Phrase · 🎩 Elevated register
Acaso nunca sepamos qué ocurrió aquella noche.
Perhaps we shall never know what happened that night.
C2literary speculationliteraryAudio · coming soon
Why every word is where it is
Acaso1adverbperhapsnuncaadverbneversepamos2verbwe (may) knowsaber · subjunctive · present · 1st pl.qué3pronounwhatocurrió3verbhappenedocurrir · past · 3rd sing.aquelladeterminerthataquel · fem. · sing.nochenounnightfem. · sing..
- Acaso → sepamos: acaso + subjunctive: perhaps
- sepamos → qué: saber + indirect question
- aquella → noche: aquella agrees with noche
Why it's built this way
The notes match the numbers above.
- 1Literary acaso = perhaps, with the subjunctive like quizá. In a question, ¿acaso…? is rhetorical. Literary and archaic style →
- 2sepamos: irregular present subjunctive of saber (stem sep-). Present subjunctive: forms →
- 3Indirect question: qué keeps its accent. ocurrir = to happen, more formal than pasar.
Variations
- Quizá nunca sepamos qué ocurrió aquella noche.
- Tal vez nunca lleguemos a saber qué pasó aquella noche.
- Puede que nunca sepamos lo que ocurrió esa noche.