Should Be / Expected (~hazu da)
〜はずだ
~はずだ expresses the speaker's confident expectation based on reason or evidence — 'should be' or 'is supposed to.'
Pattern
Verb (plain form) + はずだ | i-adj + はずだ | na-adj + な + はずだ | Noun + の + はずだ | Negative: ~はずがない
Explanation
~はずだ expresses a strong expectation or belief based on logical reasoning, knowledge, or evidence. It means 'it should be,' 'it's supposed to be,' or 'I expect that.' The speaker is fairly confident but acknowledges they could be wrong.
It follows the plain form of verbs, i-adjectives, na-adjective + な, and noun + の. The negative ~はずがない means 'there's no way that...' or 'it can't possibly be...' — expressing strong disbelief.
~はずだった (past) means 'was supposed to' but didn't happen — expressing that expectations were not met. This is commonly used to talk about plans that fell through or assumptions that proved wrong.
Examples
もう届いているはずだ。
もうとどいているはずだ。
mou todoite iru hazu da.
It should have arrived by now.
彼が知らないはずがない。
かれがしらないはずがない。
kare ga shiranai hazu ga nai.
There's no way he doesn't know.
このレストランは安いはずだ。
このれすとらんはやすいはずだ。
kono resutoran wa yasui hazu da.
This restaurant should be cheap.
昨日届くはずだったのに、まだ届いていない。
きのうとどくはずだったのに、まだとどいていない。
kinou todoku hazu datta noni, mada todoite inai.
It was supposed to arrive yesterday, but it still hasn't.
Common Mistakes
Wrong
静かはずだ
Correct
静かなはずだ
Na-adjectives require な before はず.
Wrong
学生はずだ
Correct
学生のはずだ
Nouns require の before はず.
Wrong
来るはずだ (expressing a command)
Correct
来るべきだ
はずだ expresses expectation, not obligation. For 'should' meaning obligation, use べきだ.
Related Grammar Points
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