student asking question

Considering the situation, could the phrase "can't you tell" be interpreted as "don't you see"? If so, are they interchangeable?

teacher

Native speaker’s answer

Rebecca

"Can't you tell" is an informal expression used to ask if something is noticeable or obvious. It has a meaning closer to "isn't it obvious/clear?" or "can't you make it out?" and thus "don't you see" isn't really appropriate for this context. "Don't you see" is more likely to be used to ask if someone is able to see something, and not whether they recognize or notice that something is X (noun/adjective). See the following examples to better understand how to use this expression. Ex: A: Nice painting! Is it a dog? B: It's a person! Can't you tell? Ex: A: Wow, is that you, Mary? I couldn't even tell it was you. You look so different now! B: Not me. I could tell it was you from a mile away! You look the same as ten years ago.

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