agian / beharbada / seguru asko

Maybe and Probably

Level 3

agian and beharbada mean maybe, seguru asko means probably, and noski means of course: Agian bihar etorriko da. (Maybe she will come tomorrow.)

How It Works

1. From less sure to more sure.

  • agian, beharbada: maybe
  • seguru asko, ziurrenik: probably, most likely
  • noski: of course

2. Where they go. Usually at the start: Agian bihar etorriko da. They also work with ez: Agian ez da etorriko. (Maybe he will not come.) Beharbada ez daki. (Maybe she does not know.)

3. With the future. Guesses about what will happen use the future: Seguru asko berandu iritsiko gara.

4. One word or two? beharbada (maybe) is one word. behar bada, written as two words, is an if clause meaning "if necessary".

5. seguru alone. seguru without asko means "surely, without doubt", which is stronger than seguru asko: Seguru dakit. (I know it for sure.) This seguru is mostly used in the Southern Basque Country. ziur is used everywhere: Ziur dakit.

6. A regional meaning. In Northern Basque, agian with the future can also mean "hopefully". For wishes, the standard word is ahal.

Tip: Basque can also show a guess with the future of probability or wonder with ote.

Examples (5)

  1. Agian bihar etorriko da.

    Maybe she will come tomorrow.

    It can also mean "Maybe he will come tomorrow".

  2. Beharbada ez daki.

    Maybe he does not know.

  3. Seguru asko berandu iritsiko gara.

    We will probably arrive late.

  4. Ziurrenik etxean dago.

    She is most likely at home.

  5. —Lagunduko didazu? —Noski!

    —Will you help me? —Of course!

Common Mistakes

  • Writing beharbada as two words.

    Behar bada, bihar etorriko da.
    Beharbada bihar etorriko da.

    behar bada means "if necessary", so the first sentence says "If necessary, he will come tomorrow". For "maybe", write beharbada as one word.

  • Using a subjunctive after agian, as in Spanish quizás venga.

    Agian bihar etor dadin.
    Agian bihar etorriko da.

    agian and beharbada do not change the verb. Use the normal form, here the future etorriko da.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

agian / beharbada / seguru askoLevel 3Maybe and Probably

Learn This First

Maybe follows the future.

Words in This Pattern

agianbeharbadanoskiseguruasko