Probability and conclusion: pot ser que, segur que, per tant, o sea
Doubt asks for a special form: pot ser que plus the subjuntiu — "maybe". Pot ser que plogui, porta el paraigües. For example: “Pot ser que plogui, porta el paraigües” — Maybe it will rain, take the umbrella. A rule from the Catalan course: worked out on examples, not memorized as a wording.
How it works
Doubt asks for a special form: pot ser que plus the subjuntiu — "maybe". Pot ser que plogui, porta el paraigües.
Certainty does not call for it: segur que plus the ordinary tense — "surely". Segur que ve, mai falta a una festa.
A conclusion draws the line: per tant — "therefore". Ha plogut tres dies seguits; per tant, el camp està feliç.
And the spoken o sea — "I mean" — reassembles the thought. No m'agrada, o sea, m'agrada la idea, però no el preu.
Table
| expression | mood | example |
|---|---|---|
| pot ser que + subjuntiu | doubt | pot ser que plogui |
| segur que + indicative | confidence | segur que ve |
| per tant | conclusion | per tant, el camp està feliç |
| o sea | clarification | o sea, la idea és bona |
By example
- Pot ser que plogui, porta el paraigüesMaybe it will rain, take the umbrella
- Segur que ve, mai no falta a una festaSurely he will come, he never misses feasts
- Ha plogut tres dies seguits; per tant, el camp està feliçIt rained three days in a row; consequently the field is happy
How the rule settles in your head
A rule is not memorized from an explanation. It is memorized from an attempt to use it and a mistake — that is why the app delivers it mixed in with words, not as a separate lesson: it resurfaces exactly where you forgot it.
Frequently asked
Probability and conclusion: how does it work in Catalan?
Doubt asks for a special form: pot ser que plus the subjuntiu — "maybe". Pot ser que plogui, porta el paraigües.
What does it look like in an example sentence Catalan?
“Pot ser que plogui, porta el paraigües” — Maybe it will rain, take the umbrella. A rule is easier to test on sentences like this than to memorize as a wording: what surfaces in conversation is the sentence.