When you are not certain, Chinese lets you stamp your degree of confidence right onto the sentence with an epistemic adverb — a word that marks how likely you think something is. English does this with "maybe," "probably," "possibly," "I'm afraid." Chinese has a matching set — 也许 (yěxǔ), 大概 (dàgài), 可能 (kěnéng), 恐怕 (kǒngpà), plus the more literary 或许 (huòxǔ) and the colloquial 说不定 (shuōbudìng) — and, like all Chinese adverbs, they sit before the verb or lead the clause; they never trail at the end the way English "maybe" can. They also stack happily with the future/likelihood frame 会…的. This page sorts them into a certainty ladder and flags the two members that behave unexpectedly: 可能, which moonlights as an adjective, and 恐怕, which is not about fear.
The certainty ladder
These adverbs are not interchangeable — they mark different amounts of confidence. Roughly, from most to least sure:
| Adverb | Force | Rough certainty | Register / flavour |
|---|---|---|---|
| 一定 (yídìng) | certainly, definitely | ~100% | neutral — see 一定 |
| 大概 (dàgài) | probably, most likely | ~70–80% | neutral, everyday |
| 恐怕 (kǒngpà) | probably (and unwelcome) | ~70% | neutral, apologetic tone |
| 可能 (kěnéng) | possibly, may | ~50% | neutral, everyday |
| 也许 (yěxǔ) | maybe, perhaps | ~50% | neutral, spoken |
| 或许 (huòxǔ) | perhaps | ~50% | written-leaning, literary |
| 说不定 (shuōbudìng) | maybe, who knows, might well | ~50%, often hopeful | colloquial |
The top of the ladder, 一定 ("certainly"), belongs to a different page — 一定 (certainly) — but it anchors the scale: everything below it is a hedge.
他也许不来了，我们别等了。
tā yěxǔ bù lái le, wǒmen bié děng le
Maybe he isn't coming — let's not wait. (informal) — 也许 marks a genuine 'perhaps'.
明天大概会下雨，记得带伞。
míngtiān dàgài huì xià yǔ, jìde dài sǎn
It'll probably rain tomorrow — remember an umbrella. (informal) — 大概 is a confident 'probably', reinforced by 会.
这个周末我可能有事，到时候再说。
zhège zhōumò wǒ kěnéng yǒu shì, dào shíhou zài shuō
I might have something on this weekend — let's see when the time comes. (informal) — 可能 at about even odds.
Placement and the 会…的 frame
An epistemic adverb goes before the verb, and most of them (也许, 可能, 或许, 说不定) can alternatively front the whole clause for the same meaning: 他也许不来了 = 也许他不来了. What they cannot do is trail at the end.
Chinese often layers the hedge: the adverb sets the stance, and the modal 会 plus a sentence-final 的 frame it as a predicted future (see 会…的).
别担心，他可能只是忘了，明天会给你回信的。
bié dānxīn, tā kěnéng zhǐshì wàng le, míngtiān huì gěi nǐ huíxìn de
Don't worry — he probably just forgot; he'll get back to you tomorrow. (informal) — 可能 stance + 会…的 prediction.
或许我们可以换个角度想想这个问题。
huòxǔ wǒmen kěyǐ huàn ge jiǎodù xiǎngxiang zhège wèntí
Perhaps we could look at this problem from another angle. (neutral–formal) — 或许 fronting the clause, softer and more literary than 也许.
说不定他已经在路上了，再等五分钟。
shuōbudìng tā yǐjīng zài lù shang le, zài děng wǔ fēnzhōng
Maybe he's already on his way — let's wait another five minutes. (colloquial) — 说不定 leans hopeful, 'who knows, he might well be'.
可能 is also an adjective; 大概 is also "approximately"
Two of these words carry a second life. 可能 is not only the adverb "possibly" — it is also an adjective/noun meaning "possible / possibility," which the pure adverbs 也许 and 大概 can never be.
这种事完全有可能发生。
zhè zhǒng shì wánquán yǒu kěnéng fāshēng
This kind of thing is entirely possible. (neutral) — 可能 as a noun in 有可能.
从理论上说，这是可能的。
cóng lǐlùn shàng shuō, zhè shì kěnéng de
Theoretically, this is possible. (formal) — 可能 as a predicate adjective with 的.
大概 likewise doubles as an approximation word — "roughly, about" — used with quantities (this overlaps the approximation adverbs).
从这儿到机场大概要一个小时。
cóng zhèr dào jīchǎng dàgài yào yí ge xiǎoshí
It's about an hour from here to the airport. (neutral) — 大概 = 'approximately'.
