det kan hända

Swedish

Etymology

From det (“it”) +‎ kan (“can”) +‎ hända (“happen”). Compare Norwegian Nynorsk kan henda.

Phrase

det kan hända

1. (idiomatic) that may be the case

   – Är du den där snubben från TV? – Det kan hända!

   – Are you that guy from TV? – Might well be! ("That may be the case!", as a somewhat jocular affirmation)

2. (idiomatic, when followed by "att") it may be that ..., it's possible that ...

   Det kan hända att vi behöver köpa en tårta till om det ska räcka till alla

   It may be that we need to buy another cake for there to be enough for everyone

3. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see det,‎ kan,‎ hända.

References

• hända in Svensk ordbok (SO)