可 (kě): can; may; able to

Meanings

1 can; may; able to
2 to approve; to permit
3 but; however
4 certainly; really; very

Characters

可

kě

can; may; -able; but; really

Examples

可以进来吗？

Kěyǐ jìnlái ma?

May I come in?

可是我不同意。

Kěshì wǒ bù tóngyì.

But I don't agree.

这个蛋糕可好吃了！

Zhège dàngāo kě hǎochī le!

This cake is really delicious!

Tips

grammar

Four jobs in one character. As a modal verb: 可以 (can / may), 可 + verb meaning -able as in 可怕 (scary) and 可爱 (cute). As a conjunction: 可是 (but). As an emphasis adverb before adjectives: 可 + adj + 了 means "really very ___" — 可好吃了 (really tasty). As a verb: 认可 (to approve / endorse).

mistakes

可 has a second reading 可 used in exactly one compound: 可汗 (khan, the Mongol/Turkic ruler title). Everywhere else 可 is read kě. If you see it in front of 汗, switch to kè; otherwise default to kě.

Components

radical

口 kǒu

mouth

The mouth radical tucked inside the hook — this is the indexing radical and the meaning anchor. The original sense was an approving "yes!" shouted out loud, which is why every modern reading clusters around mouth-acts of permission and judgement: 可以 (may), 认可 (to approve), 可怕 (worthy of fearing). The mouth gives the green light.

phonetic

丁 dīng

nail; man (graphic skeleton here)

The top horizontal and the long curving hook together outline a 丁-shaped frame around the mouth. Historically this skeleton represents a curved haft or chanting-stick — the part of the original graph that wasn't the mouth. It also serves as a rough phonetic anchor: 丁, 钉, 叮 and 可 share this skeleton even though modern readings have drifted apart.