恐怕 means "I'm afraid," not "to fear"
恐怕 literally contains 怕 ("fear"), and beginners mistranslate it as literal fear. It is nothing of the sort. 恐怕 is a speaker-attitude adverb: it marks a likely outcome that the speaker finds unwelcome or regrettable — exactly the English softener "I'm afraid (that)…". It is a polite way to deliver bad news or a refusal.
恐怕这件事没那么简单。
kǒngpà zhè jiàn shì méi nàme jiǎndān
I'm afraid this isn't that simple. (neutral) — 恐怕 flags an unwelcome likelihood.
你要的书恐怕已经卖完了。
nǐ yào de shū kǒngpà yǐjīng mài wán le
The book you want is, I'm afraid, already sold out. (polite) — softening bad news.
今天恐怕来不及了，我们改天吧。
jīntiān kǒngpà láibují le, wǒmen gǎitiān ba
I'm afraid we won't make it today — let's do another day. (polite refusal) — 恐怕 for a regretful 'probably not'.
Because 恐怕 carries that "and that's a shame" colouring, it clashes with good news. To fear an object ("I'm scared of dogs"), you need the plain verb 怕/害怕, not 恐怕.
Common Mistakes
1. Parking the epistemic adverb at the end. English "maybe" can trail; Chinese hedges must precede the verb.
❌ 他不来了也许。
Incorrect — 也许 cannot trail; it belongs before the verb or at the head of the clause.
✅ 他也许不来了。
tā yěxǔ bù lái le
Maybe he isn't coming. — 也许 before the verb.
2. Using 恐怕 as a transitive 'to fear'. 恐怕 is an attitude adverb, not a verb taking an object; use 怕/害怕 for that.
❌ 我恐怕狗。
Incorrect — to be scared of dogs is 我怕狗; 恐怕 means 'I'm afraid that…'.
✅ 我怕狗。
wǒ pà gǒu
I'm scared of dogs. — 怕 for literal fear of an object.
3. Using 也许/大概 as an adjective. Only 可能 works as "possible"; the pure adverbs cannot take that slot.
❌ 这是也许的。
Incorrect — 也许 is only an adverb; 'this is possible' uses 可能: 这是可能的.
✅ 这是可能的。
zhè shì kěnéng de
This is possible. — 可能 as a predicate adjective.
4. Using 恐怕 for a welcome outcome. 恐怕 implies the news is unwelcome; for a hopeful "maybe," use 说不定 or 也许.
❌ 恐怕你会中奖。
Wrong tone — 恐怕 makes winning sound like bad news; for a hopeful chance use 说不定/也许.
✅ 说不定你会中奖。
shuōbudìng nǐ huì zhòngjiǎng
Maybe you'll win the prize! — 说不定 for a hopeful possibility.
Key Takeaways
- Epistemic adverbs mark how sure you are and sit before the verb or lead the clause — never trailing.
- The ladder: 大概 ("probably") is confident; 可能 / 也许 / 或许 / 说不定 hover around even odds; 一定 ("certainly") tops it out.
- Register: 或许 is written-leaning, 说不定 is colloquial and often hopeful, the rest are neutral.
- 可能 also serves as an adjective/noun ("possible / possibility"); 大概 also means "approximately."
- 恐怕 is not literal fear — it is "I'm afraid (that)…", flagging a likely, unwelcome outcome; use 怕/害怕 to fear an object.
- Hedges layer naturally with the 会…的 future frame: 明天大概会下雨.
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- 一定 / 肯定 (Definitely)HSK 3 — 一定 (yídìng) and 肯定 (kěndìng) sit at the confident end of the certainty scale, before the verb — and 一定 carries two loads at once: the speaker's certainty ('must be') and firm intention or insistence ('will definitely'), with 不一定 meaning 'not necessarily'.
- The Certainty Scale (Sure to Unsure)HSK 4 — Chinese marks how sure you are with a ladder of adverbs, from certain to barely a guess: 一定/肯定 'definitely' > 应该 'should (probably)' > 大概/可能 'probably / maybe' > 也许 'perhaps' > 说不定 'who knows' — plus 恐怕 for a probable but unwelcome outcome. Match the rung to your real confidence instead of defaulting to 可能.
- 会…的 (Confident Prediction)HSK 4 — The 会…的 frame wraps a modal 会 and a sentence-final 的 around a verb to make a confident prediction — 他会来的 'he'll definitely come', 一切都会好的 'everything will be fine'; the bracket upgrades a mere 'may' into a reassuring 'surely will'.
- 差点儿 / 几乎 / 大约 (Almost, Nearly, Approximately)HSK 4 — A cluster of approximation adverbs that English lumps under 'almost': 差不多/几乎 for proximity to a full degree, 差点儿 for an event that nearly happened but didn't (with the notorious 差点儿没 polarity trap), and 大约/大概/将近/左右 for numeric estimation.