Etymology

perchance

P3E1R1C3H4A1N1C3E1

Today it means: Perhaps. Full definition →

Middle English parchaunce ← Old French par cheance ← Vulgar Latin *cadentia
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The story

  1. Proto-Indo-European*per-der.?
  2. Proto-Indo-European*pér
  3. Proto-Italic*per
  4. Latinper
  5. Old Frenchpar
  6. Proto-Indo-European*ḱad-
  7. Proto-Indo-European*ḱádeti
  8. Proto-Italic*kadō
  9. Latincadō
  10. Latincadēns
  11. Vulgar Latin*cadentia
  12. Old Frenchcheance
  13. Old Frenchpar cheance
  14. Middle Englishparchaunce
  15. English todayperchance

From Middle English parchaunce, from Old French par cheance (“by chance”).

Words from the same roots

Middle Englishparchaunce all →

perhaps

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.