may

See also: May, mAy, maý, mày, máy, mây, mãy, and mấy

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: mā, IPA^(key): /meɪ/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eɪ

Etymology 1

From Middle English mowen, mayen, moȝen, maȝen, from Old English magan, from Proto-West Germanic *magan, from Proto-Germanic *maganą, from Proto-Indo-European *megʰ-.

Cognate with Dutch mag (“may”, first and third-person singular of mogen (“to be able to, be allowed to, may”)), Low German mögen, German mag (“like”, first and third-person singular of mögen (“to like, want, require”)), Swedish må, Icelandic mega, megum. See also might.

Verb

may (third-person singular simple present may, no present participle, simple past might, no past participle)

1. (obsolete, intransitive) To be strong; to have power (over). [8th–17th c.]
2. (obsolete, auxiliary) To be able; can. [8th–17th c.]
   • 1624, Democritus Junior [pseudonym; Robert Burton], The Anatomy of Melancholy: […], 2nd edition, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Printed by John Lichfield and James Short, for Henry Cripps, →OCLC, partition II, section 3, member 6:

     But many times […] we give way to passions we may resist and will not.

3. (intransitive, poetic) To be able to go. [from 9th c.]
   • 1600, William Shakespeare, A Midsummer Night's Dream, III.3:

     O weary night, O long and tedious night,
     Abate thy houres, shine comforts from the East,
     That I may backe to Athens by day-light […].

4. (modal auxiliary verb, defective) To have permission to, be allowed. Used in granting permission and in questions to make polite requests. [from 9th c.]

   you may smoke outside;  may I sit there?

   Synonyms: can, could, might

5. (modal auxiliary verb, defective) Expressing a present possibility; possibly. [from 13th c.]

   he may be lying;  Schrödinger's cat may or may not be in the box

   • 2011 October 1, Phil Dawkes, “Sunderland 2-2 West Brom”, in BBC Sport:

     The result may not quite give the Wearsiders a sweet ending to what has been a sour week, following allegations of sexual assault and drug possession against defender Titus Bramble, but it does at least demonstrate that their spirit remains strong in the face of adversity.

   • 2013 July 6, “The rise of smart beta”, in The Economist, volume 408, number 8843, page 68:

     Investors face a quandary. Cash offers a return of virtually zero in many developed countries; government-bond yields may have risen in recent weeks but they are still unattractive. Equities have suffered two big bear markets since 2000 and are wobbling again. It is hardly surprising that pension funds, insurers and endowments are searching for new sources of return.

   Synonyms: could, might

6. (subjunctive present, defective) Expressing a wish (with present subjunctive effect). [from 16th c.]

   may you win;  may the weather be sunny

   • 1974, Bob Dylan (lyrics and music), “Forever Young”, in Planet Waves:

     May God bless and keep you always / May your wishes all come true / May you always do for others / And let others do for you / May you build a ladder to the stars / And climb on every rung / May you stay forever young

   • 1984, “No More Lonely Nights”, performed by Paul McCartney:

     May I never miss the thrill of being near you

   Synonym: might

7. Used in modesty, courtesy, or concession, or to soften a question or remark.
   • 1744 [1720], Matthew Prior, “Phillis's age”, in Joe Miller's Jests‎^[1], seventh edition:

     How old may Phillis be, you ask, / Whose Beauty thus all Hearts engages.

Usage notes

• May is now a defective verb. It has no infinitive, no past participle, and no future tense. Forms of to be allowed to are used to replace these missing tenses.
• The simple past (both indicative and subjunctive) of may is might.
• The present tense is negated as may not, which can be contracted to mayn't, although this is old-fashioned; the simple past is negated as might not, which can be contracted to mightn't.
• May has archaic second-person singular present forms mayest and mayst.
• Usage of this word in the sense of possibly is considered incorrect by some speakers and writers, as it blurs the meaning of the word in the sense have permission to. These speakers and writers prefer to use the word might instead.
• Conversely, since may not is particularly likely to promote confusion between the senses of "will possibly not" and "is forbidden to," some rules for the drafting of laws and regulations proscribe "may not" and require the use of "must not" or similar for clarity. Example: [2]
• Wishes are often cast in the imperative rather than the subjunctive mood, not using the word may, as in Have a great day! rather than May you have a great day. The use of may for this purpose may lend a more formal, literary, or solemn feeling (perhaps jocularly so) to the wish. Moreover, wishes in the subjunctive need not use may if the meaning is clear without it, which is the case mainly for established expressions in the third-person singular such as God help you.

