Macmillan Holdings, LLC. Grammar Girl, Grammar Girl's, QDnow, and Quick and Dirty Tips are all trademarks of Macmillan Holdings, LLC. Is it OK to ask “Can I...”? Nico grammar It's quite funny that in German, there's just the same problem with "können" (can) vs. "dürfen" (may) although here are more people who stick with "may". When I was at school and asked my teacher wether I _can_ go to the bathroom, there were two possibilities. The nice teachers answered: "I don't know wether you can, but you may", whereas the evil ones said: "Oh, I think so", and countinued their lessons. BTW: I, as a foreigner, think that it should be: "May we expect you ...", because in a more complicated and formal way, it'd mean: "Do you give us the permission to expect you ..." http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=17727#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=17727#Comments Thu, 09 Jul 2009 13:51:14 GMT Daniel Poppet grammar It's bad advice like this that makes it so difficult for good writers to prevent incompetent editors from butchering their work with stupid, uneducated grammar changes. You are WRONG! Just because the majority of the population once believed the world was flat did not make it true. Do you have an English degree, a communications degree, or any degree at all? Have you ever edited for ANY major publisher, written for ANY major magazine, newspaper, or even a company newsletter? Grammar Girl-ha! They should call you Giggle Girl because your advice/column is a joke! http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=17725#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=17725#Comments Thu, 09 Jul 2009 08:26:35 GMT Peter Headland grammar "May we expect you..." is (was) idiomatic. Clearly permission is being sought, however silly that may seem - it's a social nicety akin to "will you permit me the pleasure of this dance?" http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=15195#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=15195#Comments Thu, 18 Dec 2008 00:39:57 GMT Frank Miller grammar Why is this [may v. can] such a problem in English? I mean, there is no difference between such verbs in Spanish, Latin, and Portuguese (there could be more languages, too). There is usually just one way of stating it. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=15138#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=15138#Comments Wed, 10 Dec 2008 03:21:22 GMT Jake grammar The answer that Bonnie Trenga gives, "Might we expect you tomorrow?" makes little sense, the answer being "You might expect me tomorrow." Nor does "shall" work. The only appropriate word that I can think of is "should," because the answerer is neither assessing the likelihood of our expecting him tomorrow nor telling us whether or not we will expect him tomorrow. He is telling us whether or not we should wait for him, depending on whether or not he is expecting to show. http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=15012#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=15012#Comments Thu, 04 Dec 2008 21:58:37 GMT Mike grammar My thought is that "Shall we expect you tomorrow?" would be the correct phrase. This, however, brings up the question about the word "shall" disappearing from common use in favour of "will". Does "Will we expect you tomorrow?" sound correct? http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=14936#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=14936#Comments Tue, 02 Dec 2008 06:22:48 GMT Ben grammar "Should we expect you tomorrow?" Or "Shall we expect you tomorrow?" http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=14851#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=14851#Comments Thu, 27 Nov 2008 21:37:34 GMT Dracosuave grammar 'Could we expect you tomorrow?' http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=14832#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=14832#Comments Tue, 25 Nov 2008 08:00:01 GMT Bridger Bell grammar I think the best way to use the questioner's construction is: "should we expect you tomorrow?" http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=14821#Comments http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx?commentid=14821#Comments Mon, 24 Nov 2008 04:40:15 GMT Thu, 09 Jul 2009 13:51:14 GMT http://grammar.quickanddirtytips.com/can-versus-may2.aspx feedback@quickanddirtytips.com (Managing Editor) feedback@quickanddirtytips.com (Webmaster) en-us