should" leans more towards expectations, like "It should rain today," indicating a likely or anticipated event based on specific evidence.
Importantly, while "Can" remains neutral, simply stating facts or abilities, "Should" comes loaded with a sense of judgment, duty, or morality, often prescribing what's deemed right or suitable.
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Comparison Chart
Primary Use
Denotes ability or capacity.
Indicates recommendation or obligation.
Example Context
Skill or permission.
Advice or expectation.
Tone
Neutral.
Often prescriptive or advisory.
Future Implication
Implies potential or possibility.
Implies expectation based on advice or judgment
Grammar Category
Modal auxiliary verb.
Modal auxiliary verb.
Compare with Definitions
Can
To have permission.
Can I leave early today?
Should
To indicate obligation, duty, or correctness.
You should apologize.
Can
To indicate possibility.
It can be true.
Should
To indicate a likely event or condition.
It should rain tomorrow.
Can
Be able to
He can't afford it
They can run fast
I could hear footsteps
Should
Indicating a hypothetical scenario.
If you should change your mind, let me know.
Can
Be permitted to
You can use the phone if you want to
Nobody could legally drink on the premises
Should
Used to give advice.
You should wear a jacket.
Can
Used to request someone to do something
Can you open the window?
Can't you leave me alone?
Should
(auxiliary) Ought to; indicating opinion, advice, or instruction, about what is required or desirable.
Can
Preserve (food) in a can
Sardines and anchovies are worth the extra money if canned in olive oil
Should
Used to issue an instruction (traditionally seen as carrying less force of authority than alternatives such as 'shall' or 'must').
You should never drink and drive.
The law is clear that you should always wear a seat belt.
The manual says that this switch should be in the 'off' position.
Can
Dismiss from a job
He was canned because of a tiff over promotion
Should
Used to give advice or opinion that an action is, or would have been, beneficial or desirable.
You should go and see that film. I think you'll enjoy it.
I should exercise more often, but I’m too lazy.
She should not have been so rude.
Can
A cylindrical metal container
A can of paint
A petrol can
Should
(informal) With verbs such as 'see' or 'hear', usually in the second person, used to point out something remarkable in either a good or bad way.
You should see his new apartment. It's like a palace!
If you think her piano playing is bad, you should hear her sing!
Can
Prison
Our friends will get a year or two in the can
Should
In questions, asks what is correct, proper, desirable, etc.
What do you think? What should I do?
Can
The toilet
She walks in and has to use the can
Should
(auxiliary) Ought to; expressing expectation.
Can
Headphones.
Should
Indicates that something is expected to have happened or to be the case now.
They should have finished by now; I'll call them to check.
My fruit trees should be in flower, but the cold spring has set them back.
Can
A woman's breasts.
Should
Will be likely to (become or do something); indicates a degree of possibility or probability that the stated thing will happen or be true in the future.
They should have it finished by Friday.
When you press this button, the pilot flame should ignite.
You should be warm enough with that coat.
Can
A usually cylindrical metal container.
Should
Used to form a variant of the present subjunctive, expressing a state or action that is hypothetical, potential, mandated, etc.
If I should be late, go without me.
Should you need extra blankets, you will find them in the closet.
The man demanded that he should be allowed entry.
I'm surprised that he should say that.
Can
An airtight container, usually made of tin-coated iron, in which foods or beverages are preserved.
Should
(auxiliary) cap=1.
I told him that I should be busy tomorrow.
Can
The contents of such a container
Ate a can of beans.
Should
(auxiliary) An alternative to would with first person subjects.
Can
(Slang) A jail or prison.
Should
Used to express a conditional outcome.
If I had not been so tired, I should have laughed heartily.
Can
(Slang) A toilet or restroom.
Should
Used to impart a tentative, conjectural or polite nuance.
I should imagine that they have arrived by now.
I should think you would apologize.
Can
(Slang) The buttocks.
Should
Used to express what the speaker would do in another person's situation, as a means of giving a suggestion or recommendation.
It's disgraceful the way that they've treated you. I should write and complain.
Can
(Slang) A naval destroyer.
Should
To make a statement of what ought to be true, as opposed to reality. en
Can
To seal in an airtight container for future use; preserve
Canning peaches.
Should
Something that ought to be the case as opposed to already being the case.
Can
(Slang) To make a recording of
Can the audience's applause for a TV comedy show.
Should
Used as an auxiliary verb, to express a conditional or contingent act or state, or as a supposition of an actual fact; also, to express moral obligation (see Shall); e. g.: they should have come last week; if I should go; I should think you could go.
Can
To end the employment of; fire.
Should
To express desirability.
We should visit the museum.
Can
To put an end or stop to
Canned the TV show after one season.
Told the students to can the chatter.
Can
To solicit cash donations for a charity or other organization such as a club or amateur sports team by holding out a can or other container in a public place.
Can
To know how to; to be able to.
She can speak English, French, and German.
I can play football.
Can you remember your fifth birthday?
Can
May; to be permitted or enabled to.
You can go outside and play when you're finished with your homework.
Can I use your pen?
Can
(modal auxiliary verb, defective) To have the potential to; be possible.
Can it be Friday already?
Teenagers can really try their parents' patience.
Animals can experience emotions.
Can
Used with verbs of perception.
