He did what he can ...

[Mike12345]

He did what he can to help poor people.

I think the sentence is wrong. Because "can" is always followed by the basic form of a verb. Could you tell me wether it's correct or wrong?

Thank you! :-D

 

[Rover_KE]

Re: can

'He does what he can to help poor people.'

'He did what he could to help poor people.'

 

[GoesStation]

Can is not always followed by a bare infinitive.

 

[jutfrank]

I think the sentence is wrong. Because "can" is always followed by the basic form of a verb.

You're basically right. This is a potentially confusing example because there is an 'ellipsis' happening. Think of it like this, with the basic form of the verb, which you mention, being omitted.

He does what he can [do] to help poor people.