Puede ser v podría ser ?

Question

Well I am confused!!! Do these two examples mean the same thing - "it could be". Mainly I see or hear "puede ser" but can "podría ser" be used for the same meaning? TIA

Puede ser que sólo quiera votar para ti. - Jubilado, Jan 6, 2016

Great question old friend , thanks. - ray76, Jan 6, 2016

Spooky. I logged in to ask almost the same question and there was yours at the top of the list. Puede ser magica. - ErikainAndalusia, Jan 13, 2016

Answer 1

Puede ser-- it may be so, it might be so

Podría ser-- it could be so -- Podría ser peor

Frankly, there is not a great deal of difference, as far a sI understand it, I think one hears ' puede ser' much more often.

Pretty risqué, Annie. - Winkfish, Jan 6, 2016

¡Ja ja! - 005faa61, Jan 6, 2016

Winkfish, not to worry, I didn't notice what they were doing, I just read the text.. - annierats, Jan 6, 2016

No worries, Annie. I think it's very funny. - Winkfish, Jan 6, 2016

O h dear how embarrassment ! - ray76, Jan 6, 2016

I guess every cloud has a silver "whining" . - ray76, Jan 6, 2016

Es un zorro muy amable! - margarita1943, Jan 6, 2016

He loves spreading his joy far and near and takes advantage of every opportunity . - ray76, Jan 7, 2016

hahahahaha! - chileno, Jan 7, 2016

:) - FELIZ77, Jan 13, 2016

Answer 2

Also, puede ser = can be

Yes, actually that's prpbably the most common. - annierats, Jan 6, 2016

¿Puede serlo ? = Can it be Quizás? - ray76, Jan 6, 2016

Ray, yes, puede ser = quizás = perhaps. Please see my post :) - FELIZ77, Jan 7, 2016

Pos, es posible, probablmente, ¿que no? - Daniela2041, Jan 13, 2016

Daniela, do you mean "pues"? - chileno, Jan 13, 2016

"Pos" is Mexican slang for "pues" - Daniela2041, Jan 21, 2016

hahahaa now that I read it again, your version was "probablemente"! :) - chileno, Jan 21, 2016

Answer 3

Thanks everyone.....

De nada novia.?? - ray76, Jan 7, 2016

A pleasure? - chileno, Jan 7, 2016

Answer 4

So following on; I have two expressions "puede haber sido" and "podría haber sido".

Would I be correct in assuming that all your comments apply equally to this pair and that they are simply the past tense versions?

Erik in future if you have any further questions arising from your original ones, please post them on/create a separate thread Thank you :) - FELIZ77, Jan 13, 2016

I believe that they apply equally to: it could have been = "podría haber sido" We don't really use can have been Certainly not in England it sounds weird to my ears as a native.English speaker We might say It could have been disasterous - FELIZ77, Jan 13, 2016

Sorry FELIZ77 - I thought it should stay on this thread as it referred directly to the original question, and was only a change of tense. My apologies if this was wrong. By the way the original question was not mine. - ErikainAndalusia, Jan 15, 2016

I think "puede haber sido" would be equivalent to the English "may have been" as in "he may have been correct". Similarly "puede ser" = "may be" (see Annierats answer) - ErikainAndalusia, Jan 15, 2016

Erik is correct. - chileno, Jan 21, 2016

Answer 5

Puede ser can also simply mean: perhaps/maybe as a short reply to a question:

"Do you think it will rain tomorrow?"

? ¿Crees que lloverá (llueve?) mañana? ?

"Perhaps!" ? ¡Puede ser! ?

I admit that other words for perhaps maybe more commonly used: Quizá, quizás, tal vez or ..a lo mejor

I hope this helps

Corrijan mi español si es necesario, por favor

There you go mate I am not just a greasy head. Thanks Feliz, you a champ. - ray76, Jan 7, 2016

Greasy head??? Sorry, I don't understand what you lean, Ray - FELIZ77, Jan 7, 2016

self-correction: what you "mean" (sorry, typo!) - FELIZ77, Jan 7, 2016

Answer 6

Great question that we can all learn from .