perchance
/ˌpɜɹˈtʃæns/adverb
perchance is spelled P-E-R-C-H-A-N-C-E: 9 letters and 2 syllables. It appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 52,337th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As an adverb, perchance means “Perhaps” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in perchance?
| Letters | 9: P-E-R-C-H-A-N-C-E |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 2 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 3 million words; the 52,337th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is perchance?
Perchance appears about once in every 3 million words in written English, the 52,337th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce perchance?
- UK /ˌpɜːˈtʃɑːns/
- UK /pəˈtʃɑːns/
- US /ˌpɜɹˈtʃæns/
Perchance has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-perchance.wav, LL-Q1860_(eng)-AnotherFriendlyHuman-perchance.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with perchance?
9 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as perchance from its last stressed vowel (/æns/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
What does perchance mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
adverb
- 1
Perhaps.
You wouldn't, perchance, have a bottle opener on you, would you?
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Perchance in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
In the sense perhaps, by chance:
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| Portuguese | porventura |
| Spanish | por ventura |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does perchance come from?
From Middle English parchaunce, from Old French par cheance (“by chance”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).