れる・られる (Potential)
To be able, Can (Potential)
Structure
［る1］Verb ￫ 見
［る5］Verb ￫ 座
［う］Verb ￫ 歌
［く］Verb ￫ 歩
［す］Verb ￫ 話
［つ］Verb ￫ 打
［ぬ］Verb ￫ 死
［ぶ］Verb ￫ 飛
［む］Verb ￫ 休
［ぐ］Verb ￫ 泳
Exceptions:
する ￫ できる
来る ￫ こられる
(1) 見れる、ら抜き言葉 (casual). Some may consider it not grammatical.
Explanation
In addition to their role in the 'passive' voice, the auxiliary verbs れる and られる are also used to express ability or '可能'.
られる is attached to the stem of る-Verbs (the verb form that remains after removing the final る). It is also important to note that れる and られる themselves conjugate as standard る-Verbs, allowing them to be used in a wide range of tenses just like any other verb.
- この窓、開けられる？Can you open this window? (Natural Japanese, and may express 'potential', 'passivity', 'respect', or 'spontaneous occurrence')
- 明日は早く起きられる？Are you able to get up early tomorrow? (Natural Japanese, and may express 'potential', 'passivity', 'respect', or 'spontaneous occurrence')
In modern spoken Japanese, you will frequently encounter words where the ら is dropped, a phenomenon known as 'ラ抜き言葉'. In these cases, れる is used by itself. However, this is not considered grammatically correct and can lead to ambiguity with る-Verbs and くる when られる is used to convey 'passivity', 'respect', or 'spontaneous occurrence'.
- 私は納豆も食べれるよ。I can even eat natto. (Natural Japanese only when expressing 'potential', not 'passivity', 'respect', or 'spontaneous occurrence')
- 明日のパーティー、来れる？Can you make it to the party tomorrow? (Natural Japanese only when expressing 'potential', not 'passivity', 'respect', or 'spontaneous occurrence')
For う-Verbs, the conjugation is slightly different. Instead of changing the verb's final kana to an あ sound and adding れる (which is the rule for passive verbs), the final kana is changed to its corresponding え sound (e.g., く becomes け, む becomes め, つ becomes て), and then る is added.
- 漢字が読めますか？Are you able to read kanji?
- 駅まで一人で歩けます。I can walk to the station on my own.
Interestingly, verbs ending in する lack their own 'potential' form; the verb できる is used instead to express this meaning.
- 彼は料理することができる。He is able to cook.
Caution
ことができる and られる (when conveying its 'potential' meaning) carry the exact same nuance. However, ことができる is generally considered by many to be a bit more polite.
Fun Fact
When using the potential form, the object may be marked by either を or が. It is important to be careful, however, as this rule does not extend to できる, which may only be used with が.
- やっとエアコンを付けられる！I can finally turn on the air conditioner!
- 今、どんな映画が見られるの？What kind of movies can you watch right now?
- 姉はピアノを弾くことができる。My older sister is able to play the piano.
Examples
この漢字が読めますか。
Can you read this kanji?
辛すぎてこれは食べられない。
This is so spicy I can't eat it.
お箸が使えますか。
Can you use chopsticks?
パーティーに来られるといいね。
I hope you can come to the party.
朝早く起きられなくて、すみませんでした。
I am sorry that I was unable to wake up early this morning.
この問題は難しすぎるから、解けないですよ。
This problem is too difficult, so I am unable to solve it.
喉が痛くて、大きな声では話せません。
My throat hurts, so I cannot speak loudly.
彼は留学したから、英語が上手に話せます。
He studied abroad, so he can speak English well.
父は難しい料理でも作れる。
My father can make even difficult dishes.
コーヒーを飲みすぎたから、今夜は寝られないかもしれない。
I drank too much coffee, so I might be unable to sleep tonight.
来週、やっと友達に会える。
I can finally meet my friend next week.
ここでは座れるけど、あそこでは座れないよ。
You can sit here, but you cannot sit over there.