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What is "could"

Crossword clues for could

could
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
could
modal verb
COLLOCATIONS FROM OTHER ENTRIES
as far as the eye could see (=all the distance you could see)
▪ The plains stretched for as far as the eye could see.
as fast as...legs could carry (=running as quickly as he could)
▪ Johnny ran off as fast as his legs could carry him .
as long as...could
▪ She tried to stay awake for as long as she could.
could barely
▪ She could barely understand English.
could hardly move
▪ The bar was so crowded you could hardly move.
could hardly
▪ The children were so excited they could hardly speak.
could hardly
▪ My boss could hardly be described as handsome.
could have...pick of
▪ Sarah could have her pick of any university in the country.
Could I interest you in a drink/dessert etc? (=used as a polite way of offering someone a drink etc)
could manage
▪ ‘Is there any chance you could work late?’ ‘I think I could manage an hour.’
could name
▪ They’re a lot better than some airlines I could name.
could take...pick of
▪ He knew he could take his pick of any of the girls in the office.
everything you could...desire
▪ The hotel has everything you could possibly desire.
everything...possibly could
▪ Doctors did everything they possibly could to save his life.
How could...possibly
▪ How could anyone possibly do such a thing?
I could use a laugh (=I want to hear something funny to cheer me up)
▪ Tell me what she said - I could use a laugh.
It could be argued that
▪ It could be argued that a dam might actually increase the risk of flooding.
only then did/would/could etc sb do sth (=at that moment and not before)
▪ Only then did she tell him about the attack.
sth could be worse
▪ Cheer up – things could be worse.
with as much...as he could muster
▪ ‘It’s going to be fine,’ replied David, with as much confidence as he could muster.
PHRASES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
I could eat a horse
I could have wept
▪ Without knowing what he'd got. I could have wept thinking what I'd missed.
I could murder a beer/pizza etc
I could/would go for sth
▪ I could really go for a taco right now.
▪ But at first I would go for a holiday.
▪ You always told me that if I worked hard, one day, I would go for Secondary.
I nearly died/I could have died
I would be grateful if you could/would ...
▪ I would be grateful if you could tell me anything about the guitar.
▪ I would be grateful if you could tell me where I can get hold of such posters.
▪ I would be grateful if you would examine Exhibit A. Do you recognise it?
▪ If you will be attending the site visit, I would be grateful if you could complete the tear-off slip below.
▪ This will take place at the above address on and I would be grateful if you could attend at.
as fast as his/her legs could carry him/her
▪ She ran to her mother as fast as her legs could carry her.
before you could blink
can/could afford
▪ He can afford to argue with the local hierarchy when the interests of his order require it.
▪ If you can afford to do so, buying your home outright usually makes sense.
▪ Jeremy Taylor is some one who can afford to put his principles into practice.
▪ More men would take leave if they could afford to, but taking leave usually means sacrificing income.
▪ Pip will simply be a gentleman because he can afford it.
▪ The Otis family house in Atchison had finally been sold that February, so Amy could afford to splurge a little.
▪ Two courses were probably all she could afford.
▪ You must be careful not to borrow more money that you can afford to repay.
can/could always do sth
can/could/may I have
▪ Are you saying that you're refusing to do that? ... Could I have your number?
▪ How can I have a death certificate?
▪ How could I have been anything but evil to her?
▪ How could I have been such a fool as to take him seriously?
▪ How else could I have known about it unless I was your son?
▪ It seemed a dream come true-what more could I have asked for?
▪ My question is, how can I have problems like other fishkeepers?
▪ What could I have paid for it?
cannot/could not bring yourself to do sth
▪ But I just couldn't bring myself to do it.
▪ He had died somewhere on the way to his next case, and Quinn could not bring himself to feel sorry.
▪ I debated with myself but in the end, I could not bring myself to pack up and leave.
▪ Rain could not bring herself to put this to the test.
▪ She could not bring herself to fall down the house stairs.
▪ The New-York Historical Society couldn't bring itself to do that.
▪ The teakettle made a brisk whistling sound, but John Wade could not bring himself to move.
▪ This little subterfuge the guard put into motion somehow he could not bring himself to do it.
could do with sth
▪ And Katherine could do with all the comfort she could get for the illness was slowly and inexorably taking its toll.
▪ But the Olympic gold medal was so far away from what I thought I could do with my life.
▪ He could do with a warm bed.
▪ I could do with a change of scenery.
▪ Just imagine what we could do with this idea.
▪ That was nice, she could do with settling.
▪ The governor said he could do with something to eat.
▪ We could do with another girl in the chorus.
could go either way
▪ It could go either way, as we have seen in previous months of March.
▪ M., still could go either way.
▪ The latest opinion poll suggests the vote could go either way.
could use sth
could/can you possibly
▪ But what else could she possibly hope to see? she wondered miserably.
▪ But what on earth can he possibly have been trying to prove?
