Peradventure

4 definitions found

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  Peradventure \Per`ad*ven"ture\, n.
     Chance; hap; hence, doubt; question; as, proved beyond
     peradventure. --South.
     [1913 Webster]

From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:



  Peradventure \Per`ad*ven"ture\, adv. & conj. [OE. per aventure,
     F. par aventure. See {Per}, and {Adventure}.]
     By chance; perhaps; it may be; if; supposing. "If
     peradventure he speak against me." --Shak.
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           Peradventure there be fifty righteous within the city.
                                                    --Gen. xviii.
                                                    24.
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From The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48 [gcide]:

  May \May\ (m[=a]), v. [imp. {Might} (m[imac]t)] [AS. pres. maeg
     I am able, pret. meahte, mihte; akin to D. mogen, G.
     m["o]gen, OHG. mugan, magan, Icel. mega, Goth. magan, Russ.
     moche. [root]103. Cf. {Dismay}, {Main} strength, {Might}. The
     old imp. mought is obsolete, except as a provincial word.]
     An auxiliary verb qualifying the meaning of another verb, by
     expressing:
     (a) Ability, competency, or possibility; -- now oftener
         expressed by {can}.
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               How may a man, said he, with idle speech,
               Be won to spoil the castle of his health!
                                                    --Spenser.
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               For what he [the king] may do is of two kinds; what
               he may do as just, and what he may do as possible.
                                                    --Bacon.
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               For of all sad words of tongue or pen
               The saddest are these: "It might have been."
                                                    --Whittier.
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     (b) Liberty; permission; allowance.
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               Thou mayst be no longer steward.     --Luke xvi. 2.
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     (c) Contingency or liability; possibility or probability.
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               Though what he learns he speaks, and may advance
               Some general maxims, or be right by chance. --Pope.
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     (d) Modesty, courtesy, or concession, or a desire to soften a
         question or remark.
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               How old may Phillis be, you ask.     --Prior.
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     (e) Desire or wish, as in prayer, imprecation, benediction,
         and the like. "May you live happily." --Dryden.
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     {May be}, & {It may be}, are used as equivalent to
        {possibly}, {perhaps}, {maybe}, {by chance},
        {peradventure}. See 1st {Maybe}.
        [1913 Webster]

From WordNet (r) 2.0 [wn]:

  peradventure
       adv : by chance; "perhaps she will call tomorrow"; "we may
             possibly run into them at the concert"; "it may
             peradventure be thought that there never was such a
             time" [syn: {possibly}, {perchance}, {perhaps}, {maybe},
              {mayhap}]