Derived terms

term derived from “may”

• as the case may be
• be it as it may, be that as it may, be this as it may
• come what may
• devil-may-care
• if I may
• I may not but
• it may well with, may well with
• let the chips fall where they may
• may as well
• maybe
• may chance
• may-fall
• may God have mercy on your soul
• may-fortune
• mayhap
• mayhappen
• may I?
• may-issue
• mayn't
• may you live in interesting times
• that is as may be, that's as may be
• those who will not when they may, when they will they shall have nay
• what-you-may-call-it

Translations

have permission to

• American Sign Language: S@Sternumhigh-PalmDown-S@Sternumhigh-PalmDown S@Chesthigh-PalmDown-S@Chesthigh-PalmDown
• Arabic: اِسْتَطَاعَ‎ (ar) (istaṭāʕa), مُمْكِن‎ (mumkin, literally “possible”)
• Bulgarian: мога (bg) (moga), имам възможност (imam vǎzmožnost)
• Catalan: poder (ca)
• Chinese:
  • Cantonese: 可以 (ho² ji⁵)
  • Mandarin: 可以 (zh) (kěyǐ)
• Czech: smět (cs)
• Danish: må (da)
• Dutch: mogen (nl)
• Esperanto: rajti (eo)
• Finnish: voida (fi), saada (fi)
• French: pouvoir (fr)
• Galician: poder (gl), valer (gl)
• German: dürfen (de), können (de)
• Gothic: 𐌱𐌹𐌽𐌰𐌿𐌷𐌰𐌽 (binauhan)
• Greek: μπορώ (el) (boró), επιτρέπεται (el) (epitrépetai)
• Hungarian: szabad (hu), -hat (hu), -het (hu)
• Icelandic: mega (is)
• Indonesian: boleh (id), dapat (id), bisa (id)
• Italian: potere (it)
• Japanese: してもいい (shite mo ii)
• Korean: 할 수 있다 (hal su itda)
• Latin: possum (la), (use the subjunctive tense of the verb that follows) sim (la), mihi licet, licet
• Latvian: drīkstēt
• Malay: boleh
• Ngazidja Comorian: ukaya na ruhusa
• Norwegian: kan (no), få (no), må (no)
• Old English: magan, mōtan
• Persian: توانستن‎ (fa) (tavânestan)
• Polish: móc (pl)
• Portuguese: poder (pt)
• Romanian: putea (ro)
• Russian: мочь (ru) (močʹ), мо́жно (ru) (móžno) (predicative)
• Slovak: smieť
• Sorbian:

  Upper Sorbian: (ip) směć (hsb)

• Spanish: poder (es)
• Swedish: få (sv), kunna (sv), kan (sv)
• Tagalog: maaari (tl), puwede
• Vietnamese: được phép
• Walloon: poleur (wa)
• Welsh: cael (cy)

possibly, but not certainly

• American Sign Language: S@Sternumhigh-PalmDown-S@Sternumhigh-PalmDown S@Chesthigh-PalmDown-S@Chesthigh-PalmDown
• Catalan: potser (ca) (followed by "que" and then the subjunctive)
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 可能 (ho² nang⁴)

  Mandarin: 可能 (zh) (kěnéng)

• Czech: ^{(please verify)} moci (cs) (moct)
• Danish: måske (da)
• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} misschien (nl)
• Finnish: voida (fi), saattaa (fi), taitaa (fi)
• French: peut-être (fr), se pouvoir (impersonal, third-person singular)
• Galician: pode ser
• Greek: ίσως (el) (ísos), μάλλον (el) (mállon)

  Ancient: (optative mood +) ἄν (án)

