Past ability

Do you know how to use could, was able to, and managed to talk about past abilities? Enhance your knowledge with a lesson given below and the grammar explanation to guide you better.

Look at these examples to see how could, was able to, and managed to are used.

• I could swim across the lake when I was eight years old.

• She wasn’t able to finish the race due to an injury.

• They managed to solve the puzzle in record time.

Grammar explanation - Past ability

Here are the grammar explanation to guide you better:

1. General ability

We usually use could or couldn't to talk about general abilities in the past.

• He could ride a bike when he was five years old.

• I couldn't drive until I turned eighteen.

• When I lived near the mountains, I could hike every weekend.

2. Ability on one occasion – successful

When we talk about achieving something on a specific occasion in the past, we use was/were able to (= had the ability to) and managed to (= succeeded in doing something difficult).

• The athlete was able to break the record during the championship.

• The student managed to finish the exam with only a few minutes to spare.

Could is not usually correct when we're talking about ability at a specific moment in the past.

3. Ability on one occasion – unsuccessful

When we talk about a specific occasion when someone didn't have the ability to do something, we can use wasn't/weren't able to, didn't manage to, or couldn't.

• The chef wasn't able to prepare the dish in time for the guests.

• She couldn't attend the concert because she had another commitment.

• They practiced for weeks but they didn't manage to win the competition.

Note that wasn't/weren't able to is more formal than couldn't, while didn't manage to emphasises that the task was difficult to accomplish.

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