可能

可能 (kěnéng) does triple duty: as an adverb 'possibly / maybe' modifying a verb (他可能不来 'he might not come'), as an adjective 'possible' (这是可能的 'this is possible'), and as a noun 'possibility' (有可能 'there's a possibility'). It is the most common way Chinese speakers hedge a statement — much like English 'maybe' or 'might.' Position matters: as an adverb it goes before the verb, after the subject — 我可能去 ('I might go'), not 可能我去. To negate, you can say 不可能 ('impossible'), which is much stronger than 可能不 + verb ('might not').

Compare with 也许 (yěxǔ, 'perhaps'), which expresses a softer, more speculative maybe — often interchangeable with 可能, though 可能 is slightly more concrete (a 50/50 chance) while 也许 leans more wishful. The fixed phrase 不可能 ('no way / impossible') is everyday slang. 可能性 (kěnéngxìng) is the noun form 'possibility / likelihood.'