• Hebrew: עשוי‎ ('asúi)
• Hungarian: lehet (hu)
• Icelandic: geta (is) (in the past subjunctive)
• Indonesian: mungkin (id), barangkali (id), bisa jadi (id), bisa saja
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} forse (it), ^{(please verify)} può essere che + subjunctive
• Japanese: 多分 (ja) (たぶん, tabun), かも知れない (かもしれない, kamo shirenai)
• Latin: (use the subjunctive tense of the verb that follows) sim (la)
• Malay: mungkin (ms), boleh jadi
• Norwegian: kan være, also expressed with adv. kanskje (no)
• Persian: شایَد‎ (fa) (šâyad)
• Polish: móc (pl), możliwe, że
• Portuguese: talvez (pt), poder (pt)
• Romanian: se poate
• Russian: ^{(please verify)} мо́жет быть (ru) (móžet bytʹ, literally “may be”), ^{(please verify)} мочь (ru) (močʹ)
• Spanish: quizás (es), tal vez (es), poder ser
• Swedish: kan (sv), kanske (sv), må (sv)
• Tagalog: maaari (tl), puwede
• Thai: อาจ (th) (àat)
• Vietnamese: có lẽ (vi)

subjunctive

• Czech: nechť (cs)
• Dutch: mogen (nl)
• French: que (fr) + [noun phrase] + subjunctive (verb)
• Italian: use subjunctive of potere
• Latin: (use the subjunctive tense of the verb that follows) sim (la)
• Nahuatl: mā
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: måtte (no)

• Polish: żeby (pl), oby (pl), niechaj (pl), niech (pl), bodaj (pl), bogdaj (Old Polish)
• Portuguese: que (pt)
• Romanian: să (ro)
• Serbo-Croatian: dàbōgda (sh)
• Spanish: que (es), ojalá que
• Swedish: må (sv)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Hungarian: ^{(please verify)} lehet (hu)
• Ido: (4, 5) ^{(please verify)} forsan (io), (1, 2) ^{(please verify)} darfas
• Romanian: ^{(please verify)} putea (ro)

See also

• Appendix:English modal verbs
• Appendix:English tag questions

Etymology 2

French mai, so called because it blossoms in the month of May.

Noun

may (uncountable)

1. The hawthorn bush or its blossoms.

Derived terms

• Italian may
• mayhaw

Translations

the hawthorn bush or its blossom

• Bulgarian: глог (bg) m (glog)
• Finnish: orapihlaja (fi)
• French: aubépine (fr) f
• Galician: estripeiro (gl) m, pilriteiro m
• German: Weißdornblüte f
• Greek: λευκάκανθα f (lefkákantha)
• Hungarian: (bush) galagonya (hu), galagonyavirág
• Italian: biancospino (it) m
• Ojibwe: miinensagaawanzh, miinensagaawanzhiig pl
• Portuguese: pilriteiro (pt) m, estrepeiro (pt) m
• Romanian: păducel (ro) m, gherghin m
• Russian: боя́рышник (ru) m (bojáryšnik)
• Spanish: espino (es) m, marzoleto m

Verb

may (third-person singular simple present mays, present participle maying, simple past and past participle mayed)

1. (poetic, intransitive) To gather may, or flowers in general.
   • 1922, A. E. Housman, Last Poems, VII, lines 1-2:

     In valleys green and still / Where lovers wander maying

2. (poetic, intransitive) To celebrate May Day.

Etymology 3

Shortening of maid, from maiden.

Noun

may (plural mays)

1. (archaic) A maiden.

Anagrams

• Amy, MYA, Mya, Yam, mya, yam

Azerbaijani

Pronunciation

• Audio

  (file)

Noun

may (definite accusative mayı, plural maylar)

1. May

Declension

Declension of may
	singular	plural
nominative	may	maylar
definite accusative	mayı	mayları
dative	maya	maylara
locative	mayda	maylarda
ablative	maydan	maylardan
definite genitive	mayın	mayların

