かも知れない

Japanese

Kanji in this term

Grade: 2
kun’yomi

Alternative forms

Etymology

This is a compound phrase of the interrogative particle (ka, used to form questions, also used as a coordinating particle similar to English whether), the inclusive particle (mo, even, also) plus the negative potential non-past form  ()れない (shirenai, literally cannot be known) of the verb  () (shiru, to know something), all together literally meaning “it can't even be known whether [preceding statement]”.[1]

Pronunciation

Particle

かも知れない (hiragana かもしれない, rōmaji ka mo shirenai)

  1. may, might, perhaps
    雨降 (あめふ)るかもしれない。
    Ame furu ka mo shirenai.
    It cannot even be known whether it will rain. → It might rain.

References

  1. 1988, 国語大辞典(新装版) (Kokugo Dai Jiten, Revised Edition) (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Shogakukan
  2. 2006, 大辞林 (Daijirin), Third Edition (in Japanese), Tōkyō: Sanseidō, →ISBN
This article is issued from Wiktionary. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.