Breakdown of ano hito wa sakka darou ne.
Questions & Answers about ano hito wa sakka darou ne.
The sentence あの 人 は 作家 だろう ね。 roughly means:
“That person is probably a writer, right?”
“I guess that person is a writer.”
Breakdown:
- あの – “that (over there / that (person/thing) away from both of us)”
- 人 – “person”
- は – topic marker (“as for…” / “speaking of…”)
- 作家 – “author, writer (usually of books, novels, etc.)”
- だろう – “probably / I suppose / I guess”
- ね – sentence-ending particle: “right?”, “isn’t it?”, inviting agreement or shared feeling
So literally: “As for that person, (they) probably are an author, huh.”
These three are all demonstratives (“this/that” words):
- この – “this … (near me, the speaker)”
- e.g. この人 = “this person (near me)”
- その – “that … (near you, the listener)” or “that … (you just mentioned)”
- e.g. その人 = “that person (near you / that one you mentioned)”
- あの – “that … over there” / “that … (away from both of us, or distant in context)”
- e.g. あの人 = “that person (over there / we’re both looking at them or both know who)”
In あの人, the speaker is talking about someone who is not right next to them in a “this person here” sense, but is identifiable to both speaker and listener—often someone a bit apart, or a well-known person being discussed.
は marks the topic of the sentence—what we’re talking about.
- あの人は ≈ “As for that person,” / “That person (topic)…”
In this kind of simple “A is B” statement, it’s very natural to use は after the noun you’re talking about. We’re introducing “that person” as the topic, and then saying something about them: that they’re probably a writer.
If you used が instead (あの人が作家だろう), it would sound more like:
- “That person is the one who is probably a writer.” (emphasizing who it is, or contrasting with someone else)
In beginner sentences describing someone’s profession, X は Y です or X は Y だ is the default pattern, so は is expected here.
作家 (さっか) usually means:
- an author, especially of novels, literary works, or books
- a professional writer in a more “artistic” or “author” sense
Some contrasts:
- 作家 – author/novelist; also sometimes any creator/artist in certain fields (e.g. 陶芸作家 = pottery artist)
- ライター – “writer” in the sense of journalist, copywriter, web writer, etc.
- 書き手 (かきて) – “writer” as a person who writes; broader term but less common in everyday speech
In everyday conversation, あの人は作家だろうね suggests “That person is probably an author/novelist (or similar kind of writer).”
だ is the plain (informal) copula, often thought of as the “to be” verb for nouns and certain adjectives:
- 作家だ = “(someone) is a writer.”
When you attach ろう to だ, you get だろう, which expresses conjecture or probability:
- 作家だ – “(They) are a writer.” (simple statement)
- 作家だろう – “(They) are probably a writer.” / “I guess (they) are a writer.”
So in this sentence, the speaker isn’t stating a fact; they’re making an educated guess.
You can think of だろう (and its polite cousin でしょう) as turning a plain statement into “probably / I suppose …” in English.
Both だろう and でしょう mainly express conjecture (“probably”) or the speaker’s supposition.
だろう
- More casual / plain style.
- Can sound somewhat masculine or rough in everyday spoken Japanese, depending on tone and who is speaking.
- Often used in writing, narration, and internal monologue without a gendered feel.
でしょう
- More polite, neutral, and common in standard polite speech.
- Widely used by all genders.
- Often translated as “probably,” “I suppose,” or “right?”
Rough comparison:
- あの人は作家だろうね。
→ “That person is probably a writer, huh.” (casual, could sound a bit masculine) - あの人は作家でしょうね。
→ “That person is probably a writer, isn’t he/she?” (polite / softer)
In casual speech, many women and some men might prefer でしょうね rather than だろうね, depending on personal style.
ね is a sentence-ending particle that:
- softens the statement
- seeks agreement, confirmation, or shared feeling
- can sound like “right?”, “isn’t it?”, “you know,” or just a softening “huh”
Compare:
- あの人は作家だろう。
→ “That person is probably a writer.” (a bit more to yourself, or stating your guess) - あの人は作家だろうね。
→ “That person is probably a writer, right?” / “I guess that person is a writer, huh.”
(inviting the listener to share that guess or feeling)
So ね makes it more interactive and less blunt, and it sounds very natural in conversation.
This sentence is casual / plain style:
- だろう – plain form (not polite でしょう)
- ね – casual sentence-ending particle
- No です/ます forms
You would use this:
- with friends, family, or people of equal or lower status
- in your inner thoughts / monologue
- in casual writing, like fiction dialogue
If you want a polite version:
- あの人は作家でしょうね。
(polite, natural in conversation with someone you don’t know well)
Or slightly more neutral but still plain:
- あの人は作家なんでしょうね。 (softens the statement further)
Japanese often omits the subject when it’s clear from context.
In あの人は作家だろうね, the topic (あの人) is explicitly given:
- あの人は – “As for that person…”
Because we already know who we’re talking about, Japanese doesn’t need a separate word for “he” or “she”:
- English: “That person is probably a writer, isn’t he/she?”
- Japanese (literal): “As for that person, (they) probably are a writer, right?”
Pronouns like 彼 (he) or 彼女 (she) are used much less often than in English, especially when the person has already been identified (like あの人).
あの人 (あのひと) is neutral and very common in everyday conversation:
- “that person” / “that guy / that woman (depending on context)”
However, in more polite or formal situations, or when you want to show respect, you might use:
- あの方 (あのかた) – “that person” (but respectful / polite)
For example:
- Talking to a close friend:
あの人は作家だろうね。 – “That person’s probably a writer, huh.” - Talking in a polite context (e.g., with a customer):
あの方は作家でしょうね。 – “That person is probably a writer, isn’t he/she?”
So あの人 isn’t rude by itself, but あの方 is safer when you need to be clearly respectful.
あの人は作家だろうね。 is not a direct question; it’s a guess plus “right?/huh”:
- “That person is probably a writer, right?”
To ask a straight question like “Is that person a writer?” you would say:
- あの人は作家ですか。 (polite)
- あの人は作家？ (casual)
- あの人は作家なの？ (casual, softer/curious)
If you want a question that still shows conjecture, you might say:
- あの人は作家だろうか。 – “I wonder if that person is a writer.”
- あの人は作家かな。 – “I wonder if that person is a writer.” (more casual)
So:
- だろうね → “probably …, right?” (statement with conjecture + seeking agreement)
- ですか／？ → real question asking for confirmation.
You’re right that in normal Japanese writing, there are no spaces between words. The sentence would typically be written as:
- あの人は作家だろうね。
In teaching materials, spaces are sometimes added to help learners see the word boundaries and grammar units:
- あの｜人｜は｜作家｜だろう｜ね。
So the spaces in あの 人 は 作家 だろう ね。 are for learning convenience only; they wouldn’t appear in ordinary Japanese text.