Possessive forms of may
	nominative
	singular	plural
mənim (“my”)	mayım	maylarım
sənin (“your”)	mayın	mayların
onun (“his/her/its”)	mayı	mayları
bizim (“our”)	mayımız	maylarımız
sizin (“your”)	mayınız	maylarınız
onların (“their”)	mayı or mayları	mayları
	accusative
	singular	plural
mənim (“my”)	mayımı	maylarımı
sənin (“your”)	mayını	maylarını
onun (“his/her/its”)	mayını	maylarını
bizim (“our”)	mayımızı	maylarımızı
sizin (“your”)	mayınızı	maylarınızı
onların (“their”)	mayını or maylarını	maylarını
	dative
	singular	plural
mənim (“my”)	mayıma	maylarıma
sənin (“your”)	mayına	maylarına
onun (“his/her/its”)	mayına	maylarına
bizim (“our”)	mayımıza	maylarımıza
sizin (“your”)	mayınıza	maylarınıza
onların (“their”)	mayına or maylarına	maylarına
	locative
	singular	plural
mənim (“my”)	mayımda	maylarımda
sənin (“your”)	mayında	maylarında
onun (“his/her/its”)	mayında	maylarında
bizim (“our”)	mayımızda	maylarımızda
sizin (“your”)	mayınızda	maylarınızda
onların (“their”)	mayında or maylarında	maylarında
	ablative
	singular	plural
mənim (“my”)	mayımdan	maylarımdan
sənin (“your”)	mayından	maylarından
onun (“his/her/its”)	mayından	maylarından
bizim (“our”)	mayımızdan	maylarımızdan
sizin (“your”)	mayınızdan	maylarınızdan
onların (“their”)	mayından or maylarından	maylarından
	genitive
	singular	plural
mənim (“my”)	mayımın	maylarımın
sənin (“your”)	mayının	maylarının
onun (“his/her/its”)	mayının	maylarının
bizim (“our”)	mayımızın	maylarımızın
sizin (“your”)	mayınızın	maylarınızın
onların (“their”)	mayının or maylarının	maylarının

See also

• (Gregorian calendar months) ay; yanvar, fevral, mart, aprel, may, iyun, iyul, avqust, sentyabr, oktyabr, noyabr, dekabr ^{(Category: az:Months)}

Bikol Central

Verb

may

1. there is
2. to have

Synonyms

• igwa

Antonyms

• mayo
• wara

Crimean Tatar

Noun

may

1. butter, oil

Declension

Declension of may

nominative	may
genitive	maynıñ
dative	mayğa
accusative	maynı
locative	mayda
ablative	maydan

Synonyms

• yağ

Kalasha

Determiner

may

1. my

Pronoun

may

1. me

Mapudungun

Adverb

may (Raguileo spelling)

1. yes

References

• Wixaleyiñ: Mapucezugun-wigkazugun pici hemvlcijka (Wixaleyiñ: Small Mapudungun-Spanish dictionary), Beretta, Marta; Cañumil, Dario; Cañumil, Tulio, 2008.

Northern Kurdish

Noun

may m

1. intervention

Derived terms

• mayê xwe tê dan
• maytêder
• maytêderî
• maytêker
• maytêkerî
• mayê xwe tê kirin

Pacoh

Etymology

From Proto-Katuic *maj, from Proto-Mon-Khmer *mi[i]ʔ.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): [maj]

Pronoun

may

1. you (second person singular pronoun)

Affixed forms

• amay ("to you")
• mmay ("yours")

 

Quechua

Adverb

may

1. where
2. like, how, very

Derived terms

• maykama
• mayman
• maymanta
• maypi

See also

• may may

Pronoun

may

1. (interrogative pronoun) which

Verb

may

1. (transitive) to fear

Conjugation

    Conjugation of may

infinitive			may
agentive			maq
present participle			maspa
past participle			masqa
future participle			mana
		singular			plural
		1st person	2nd person	3rd person	1st person inclusive	1st person exclusive	2nd person	3rd person
indicative		ñuqa	qam	pay	ñuqanchik	ñuqayku	qamkuna	paykuna
	present	mani	manki	man	manchik	mayku	mankichik	manku
	past (experienced)	marqani	marqanki	marqan	marqanchik	marqaniku	marqankichik	marqanku
	past (reported)	masqani	masqanki	masqan	masqanchik	masqaniku	masqankichik	masqanku
	future	masaq	manki	manqa	masunchik	masaqku	mankichik	manqaku
imperative		—	qam	pay	—	—	qamkuna	paykuna
	affirmative		may	machun			maychik	machunku
	negative		ama maychu	ama machunchu			ama maychikchu	ama machunkuchu

Tagalog

Alternative forms

• mey, me

Pronunciation

• (standard Tagalog) IPA^(key): /maj/, [maɪ̯]

• (colloquial) IPA^(key): /ˈme/, [ˈme]

• (Batangas) IPA^(key): /ˈmej/, [ˈmeɪ̯]}

Particle

may (Baybayin spelling ᜋᜌ᜔)

1. particle used as an existential marker: to be; to have

   Synonyms: mayroon, meron

   Antonym: wala

   May tubig sa bahay.

