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I am not good at using '...でしょう', and do not fully understand its meaning and usage. For example:

彼はｱﾒﾘｶへ行くんでしょう

そのことをわからないんでしょう

Such sentences always make me confused. Could you explain it for me?

GoBusto
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Null
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3 Answers3

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でしょう is polite version of だろう. That means probably, displaying conjecture.

彼女は(多分)彼の恋人だろう. She is probably his girlfriend.

ra1ned
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    It might be more accurate to say 'polite' rather than 'formal'. The former is the difference between だ and です, while the latter is the difference between だ and である. –  Nov 23 '16 at 02:53
  • @snailplane I think it's slightly more muddled than that; you'll see だ in formal writing, but never である in informal contexts - except as a joke, of course. – Angelos Nov 23 '16 at 03:31
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    ^ つまり「である」は通常 formal のみですが「だ」は casual のみでなく formal にも使えるということですから、なおさら snail さんの言う通り「でしょう」(「です」+助動詞「う・よう」) は「だろう」(「だ」+「う・よう」) の formal version と言うよりも polite version と言った方が正確だ、ということになると思います・・・ – chocolate Nov 23 '16 at 06:30
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でしょう is a more polite form of だろう which is broadly used to suggest a speaker's guess and supposition. That means the speaker is not sure about it.

For example:

これは[本物]{ほんもの}のダイヤでしょう. (I am not sure about it but) This is probably a real diamond.

Rathony
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Related:　Other meanings of でしょう besides "probably"

It's likely the 2nd usage of でしょう similar in meaning to ね but it depends on the context but could also be the first, showing uncertainty on the side of the speaker.

彼はｱﾒﾘｶへ行くんでしょう

He's going to the states, right?

そのことをわからないんでしょう

You don't get it, do you?

Community
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ishikun
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  • でしょう is different from ね in the point that the former points out what the listener is not really aware of while the latter doesn't. – user4092 Nov 23 '16 at 09:58