N5 Sentence Endings, Guesses and Invitations

~でしょう: meaning, usage and examples

~でしょう means: it will probably…

Updated 9 November 2026 · By the My Senpai team · Spotted a mistake? Tell us

Examples

1. 明日あしたはいい天気てんきでしょう。

   It will probably be nice weather tomorrow.

2. この問題もんだいは簡単かんたんでしょう。

   This problem is probably easy.

3. 木村きむらさんはもう家いえに帰かえったでしょう。

   Mr. Kimura has probably gone home already.

4. 週末しゅうまつの公園こうえんは人ひとが多おおいでしょう。

   The park will probably be crowded on the weekend.

When to use it

でしょう means "probably" or "I think". The speaker is guessing, not stating a fact. You hear it in weather forecasts (明日あしたは雨あめでしょう) and when people talk about the future or about things they cannot see. With a rising tone it also asks the listener to agree: "right?"

Nuance

でしょう is polite; the plain form is だろう, and in everyday talk people often shorten it to でしょ. Do not put だ before it: 静しずかでしょう, not 静しずかだでしょう. It sounds more certain than かもしれません but is still a guess.

Compare

でしょう vs です: 雨あめです states a fact (it is raining). 雨あめでしょう is a guess (it will probably rain). でしょう vs かもしれません: かもしれません is weaker, "maybe, maybe not". 来くるでしょう = he will probably come; 来くるかもしれません = he might come.

Tip: Plain forms go before でしょう, never ます forms. Say 行いくでしょう, not 行いきますでしょう. The でしょう itself already makes the sentence polite.