ANSWER: "Maybe" vs "May be"
Anonymous asks: What's the difference between "Maybe" and "May be"?
With examples from Stargate SG-1
The words maybe and may be are spelled the same, albeit one of them has a space in the middle, and both sound alike, but that's where the resemblance ends. They generally don't have the same meaning.
Maybe is an adverb. It literally means "perhaps" or "possibly."
"Maybe we should wait," Jack said, as he watched the aliens advance toward him and his team.
"Perhaps they come in peace," Teal'c said.
Jack wasn't so sure about that prospect. "Yeah. Maybe."
In the above example, "maybe" and "perhaps" are interchangeable. Either one works, although the usage depends on the character's preference. Teal'c would not say "maybe" due to his persistence in using formal English, and Jack, being Jack, would probably never utter the word "perhaps." Still, the best way to remember which word or phrase to use is to try to replace the word "perhaps" into the sentence. If it works, maybe is the term you want to use.
May be is a verb phrase meaning "could be" or "might be." To make things a little more difficult, it could even be said that the phrase also means "possibly." But it still cannot be interchanged with perhaps, and therefore should be may be, as in two separate words.
"It appears that you may be chosen as their next leader," Teal'c said with an air of indifference.
Jack didn't like that idea at all, considering the job entailed offering up sacrifices, also known as people, on a regular basis. "Did it ever occur to them that it may be possible that I don't want to be their leader?"
"It may be that they don't care one way or the other if you want to or not," Daniel chimed in with a wary tone.
Looking at the definition of may be again, we can try replacing the may be in the above examples with "might be" or "could be." If they work (which in this case they do), then always use the words may be.
Just remember that if the word "perhaps" works instead, always use maybe. If it doesn't, go with may be.
With examples from Stargate SG-1
The words maybe and may be are spelled the same, albeit one of them has a space in the middle, and both sound alike, but that's where the resemblance ends. They generally don't have the same meaning.
Maybe is an adverb. It literally means "perhaps" or "possibly."
"Maybe we should wait," Jack said, as he watched the aliens advance toward him and his team.
"Perhaps they come in peace," Teal'c said.
Jack wasn't so sure about that prospect. "Yeah. Maybe."
In the above example, "maybe" and "perhaps" are interchangeable. Either one works, although the usage depends on the character's preference. Teal'c would not say "maybe" due to his persistence in using formal English, and Jack, being Jack, would probably never utter the word "perhaps." Still, the best way to remember which word or phrase to use is to try to replace the word "perhaps" into the sentence. If it works, maybe is the term you want to use.
May be is a verb phrase meaning "could be" or "might be." To make things a little more difficult, it could even be said that the phrase also means "possibly." But it still cannot be interchanged with perhaps, and therefore should be may be, as in two separate words.
"It appears that you may be chosen as their next leader," Teal'c said with an air of indifference.
Jack didn't like that idea at all, considering the job entailed offering up sacrifices, also known as people, on a regular basis. "Did it ever occur to them that it may be possible that I don't want to be their leader?"
"It may be that they don't care one way or the other if you want to or not," Daniel chimed in with a wary tone.
Looking at the definition of may be again, we can try replacing the may be in the above examples with "might be" or "could be." If they work (which in this case they do), then always use the words may be.
Just remember that if the word "perhaps" works instead, always use maybe. If it doesn't, go with may be.