Can you hear that?.
I can feel the baby moving inside me.
Can
To know.
Can
To seal in a can.
They canned air to sell as a novelty to tourists.
Can
To preserve by heating and sealing in a jar or can.
They spent August canning fruit and vegetables.
Can
To discard, scrap or terminate (an idea, project, etc.).
He canned the whole project because he thought it would fail.
Can
To shut up.
Can your gob.
Can
To fire or dismiss an employee.
The boss canned him for speaking out.
Can
To hole the ball.
Can
(transitive) To cover (the fuel element in a nuclear reactor) with a protective cover.
Can
A more or less cylindrical vessel for liquids, usually of steel or aluminium, but sometimes of plastic, and with a carrying handle over the top.
Can
A container used to carry and dispense water for plants (a watering can).
Can
A tin-plate canister, often cylindrical, for preserved foods such as fruit, meat, or fish.
Can
A chamber pot, now a toilet or lavatory.
Shit or get off the can.
Bob's in the can. You can wait a few minutes or just leave it with me.
Can
Buttocks.
Can
(slang) Jail or prison.
Bob's in the can. He won't be back for a few years.
Can
Headphones.
Can
(archaic) A drinking cup.
Can
(nautical) A cube-shaped buoy or marker used to denote a port-side lateral mark
Can
A chimney pot.
Can
An E-meter used in Scientology auditing.
Can
An ounce (or sometimes, two ounces) of marijuana.
Can
A protective cover for the fuel element in a nuclear reactor.
Can
An obs. form of began, imp. & p. p. of Begin, sometimes used in old poetry. [See Gan.]
With gentle words he can faile gree.
Can
A drinking cup; a vessel for holding liquids.
Fill the cup and fill can,Have a rouse before the morn.
Can
A vessel or case of tinned iron or of sheet metal, of various forms, but usually cylindrical; as, a can of tomatoes; an oil can; a milk can.
Can
To preserve by putting in sealed cans
Can
To know; to understand.
I can rimes of Rodin Hood.
I can no Latin, quod she.
Let the priest in surplice white,That defunctive music can.
Can
To be able to do; to have power or influence.
The will of Him who all things can.
For what, alas, can these my single arms?
Mæcænas and Agrippa, who can most with Cæsar.
Can
To be able; - followed by an infinitive without to; as, I can go, but do not wish to.
Yet he could not but acknowledge to himself that there was something calculated to impress awe, . . . in the sudden appearances and vanishings . . . of the masque
Tom felt that this was a rebuff for him, and could not but understand it as a left-handed hit at his employer.
Can
Airtight sealed metal container for food or drink or paint etc.
Can
The quantity contained in a can
Can
A buoy with a round bottom and conical top
Can
The fleshy part of the human body that you sit on;
He deserves a good kick in the butt
Are you going to sit on your fanny and do nothing?
Can
A plumbing fixture for defecation and urination
Can
A room equipped with toilet facilities
Can
Preserve in a can or tin;
Tinned foods are not very tasty
Can
Terminate the employment of;
The boss fired his secretary today
The company terminated 25% of its workers
Can
To be able to.
I can play the piano.
Can
To request or offer.
Can you help me?
Can
A container for holding or preserving food.
Please open the can of beans.
Common Curiosities
Does "Should" always indicate moral obligation?
Not always, but it often carries a sense of duty or correctness.
Can "Can" be used to make requests?
Yes, like in the question, "Can you help?"
Can "Can" and "Should" be used interchangeably?
No, they serve different functions in sentences.
Is "Cannot" the same as "Can not"?
They're similar, but "Cannot" is more common. "Can not" can appear for emphasis in certain contexts.
Does "Can" always imply ability?
Not always. "Can" can imply ability, possibility, or permission.
Is "Should" used to talk about past events?
When combined with "have" as in "Should have," it refers to past events that didn't happen.
How does "Can" differ from "Could"?
"Can" often refers to present ability, while "Could" indicates past ability or present possibility.
Are "Can" and "Should" both modals?
Yes, both "Can" and "Should" are modal auxiliary verbs.
Is "Should" a stronger recommendation than "Could"?
Generally, yes. "Should" offers more direct advice, while "Could" presents an option.
Is "Should've" a contraction of "Should have"?
Yes, "Should've" is short for "Should have."
Can "Can" refer to a container?
Yes, but in that context, "Can" is a noun, not a modal verb.
How does "Should" compare with "Must"?
"Must" indicates a stronger obligation or necessity than "Should."
Can "Should" express uncertainty?
Yes, like in the sentence, "It should be the right answer," where there's some uncertainty.
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Written by
Fiza RafiqueFiza Rafique is a skilled content writer at AskDifference.com, where she meticulously refines and enhances written pieces. Drawing from her vast editorial expertise, Fiza ensures clarity, accuracy, and precision in every article. Passionate about language, she continually seeks to elevate the quality of content for readers worldwide.
Edited by
Tayyaba RehmanTayyaba Rehman is a distinguished writer, currently serving as a primary contributor to askdifference.com. As a researcher in semantics and etymology, Tayyaba's passion for the complexity of languages and their distinctions has found a perfect home on the platform. Tayyaba delves into the intricacies of language, distinguishing between commonly confused words and phrases, thereby providing clarity for readers worldwide.
