Modern Spanish Grammar: A Practical Guide

EXPRESSING POSSIBILITY AND PROBABILITY 48.1Es imposible que podamos reunirlos a todos.It is impossible for us to gather them all.Es muy improbable que lo consigamos.It’s very unlikely/improbable that we’ll get it.Es poco probable que se hayan enterado.It’s unlikely that they have found out.These expressions are also found in tenses other than the present, as shown by theexamples below. But note that the complement verb, which is in the subjunctive, mustshow agreement with the main verb. Thus, if the main verb is in the conditional, thecomplement verb must be in the imperfect and not the present subjunctive.Será imposible que nos entiendan.It will be impossible for you/them to understand us.Sería imposible que nos entendieran.It would be impossible for you/them to understand us.To say that something is unlikely or not very likely we can also use the expression Espoco probable que + subjunctive:Es poco probable que lo sepan.It is unlikely that they may know it. 15.5 (p. 58); 18.3.3 (p. 92); 32 (p. 191)48.1.4Poder + infinitivePoder, ‘may’, is often used in the expression of possibility in sentences like thefollowing:Puede venir mañana.He/she may come tomorrow.Pueden haber llegado.They may have arrived.The first sentence is equivalent to Es posible que venga mañana, ‘it is possible thathe/she may come tomorrow’, while the second can be expressed as Es possible quehayan llegado, ‘it is possible that they may have arrived’. Both constructions areequally frequent, but the one with puede is more common in the spoken language. 21.1 (p. 99)48.1.5Puede (ser) que + subjunctivePuede (ser) que . . . , ‘maybe . . .’, is an impersonal expression, as puede here does notrefer to a specific person, unlike puede or pueden in the previous construction, whichstand for ‘he/she may’ and ‘they may’ respectively. This phrase is especially common inthe spoken language.Puede (ser) que hayan salido.They may have gone out.284