JLPT N4 grammar

〜だろうと思うmeaning and usage

Meaning

I think probably A

How to form it

  • verb (plain form)/い-adjectiveだろうと思う
  • な-adjective (stem)/nounだろうと思う

How it is used

Adds 「と思う」 to the guess 「だろう」: I think it's probably A. It sounds softer than a bare 「だろう」 and is common when giving your own view; the one thinking is normally the speaker.

Examples

  1. 明日は雨が降るだろうと思う。

    I think it will probably rain tomorrow.

  2. この問題は、みんなには少し難しいだろうと思います。

    I think this question will probably be a bit hard for everyone.

  3. 田中さんは、もう家に帰っただろうと思う。

    I think Tanaka has probably gone home already.