▪ How can they possibly control such success?
▪ How could she possibly know, since he had not set eyes on the girl?
▪ What can I possibly say now?
▪ What conversation could we possibly have had there, then?
▪ What could she possibly tell him, that he would want to hear?
could/can/might easily
▪ A high-resolution image, by contrast, could easily run as large as 15 million to 20 million bytes.
▪ A single mutational step can easily be reversed.
▪ But a small error in the procedure could easily leave her inoperable, or at least changed beyond recognition.
▪ Governments can easily guarantee their employees a job, without guaranteeing the job they currently hold.
▪ If you are writing on a complex topic a reader can easily become confused.
▪ This was his hobby, sketching vertical monstrosities, though he might easily have been a spy.
▪ Yet the world champion is so unpredictably gifted that one on-song display could easily enable her to sweep aside the opposition.
▪ Young minds can easily assimilate and embrace all kinds of musical styles.
could/may/might yet do sth
how can/could sb do sth?
if looks could kill
it was all I could do to do sth
▪ I followed one up the motorway just yesterday and it was all I could do to not retch.
▪ When pro golfer Tiger Woods won the Masters two weeks ago, it was all I could do to suppress a yawn.
it was as much as sb could do to do sth
may/might/could (just) as well
▪ And if you have to plough the field anyway, you might as well plant it at the same time.
▪ And we might as well get used to it and resolve to cope.
▪ Besides, they cost so much, you might as well get some fun out of them.
▪ I thought I might just as well come down to the point.
▪ If the traveler expects the high way to be safe and well-graded, he might as well stay at home.
▪ It might as well be now.
▪ She might as well see how the enemy behaved themselves in a place like this.
▪ While she was there, they might as well have added the charge of breaching the Trades Description Act.
may/might/could well
▪ As we have already noted, he may well have been a militant nationalist who did not shrink from violence.
▪ But the women whom they find may well not match their feminist consciousness.
▪ By and large Alex and I think these developments are likely to give tangible gains and could well become a priority for implementation.
▪ In addition, the clarification of such issues could well provide the initial stimulus for a whole school language policy.
▪ It is too early to be entirely sure, but it looks as though the tide may well have turned.
▪ The requirements may well be modified as detailed work and discussion proceed.
nothing could be further from the truth
▪ A lot of people think soufflés are hard to make. Nothing could be further from the truth.
▪ They say he is a spy, but nothing could be further from the truth.
nothing could be further from the truth
nothing could be/is further from sb's mind/thoughts
sb can/could do sth for England
sb could do worse than do sth
▪ A woman could do worse than be a nurse.
▪ He could do worse than spend his evening keeping an eye on her.
▪ In groping for useful precedents, one could do worse than heed the tale of a man named Sherwood Rowland.
▪ The West could do worse than to base its policy towards the Middle East on that aspiration.
▪ You could do worse than take a leaf out of the health economists' book.
sb could have sworn (that) ...
▪ All of which is very curious we could have sworn Colin Milburn went to good old Greencroft comprehensive.
▪ Athelstan could have sworn he was acting as if there was some one else there.
▪ Corbett could have sworn that momentarily he glimpsed another figure, shadow-like, but fled on.
▪ He could have sworn the pile of letters had been deeper, that there had been many more.
▪ No, he recalled other sightings, so real you could have sworn they were alive ... until they vanished.
▪ She could have sworn the light had been yellow - pure yellow.
▪ The friar could have sworn that Sir John was singing a hymn or a song under his breath.
▪ The Myrcans looked on with what he could have sworn was approval.
sb/sth could stand sth
wild horses would/could not ...
would/could kill for sth
▪ But Katrinka is sustained by her search for her long-lost son, and a wardrobe a Vegas showgirl could kill for.
▪ I could kill for him, easily and without thought.
▪ Most retailers would kill for that kind of performance.
▪ Some of the lasses would kill for tab-ends and that.
you could cut the atmosphere with a knife
you could cut the atmosphere/air/tension with a knife
you could have fooled me
▪ "Look, we're doing our best to fix it." "Well, you could have fooled me."
you could hear a pin drop
▪ After he finished telling the story you could have heard a pin drop.
▪ It was so quiet in the hall you could hear a pin drop.
▪ You could hear a pin drop in the auditorium during Norvell's speech.
you could hear a pin drop
your heart's desire/everything your heart could desire
EXAMPLES FROM OTHER ENTRIES
▪ Could you drop off the kids on your way to work?
▪ Could you have her call me back when she gets home, please?
▪ Could you hear that all right?
▪ Dad said we could go swimming after lunch.
▪ Eleanor couldn't come last night.
▪ I'm sure Francis could find out for you.
▪ I don't think I could live with someone like that.
▪ Nobody could tell my hair was dirty.
▪ There's no way you could go by yourself, Kay.
▪ We could use plastic cups, so we don't have to wash anything.
▪ What about Sam? Could he come along, too?
▪ You guys could go to the Sirloin Saloon for a nice big steak.
The Collaborative International Dictionary
Could

Could \Could\ (k??d), imp. of Can. [OF. coude. The l was inserted by mistake, under the influence of should and would.] Was, should be, or would be, able, capable, or susceptible. Used as an auxiliary, in the past tense or in the conditional present. [1913 Webster] ||

Could

Can \Can\, v. t. & i. Note: [The transitive use is obsolete.] [imp. Could.] [OE. cunnen, cannen (1st sing. pres. I can), to know, know how, be able, AS. cunnan, 1st sing. pres. ic cann or can, pl. cunnon, 1st sing. imp. c[=u][eth]e (for cun[eth]e); p. p. c[=u][eth] (for cun[eth]); akin to OS. Kunnan, D. Kunnen, OHG. chunnan, G. k["o]nnen, Icel. kunna, Goth. Kunnan, and E. ken to know. The present tense I can (AS. ic cann) was originally a preterit, meaning I have known or Learned, and hence I know, know how. [root]45. See Ken, Know; cf. Con, Cunning, Uncouth.]

  1. To know; to understand. [Obs.]

    I can rimes of Rodin Hood.
    --Piers Plowman.

    I can no Latin, quod she.
    --Piers Plowman.

    Let the priest in surplice white, That defunctive music can.
    --Shak.

  2. To be able to do; to have power or influence. [Obs.]

    The will of Him who all things can.
    --Milton.

    For what, alas, can these my single arms?
    --Shak.

    M[ae]c[ae]nas and Agrippa, who can most with C[ae]sar.
    --Beau. & Fl.

  3. To be able; -- followed by an infinitive without to; as, I can go, but do not wish to.

    Syn: Can but, Can not but. It is an error to use the former of these phrases where the sens requires the latter. If we say, ``I can but perish if I go,'' ``But'' means only, and denotes that this is all or the worst that can happen. When the apostle Peter said. ``We can not but speak of the things which we have seen and heard.'' he referred to a moral constraint or necessety which rested upon him and his associates; and the meaning was, We cannot help speaking, We cannot refrain from speaking. This idea of a moral necessity or constraint is of frequent occurrence, and is also expressed in the phrase, ``I can not help it.'' Thus we say. ``I can not but hope,'' ``I can not but believe,'' ``I can not but think,'' ``I can not but remark,'' etc., in cases in which it would be an error to use the phrase can but.

    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
    --De Quincey.

    Tom felt that this was a rebuff for him, and could not but understand it as a left-handed hit at his employer.
    --Dickens.

Douglas Harper's Etymology Dictionary
could

Old English cuðe, past tense of cunnan "to be able" (see can (v.1)); ending changed 14c. to standard English -d(e). The excrescent -l- was added 15c.-16c. on model of would, should, where it is historical.

Wiktionary
could

vb. 1 (en-simple pastcan) 2 ''conditional of'' '''can''' 3 # (non-gloss definition: Used as a past subjunctive (contrary to fact).) 4 # (non-gloss definition: Used to politely ask for permission to do something). 5 # (non-gloss definition: Used to politely ask for someone else to do something). 6 # (non-gloss definition: Used to show the possibility that something might happen).

Usage examples of "could".

As the hour for supper drew near, I excused myself so well that Madame Orio could not insist upon my accepting her invitation to stay.

Tronchin would provide could not possibly be as comfortable and as safe as mine, and I entreated her to take it, assuring her that by accepting it she would give me a last proof of her affection.

I did not dare to light my lamp before this creature, and as night drew on he decided on accepting some bread and Cyprus wine, and he was afterwards obliged to do as best he could with my mattress, which was now the common bed of all new-comers.

Malipiero would often inquire from me what advantages were accruing to me from the welcome I received at the hands of the respectable ladies I had become acquainted with at his house, taking care to tell me, before I could have time to answer, that they were all endowed with the greatest virtue, and that I would give everybody a bad opinion of myself, if I ever breathed one word of disparagement to the high reputation they all enjoyed.

I also became acquainted there with the Count of Roquendorf and Count Sarotin, and with several noble young ladies who are called in Germany frauleins, and with a baroness who had led a pretty wild life, but who could yet captivate a man.

An observing critic who, without being acquainted with us, wished to guess whether love was present at our happy party, might have suspected, perhaps, but he certainly could not have affirmed, that it was there.

When Esther and I were alone I began to compliment her, much to her delight, on the cleverness of her answer, the elegance of her style, and her boldness, for she could not be as well acquainted with French affairs as I was.

I knew that the countess was acquainted with you, but I should never have thought that her name by itself could have such an astonishing effect.

Martinelli had an engagement and could not come to dinner, but he led me out of the park by a door with which I was not acquainted, and sent me on my way.

Never was an actress found who could replace her, and to find one it would be necessary that she should unite in herself all the perfections which Silvia possessed for the difficult profession of the stage: action, voice, intelligence, wit, countenance, manners, and a deep knowledge of the human heart.

After we had supped with the actress, Patu fancied a night devoted to a more agreeable occupation, and as I did not want to leave him I asked for a sofa on which I could sleep quietly during the night.

One could not have a pretty actress to supper without causing a scandal, but such an invitation to a castrato makes nobody talk.

I gave in, saying that I could not refuse anything to the adorable woman who had honoured me with the name of husband.

I never thought of revenge, for my heart, which can never cease to adore you, could never conceive such a dreadful idea.

I took the opportunity of telling her that if she willed I would be hers, as I adored her, but that I could not sigh for long.