who may he be?

Question

Who may he be? Or who can he be? What's the difference between these two sentences?

CalifJim · Accepted Answer

rpshWho may he be?

This one doesn't even sound like modern English. It's very rarely used if at all.

rpshWho can he be?

This is correct. Very formally, Who might he be?

CJ

Rpsh · Answer

Isn't might the past tense of may? Why is 'who might he be' correct, while 'who may he be' isn't right?( Eh... Sorry, I think the expression of this sentence is wrong, though I think that you can understand my meaning. Could you correct it?)

CalifJim · Answer

rpshWhy is 'who might he be' correct, while 'who may he be' isn't right?

(This sentence is correct. Also, ..., while 'who may he be' is not.)

I was afraid you were going to ask this, because I was wondering about it myself. I don't know if I have a good answer for you, but let me explain what these are likely to mean to a native speaker.

Who may he be? sounds like "Who is he permitted to be?" But that doesn't sound right because we don't ask permission to be someone else.

Who might he be? sounds like "I wonder who he is", and that sounds like something that people might say.
Who can he be? also sounds like "I wonder who he is", and that sounds OK too. But this is a much more ordinary everyday way to say it.
_________

The fact that might was the past of may centuries ago has nothing to do with it. The modal verbs (like can, could, may, might, must, should, etc.) have changed in meaning over the centuries, and now the present-past relationships are not as important as they used to be.

CJ

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