Look at these examples to see how could, was able to and managed to are used.
I could play the guitar when I was seven years old.
The police weren't able to catch the speeding car.
The bird managed to escape from its cage and fly away.
Try this exercise to test your grammar.
- Grammar test 1
Read the explanation to learn more.
Grammar explanation
General ability
We usually use could or couldn't to talk about general abilities in the past.
She could paint before she started school.
I couldn't cook until I went to university.
When I lived next to the pool, I could go swimming every day.
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 burglar was able to get in through the bathroom window.
The burglar managed to get in through the bathroom window even though it was locked.
Could is not usually correct when we're talking about ability at a specific moment in the past.
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 speaker wasn't able to attend the conference due to illness.
She couldn't watch the match because she was working.
They worked on it for months but they didn't manage to find a solution.
Note that wasn't/weren't able to is more formal than couldn't, while didn't manage to emphasises that the thing was difficult to do.
Do this exercise to test your grammar again.
- Grammar test 2
Hello Mimina,
'wasn't able to' is another correct answer for Test 1, question 5. 'weren't able to', however, is not correct, because when the subject is 'he', we say 'was' or 'wasn't' and not 'were' or 'weren't'. This latter form is for 'you', 'we' and 'they'.
Does that make sense?
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Oh I'm sorry. I didn't pay attention to it.
Thank you.
Hello Loc Duc,
We use 'manage to' or 'didn't manage to' to speak about a relatively discrete action, i.e. an action that is relatively quick and does not extend over time. 'afford' describes a state more than a discrete action, and so it sounds unnatural to use 'manage' here.
If there was a specific context -- for example, if I were talking about the time in my life right after I graduated from university -- then it would be possible to say 'wasn't able to' here.
But since in this case there is not specific context, 'couldn't' is the best answer.
Does that make sense?
All the best,
Kirk
The LearnEnglish Team
Hi Chekytan,
Yes, it is a specific occasion so you're right – the correct answer is were able to. Task 1 question 8 shows this answer.
Best wishes,
Jonathan
The LearnEnglish Team