Maybe if (someone) (does something)?

When you're looking for solutions to a problem, you can introduce different ideas that you have with "Maybe if...". For example, if someone is looking for a way to sell her old computer, you can suggest:

Well, maybe if you put it on Craigslist, someone might buy it.

Usually "if" sentences include the conclusion, but if the speaker and the listeners all know what the conclusion is, you can leave it off. So in this example:

Maybe if we rearrange some of this stuff...?

...actually means this:

Maybe if we rearrange some of this stuff, we can fit all of the suitcases in the trunk.

But because everyone knows the conclusion, you don't need to say it.

This phrase appears in these lessons: