The potential complement indicates whether an action can or cannot be carried out. The positive form uses de 得 between the verb and the complement; the negative form uses bù 不 between the verb and the complement. The complement can be a verb (e.g. kàndedǒng 看得懂 can understand by reading) or a stative verb (e.g. kànbùqīngchu 看不清楚 can't see clearly).