Related words· 7 もしかすると and もしかしたら are nearly interchangeable expressions of tentative possibility, but もしかしたら feels slightly more colloquial and common in speech.
ひょっとすると expresses the same tentative possibility as もしかすると but sounds a touch more formal or literary.
ひょっとしたら is a close variant of もしかすると , differing mainly in slightly more formal or old-fashioned tone.
もしや conveys a similar tentative possibility to もしかすると but is more literary and often used to express a sudden suspicion.
Show 3 more Show fewer もしかすると is more casual and common in everyday speech, while ことによると is slightly more formal and often used in written or polite contexts.
もしかして and もしかすると both express 'perhaps', but もしかすると sounds a bit more formal and is more common in writing.
もしかすると suggests only a slight possibility, while 恐らく indicates that something is quite likely to be true.
Etymology Derived from the adverb もし (if) combined with the verb 為る (する ) in the hypothetical form すると , literally 'if one does'. The exact historical development is uncertain, but it became a fixed adverbial phrase expressing possibility.
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