# אולי vs אפשר



## Drink

Is there a difference in usage in Modern Hebrew between אולי and אפשר? If so, what is the difference?


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## trigel

אולי: maybe, perhaps (it's possible that something is the case)
אפשר: one can (it's possible to do something)


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## k8an

Drink said:


> Is there a difference in usage in Modern Hebrew between אולי and אפשר? If so, what is the difference?



A very big difference, depending on context. 


אולי = maybe
אפשר = possible

They can be used to convey a suggestion/question in certain cases with slight modifications. 
Some examples:
אולי נלך לשתות משהו? = maybe we (can) go to drink something?
אפשר ללכת לשתות משהו (?) = Is it/it is possible to go to drink something (?) (in other words: we can/can we go to drink something) 




There are of course other ways these words are used.


Do you have any specific sentences?


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## Drink

k8an said:


> A very big difference, depending on context.
> 
> 
> אולי = maybe
> אפשר = possible
> 
> They can be used to convey a suggestion/question in certain cases with slight modifications.
> Some examples:
> אולי נלך לשתות משהו? = maybe we (can) go to drink something?
> אפשר ללכת לשתות משהו (?) = Is it/it is possible to go to drink something (?) (in other words: we can/can we go to drink something)
> 
> 
> 
> 
> There are of course other ways these words are used.
> 
> 
> Do you have any specific sentences?



But couldn't you also say "אפשר נלך לשתות משהו?"?


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## k8an

Drink said:


> But couldn't you also say "אפשר נלך לשתות משהו?"?



No. That doesn't make sense. If you're making a suggestion or asking a question with אפשר, the verb should be in the infinitive.


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## Drink

k8an said:


> No. That doesn't make sense. If you're making a suggestion or asking a question with אפשר, the verb should be in the infinitive.


Ok, thanks! I think I understand it now.


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## k8an

Drink said:


> Ok, thanks! I think I understand it now.




No problem. 

You can also use אפשר with ש:
אפשר שזה יהיה גדול יותר? = could this (possibly) be bigger? 


A lot of the time, אפשר with a noun can be used to mean "can I have?":
אפשר מים בבקשה? = can I have water, please?
אפשר חשבון? = can I have the bill/checque? (At a restaurant)


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## arielipi

k8an said:


> No problem.
> 
> You can also use אפשר with ש:
> אפשר שזה יהיה גדול יותר? = could this (possibly) be bigger?
> 
> 
> A lot of the time, אפשר with a noun can be used to mean "can I have?":
> אפשר מים בבקשה? = can I have water, please?
> אפשר חשבון? = can I have the bill/checque? (At a restaurant)


I am not sure on this one, but i will just say that not everything we say commonly is actually correct.


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## k8an

arielipi said:


> I am not sure on this one, but i will just say that not everything we say commonly is actually correct.



Yup, that's true. This is all colloquial


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## anipo

This  "? אפשר חשבון" is very common nowadays, but I also think it is not correct.

It is  a shortcut and implies the verb לקבל as in ?אפשר לקבל את החשבון or the verb להעביר (to pass/ hand over) as in
?אפשר להעביר את המים, בבקשה.


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## k8an

anipo said:


> This  "? אפשר חשבון" is very common nowadays, but I also think it is not correct.
> 
> It is  a shortcut and implies the verb לקבל as in ?אפשר לקבל את החשבון or the verb להעביר (to pass/ hand over) as in
> ?אפשר להעביר את המים, בבקשה.



I suppose as with all things, it is almost on the way to becoming standard because it is so common. It's not grammatically "incorrect" per se - it just a kind of shortening. It can even be seen as "(is) water possible?" or "(is) (the) bill/cheque possible?" 

Technically it may be considered informal, but it is the default way of speaking for most of us.


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## arielipi

I actually regarded this:
אפשר שזה יהיה גדול יותר?


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## k8an

arielipi said:


> I actually regarded this:
> אפשר שזה יהיה גדול יותר?



Oh, right. I agree again - it's one of those things that sounds a bit strange but is pretty common.


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## Drink

Thanks everyone! I know that a lot of colloquial Hebrew doesn't make sense (in fact a relative of mine wrote her Ph.D. thesis on the differences between formal and colloquial Hebrew and she says that 40% of colloquial Hebrew is technically "incorrect"). I now understand not only the difference between אולי and אפשר, but also why I was confused in the first place.


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