“Sweet you can/may eat”
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I'm sure the topic of "may" vs "can" has come up before, but I suspect the difference in some cases may be so subtle that such cases must be considered individually.
I try to come up with a slogan for a confectionary that makes healthy desserts. The message of the slogan is "you are allowed to eat these desserts, no harm will be done to your health". Which of the 2 conveys this message the best:
1) Sweet you may eat
2) Sweet you can eat?
I know that "may", grammatically, is the exact match here. But I suspect it's a verb that gets gradually replaced with "can", so, option 1 could sound a bit outdated. Am I right here? If so, does option 2 fully convey the original message?
Hope, this makes sense!
word-choice american-english
edited 2 days ago
Andrew Leach♦
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asked 2 days ago
mxgrnmxgrn
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I'm sure the topic of "may" vs "can" has come up before, but I suspect the difference in some cases may be so subtle that such cases must be considered individually.
I try to come up with a slogan for a confectionary that makes healthy desserts. The message of the slogan is "you are allowed to eat these desserts, no harm will be done to your health". Which of the 2 conveys this message the best:
1) Sweet you may eat
2) Sweet you can eat?
I know that "may", grammatically, is the exact match here. But I suspect it's a verb that gets gradually replaced with "can", so, option 1 could sound a bit outdated. Am I right here? If so, does option 2 fully convey the original message?
Hope, this makes sense!
word-choice american-english
edited 2 days ago
Andrew Leach♦
80.1k8154258
asked 2 days ago
mxgrnmxgrn
991
New contributor
mxgrn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Hmm, there’s a close vote for lack of research (not mine) so I’ll make some suggestions. Is that the complete slogan? Why is "may" the better match? This article implies either is fine. Milky Way had a similar slogan: "The sweet you can eat between meals (without ruining your appetite)".
– Pam
2 days ago
The meaning is just the same as in all of the other discussions on the same topic. If you're talking about somebody granting permission to eat, then use may; if you're talking about the ability to eat, then use can. But that's a very subtle distinction, and it all comes down to your own interpretation of the situation. If you want to convey both at the same time (you are both allowed to and able to), then the choice is entirely subjective.
– Jason Bassford
2 days ago
add a comment |
I'm sure the topic of "may" vs "can" has come up before, but I suspect the difference in some cases may be so subtle that such cases must be considered individually.
I try to come up with a slogan for a confectionary that makes healthy desserts. The message of the slogan is "you are allowed to eat these desserts, no harm will be done to your health". Which of the 2 conveys this message the best:
1) Sweet you may eat
2) Sweet you can eat?
I know that "may", grammatically, is the exact match here. But I suspect it's a verb that gets gradually replaced with "can", so, option 1 could sound a bit outdated. Am I right here? If so, does option 2 fully convey the original message?
Hope, this makes sense!
word-choice american-english
edited 2 days ago
Andrew Leach♦
80.1k8154258
asked 2 days ago
mxgrnmxgrn
991
New contributor
mxgrn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
I'm sure the topic of "may" vs "can" has come up before, but I suspect the difference in some cases may be so subtle that such cases must be considered individually.
I try to come up with a slogan for a confectionary that makes healthy desserts. The message of the slogan is "you are allowed to eat these desserts, no harm will be done to your health". Which of the 2 conveys this message the best:
1) Sweet you may eat
2) Sweet you can eat?
I know that "may", grammatically, is the exact match here. But I suspect it's a verb that gets gradually replaced with "can", so, option 1 could sound a bit outdated. Am I right here? If so, does option 2 fully convey the original message?
Hope, this makes sense!
word-choice american-english
word-choice american-english
edited 2 days ago
Andrew Leach♦
80.1k8154258
asked 2 days ago
mxgrnmxgrn
991
New contributor
mxgrn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited 2 days ago
Andrew Leach♦
80.1k8154258
asked 2 days ago
mxgrnmxgrn
991
New contributor
mxgrn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
edited 2 days ago
Andrew Leach♦
80.1k8154258
edited 2 days ago
Andrew Leach♦
80.1k8154258
edited 2 days ago
Andrew Leach♦
80.1k8154258
80.1k8154258
asked 2 days ago
mxgrnmxgrn
991
New contributor
mxgrn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
asked 2 days ago
mxgrnmxgrn
991
asked 2 days ago
mxgrnmxgrn
991
991
New contributor
mxgrn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
New contributor
mxgrn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
mxgrn is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
Check out our Code of Conduct.
Hmm, there’s a close vote for lack of research (not mine) so I’ll make some suggestions. Is that the complete slogan? Why is "may" the better match? This article implies either is fine. Milky Way had a similar slogan: "The sweet you can eat between meals (without ruining your appetite)".
– Pam
2 days ago
The meaning is just the same as in all of the other discussions on the same topic. If you're talking about somebody granting permission to eat, then use may; if you're talking about the ability to eat, then use can. But that's a very subtle distinction, and it all comes down to your own interpretation of the situation. If you want to convey both at the same time (you are both allowed to and able to), then the choice is entirely subjective.
– Jason Bassford
2 days ago
add a comment |
Hmm, there’s a close vote for lack of research (not mine) so I’ll make some suggestions. Is that the complete slogan? Why is "may" the better match? This article implies either is fine. Milky Way had a similar slogan: "The sweet you can eat between meals (without ruining your appetite)".
– Pam
2 days ago
The meaning is just the same as in all of the other discussions on the same topic. If you're talking about somebody granting permission to eat, then use may; if you're talking about the ability to eat, then use can. But that's a very subtle distinction, and it all comes down to your own interpretation of the situation. If you want to convey both at the same time (you are both allowed to and able to), then the choice is entirely subjective.
– Jason Bassford
2 days ago
Hmm, there’s a close vote for lack of research (not mine) so I’ll make some suggestions. Is that the complete slogan? Why is "may" the better match? This article implies either is fine. Milky Way had a similar slogan: "The sweet you can eat between meals (without ruining your appetite)".
– Pam
2 days ago
Hmm, there’s a close vote for lack of research (not mine) so I’ll make some suggestions. Is that the complete slogan? Why is "may" the better match? This article implies either is fine. Milky Way had a similar slogan: "The sweet you can eat between meals (without ruining your appetite)".
– Pam
2 days ago
The meaning is just the same as in all of the other discussions on the same topic. If you're talking about somebody granting permission to eat, then use may; if you're talking about the ability to eat, then use can. But that's a very subtle distinction, and it all comes down to your own interpretation of the situation. If you want to convey both at the same time (you are both allowed to and able to), then the choice is entirely subjective.
– Jason Bassford
2 days ago
The meaning is just the same as in all of the other discussions on the same topic. If you're talking about somebody granting permission to eat, then use may; if you're talking about the ability to eat, then use can. But that's a very subtle distinction, and it all comes down to your own interpretation of the situation. If you want to convey both at the same time (you are both allowed to and able to), then the choice is entirely subjective.
– Jason Bassford
2 days ago
add a comment |
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Hmm, there’s a close vote for lack of research (not mine) so I’ll make some suggestions. Is that the complete slogan? Why is "may" the better match? This article implies either is fine. Milky Way had a similar slogan: "The sweet you can eat between meals (without ruining your appetite)".
– Pam
2 days ago
The meaning is just the same as in all of the other discussions on the same topic. If you're talking about somebody granting permission to eat, then use may; if you're talking about the ability to eat, then use can. But that's a very subtle distinction, and it all comes down to your own interpretation of the situation. If you want to convey both at the same time (you are both allowed to and able to), then the choice is entirely subjective.
– Jason Bassford
2 days ago