Peut-être
Example: Peut-être qu'il viendra à la fête ce soir.
Definition
"Peut-être" is a French adverb used to express possibility or uncertainty, equivalent to 'maybe' or 'perhaps' in English. It indicates that something might happen or be true, as in the phrase: "Peut-être qu'il viendra à la fête ce soir" (Maybe he will come to the party tonight).
Etymology
The word "peut-être" comes from the combination of the verb "pouvoir" (to be able) in the third person singular present tense "peut" and the adverb "être" (to be). Together, they literally mean 'can be,' reflecting the notion of possibility. Did you know? This construction neatly captures uncertainty in a simple phrase.
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"Peut-être" appears in the Vocaplus list "French - General - (A1) - set 3", containing 104 commonly used words.
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