The difference between peut-être and peut être

13 oct. 2017 08:23 - language-swap

Niveau intermédiaire plus

“Peut-être” (maybe/perhaps) and “peut être (may be/could be) are homophones in French and have the same meaning. However they DO NOT have the same function.

“Peut-être” with a hyphen is an adverb which has a meaning of probability. It can be replaced by “probablement” (probably).
Example:
Je viendrai peut-être demain.
Je viendrai probablement demain.

“Peut être” is the verb “pouvoir” (to can) attached to the verb “être” (to be) at the infinitive. They also have a meaning of probability. “Peut” can be replaced by “pourrait” (could/may).
Example:
Il peut être gentil.
Il pourrait être gentil.