Sometimes you are in doubt about something or you want to express that something is likely to happen. In this article, we will review some adverbs of probability in Spanish to express wonder and to describe the likelihood of something to happen.
Adverbs of Probability in Spanish
There are many adverbs of probability in Spanish. In this article, we will learn how to say in Spanish adverbs like maybe, perhaps, possibly, probably or surely. They all can be used to talk about the likelihood of something being true.
Quizá or Quizás (maybe, perhaps)
Notice that
Quizá mañana por la tarde tendré que cuidar de mis sobrinos.
Maybe tomorrow afternoon I’ll have to take care of my nephews.
Quizás Jimena estaba aburrida y por eso se fue a casa.
Maybe Jimena was bored and that’s why she went home.
Quizá la clase fue más interesante de lo que pensamos.
Perhaps the class was more interesting than we think.
Quizás no quisieron ir porque les pareció peligroso el camino, por la nieve.
Maybe they didn’t want to go because they thought the road was dangerous, because of the snow.
Igual (maybe, perhaps)
Igual el amigo de Lola no sabe que ella está casada.
Perhaps Lola’s friend doesn’t know that she’s married.
Igual él no sabe que Tomás dejó de trabajar en el proyecto.
Perhaps he doesn’t know that Tomás stopped working on the project.
Igual quiere ser amable con nosotros o quizás tiene otro interés; tendremos cuidado.
Maybe he wants to be friendly to us or maybe he has a different interest; we will be careful.
¿Es cierto que Pedro ha dejado su trabajo y se ha ido de la ciudad? Igual se ha vuelto loco.
Is it true that Pedro has quit his job and has left the city? Maybe he is gone mad.
Probablemente (probably)
Probablemente fue Marta quien dejó las llaves en el coche.
Probably it was Marta who left the keys in the car.
Probablemente el niño elegirá pasar el fin de año con su padre.
Probably the child will choose to spend New Year’s Eve with his father.
Probablemente, a Nuria no le gustan las motos porque cree que son peligrosas.
Probably Núria doesn’t like motorcycles because she thinks they’re dangerous.
Probablemente este es el mejor piso en el que hemos vivido, pero me gustaría cambiar de vecindario.
This is probably the best apartment we have ever lived in, but I would like to change neighborhoods.
Posiblemente (possibly)
Este es posiblemente el mejor restaurante de la ciudad y del país.
This is possibly the best restaurant in the city and of the country.
Posiblemente, no sabremos nada sobre lo que pasó hasta el lunes.
Possibly we will not know anything about what happened until Monday.
Posiblemente tendré que competir contra mi primo por el trabajo.
Possibly I’ll have to compete against my cousin for the job.
Posiblemente el niño estará dormido, pero podemos pasar a visitarlos, ¿no?
The baby will possible be asleep, but we can drop by and visit them, can’t we?
Seguramente (surely)
Seguramente esa chica que viste ayer era su novia.
Surely that girl you saw yesterday was his girlfriend.
Seguramente, mañana a esta hora ya estaremos en tu casa.
Surely, this time tomorrow we’ll be at your house.
Seguramente el niño estaba ansioso por llegar a casa de sus abuelos.
Surely the child was anxious to get to his grandparents’ house.
Seguramente es un chico creativo y también un poco misterioso, porque nadie sabe mucho sobre él.
He is surely a creative guy and a bit mysterious, too, as nobody knows a lot about him.
Exercises
Let’s do some exercises to practice the adverbs of probability in Spanish we have covered in this article.