Mayhaps
If, mayhap, the word
mayhap looks to you like a relative of its synonym
perhaps, you perceive correctly. Both ultimately derive from the Middle English noun
hap, meaning "chance" or "fortune."
Mayhap was formed by combining the phrase "(it) may hap" into a single word (the word
maybe, another synonym of
mayhap and
perhaps, was developed similarly from
may and
be).
Hap in the phrase is a verb essentially meaning "to happen"; the verb
hap comes from the noun
hap.
Perhaps came about when
per, meaning "through the agency of," was combined directly with the noun
hap to form one word. Today,
mayhap is rare, especially compared to the very common
maybe and
perhaps, but it does show up occasionally, especially in genres of fiction whose characters speak with an old-timey flair.
:lol: