sore wa burafu datta.

topic particle

Breakdown of sore wa burafu datta.

• だ: to be
• それ: that
• ブラフ: a bluff

Questions & Answers about sore wa burafu datta.

What does それ mean here?

それ means that or it, depending on the context.

In this sentence, it points to something already mentioned, understood from the situation, or associated with the listener’s side of the conversation. In natural English, it could be translated as either that or it.

Related words:

• これ = this
• それ = that
• あれ = that over there

So それ is a very common way to refer back to something someone just said or did.

What does the particle は do in this sentence?

は marks the topic of the sentence.

So それは means as for that... or that... as the thing being talked about.

The basic pattern here is:

X は Y だった
= X was Y

So:

それはブラフだった。
= That was a bluff.

A helpful point: は is not exactly the same as the English subject marker. It introduces what the sentence is about.

Why is ブラフ written in katakana?