   There is water in the house.

   May ginto sa kuweba.

   There is gold in the cave.

   May mga malalaking pating sa dagat.

   There are big sharks in the sea.

See also

• may-

Further reading

• “may”, in Pambansang Diksiyonaryo | Diksiyonaryo.ph, Manila: Komisyon sa Wikang Filipino, 2018

Tatar

Alternative forms

• май (may)

Noun

may

1. May (Month of the Year)

Declension

    declension of may

Nominative	may
Genitive	maynıñ
Dative	mayga
Accusative	maynı
Locative	mayda
Ablative	maydan

See also

• Previous: äpril. * Next: yün

Uzbek

Etymology

From Russian май (maj), from Latin māius.

Noun

may (plural maylar)

1. May

Declension

Declension of may

	singular	plural
nominative	may	maylar
genitive	mayning	maylarning
dative	mayga	maylarga
definite accusative	mayni	maylarni
locative	mayda	maylarda
ablative	maydan	maylardan

Possessive forms of may

my	singular	plural
nominative	mayim	maylarim
genitive	mayimning	maylarimning
dative	mayimga	maylarimga
definite accusative	mayimni	maylarimni
locative	mayimda	maylarimda
ablative	mayimdan	maylarimdan
your	singular	plural
nominative	maying	maylaring
genitive	mayingning	maylaringning
dative	mayingga	maylaringga
definite accusative	mayingni	maylaringni
locative	mayingda	maylaringda
ablative	mayingdan	maylaringdan
her/his/its	singular	plural
nominative	mayi	maylari
genitive	mayining	maylarining
dative	mayiga	maylariga
definite accusative	mayini	maylarini
locative	mayida	maylarida
ablative	mayidan	maylaridan
our	singular	plural
nominative	mayimiz	maylarimiz
genitive	mayimizning	maylarimizning
dative	mayimizga	maylarimizga
definite accusative	mayimizni	maylarimizni
locative	mayimizda	maylarimizda
ablative	mayimizdan	maylarimizdan
your	singular	plural
nominative	mayingiz	maylaringiz
genitive	mayingizning	maylaringizning
dative	mayingizga	maylaringizga
definite accusative	mayingizni	maylaringizni
locative	mayingizda	maylaringizda
ablative	mayingizdan	maylaringizdan
their	singular	plural
nominative	mayi	maylari
genitive	mayining	maylarining
dative	mayiga	maylariga
definite accusative	mayini	maylarini
locative	mayida	maylarida
ablative	mayidan	maylaridan

Related terms

• (Gregorian calendar months) oy; yanvar, fevral, mart, aprel, may, iyun, iyul, avgust, sentabr, oktabr, noyabr, dekabr ^{(Category: uz:Months)}

Vietnamese

Pronunciation

• (Hà Nội) IPA^(key): [maj˧˧]
• (Huế) IPA^(key): [maj˧˧]
• (Hồ Chí Minh City) IPA^(key): [ma(ː)j˧˧]

Etymology 1

Cognate with Muong băl.

Verb

may • (𦁼, 𦄆, 𧛉, 𫋿)

1. to sew

Derived terms

Derived terms

• may mặc
• may vá
• nhà may
• thợ may

 

See also

• khâu

Etymology 2

Adjective

may • (幸, 枚, 𢆧, 𢆨, 𢆪, 𪝅, 𫥏)

1. lucky

   Synonym: hên

Derived terms

Derived terms

• ăn may
• hoạ may
• may mắn (từ láy)
• may rủi

 

Walloon

Etymology

From Old French mai, from Latin Māius.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /maj/

Noun

may

1. May (month)

See also

• (Gregorian calendar months) djanvî, fevrî, måss, avri, may, djun, djulete, awousse, setimbe, octôbe, nôvimbe, decimbe ^{(Category: wa:Months)}