Grammar Info

N4 Lesson 4: 1/18

かもしれないMight, Maybe, Probably

Colloquial: かも or かもしらん, Polite: かもしれません

Structure

Verb + かもしれない
［い］Adjective + かもしれない
［な］Adjective + かもしれない
Noun + かもしれない

Details

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About かもしれない

かもしれない is an expression in Japanese that is often treated as a single word, but is actually the combination of the particle かも, and the potential form of the う-Verb 知(し)る (to know) with the auxiliary verb ない attached. かもしれない is regularly translated simply as 'might', or 'maybe', but the literal translation is much closer to 'even (A), we cannot know'.

To use かもしれない, attach it to the end of any verb, noun, な-Adjective or い-Adjective, in their non-polite (keigo) forms.

As the う-Verb 知(し)る is part of this construction, it may also be altered to its polite-potential form, creating かもしれません.

Due to かもしれない being such a common grammar pattern in daily speech for expressing uncertainty about various things, several colloquial forms also exist. These are かも, かもしらん, and かもしれん.

かも is by far the most common of these colloquial forms, with かもしらん potentially sounding a little bit rough/boyish.

Examples

--:--

    そうかもね。

    That might be right.

    彼女(かのじょ)がまた遅(おく)れるかもしれません。

    She might be late again.

    来年(らいねん)アメリカに行(い)くかもしれない。

    I might go to America next year.

    このいい服(ふく)を買(か)えば、人気(にんき)になるかもしれない。

    If I buy these nice clothes, then I might become popular.

    そういうことを言(い)わないほうがいいかもしれない。

    It is maybe better to not say such things.

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      かもしれない – Grammar Discussion

      Most Recent Replies (8 in total)

      • Superpnut

        Superpnut

        I recently got a review on this and received an useless hint.

        Question was そのことを言わないほうがいい — to which I put in から
        The blue hint text was : Maybe

        I received this:

        maybe846×326 14...
      • wrt7MameLZE33wlmpCAV

        wrt7MameLZE33wlmpCAV

        I have a feeling that nuance hint is shown for any example sentence of this grammar point. It’s an unfortunate incongruity in this case. かな can in fact mean “maybe,” but usually in the context of thinking to oneself. For instance,

        晩飯はピザを食べようかな。

        Maybe I’ll eat pizza for dinner; or, I think I’ll eat pizza for dinner

        かな and かもしれない aren’t synonymous, though. かな expresses doubt, reflection, or wishful thinking. かもしれない expresses the potential for something being or not being a certain way. Also, I don’t think you would generally use かな when making a suggestion to another.

        But your point about the nuance note is cogent. I suggest using the Report button in the lower right-hand corner (it shows up when you get the answer wrong) whenever you find things like this to help draw awareness to the issue so the staff can correct it.

      • X11

        X11

        the literal translation is much closer to ‘even (A), we cannot know’. should it not be "perhaps it’s not able to be known as かも means perhaps? "

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