もしかしたら

も

し

か

し

た

ら

Common wordJLPTN3

Meanings

expression, adverb

perhaps; maybe; by any chance

usually written using kana alone

Expresses a speculative possibility, often followed by かもしれない or でしょう. Used when the speaker is uncertain but considers something possible.

もしかしたら、彼かれは今日きょう来こないかもしれない。
Perhaps he won't come today.
もしかしたら雨あめが降ふるかもしれません。
It might rain by any chance.

Kanji

若young, if, perhaps

Related words· 7

ひょっとしたらN2
もしかしたら and ひょっとしたら both mean 'perhaps', but ひょっとしたら leans toward an unexpected or surprising possibility.
もしかしてN1
もしかしたら and もしかして both express speculation, but もしかして is more casual and often used when suddenly guessing or realizing something.
もしかするとN2
もしかしたら and もしかすると are nearly interchangeable, formal-sounding ways to say 'perhaps', with もしかすると slightly more common in writing.
あるいはN3
もしかしたら expresses the same tentative 'maybe' as あるいは but sounds more colloquial and is often paired with かもしれない.

Show 3 more

ひょっとするとN2
もしかしたら is the casual counterpart to ひょっとすると, both meaning 'maybe' but もしかしたら feels lighter and more conversational.
ひょっとして
もしかしたら and ひょっとして both introduce a guessed possibility, but もしかしたら is slightly more common in casual conversation and often pairs with かもしれない.
ことによるとN1
もしかしたら is a very common colloquial way to say 'maybe', while ことによると sounds a bit more formal or literary.

Etymology

Derived from the adverb もし (if) combined with the particle か (question marker) and the conditional form したら of する, literally 'if one does perhaps'. The exact historical development is uncertain.