maybe

American  

[mey-bee] / ˈmeɪ bi /

adverb

1. perhaps; possibly.

   Maybe I'll go too.

---

noun

1. a possibility or uncertainty.

maybe British  

/ ˈmeɪˌbiː /

adverb

1. 1. perhaps

   2. ( as sentence modifier )

      maybe I'll come tomorrow

---

1. possibly; neither yes nor no

Etymology

Origin of maybe

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English may be, short for it may be

Compare meaning

How does maybe compare to similar and commonly confused words? Explore the most common comparisons:

• perhaps vs. maybe

Example Sentences

That confidence was perhaps the product of Pedretti performing in two stage plays before “Forbidden Fruits” — or maybe it was the nighttime filming schedule.

From Los Angeles Times

I’d found some photos of myself as a teenager and thought maybe my kids would like to see what their old mom looked like in her youth.

From The Wall Street Journal

“He was basically telling me, maybe you could build a company like Google, but it would take the best part of your career,” Hassabis recalled.

From The Wall Street Journal

“Growth and development doesn’t just mean a promotion—you also can expand and grow and develop laterally, and maybe in a different function area.”

From The Wall Street Journal

"Somehow they are metering their intake, so maybe zero to 1% is a more likely concentration that they would find in the wild than anything higher," he said.

From Science Daily