What it means
だれ means “who” and asks about a person’s identity or about which person performs an action. It is a question word and can appear before particles such as は, が, and の. It is common in everyday Japanese. In polite speech, だれですか is used when asking who someone is, while だれが〜ますか asks which person performs an action.
Usage note
だれ is neutral, but だれだ can sound direct or blunt depending on the situation. どなた is a more respectful alternative to だれ, especially when asking about another person’s identity.
How to use it
その人はだれですか。
Who is that person?
これはだれのかばんですか。
Whose bag is this?
だれが音楽を聞きますか。
Who listens to music?
その人はだれだ。
Who is that person?
これはだれのかばんだ。
Whose bag is this?
だれが音楽を聞くの。
Who listens to music?
Example sentences
あの男の人はだれですか。
Who is that man?
このかさはだれのですか。
Whose umbrella is this?
だれが図書館の窓を閉めましたか。
Who closed the library window?
駅の前にいる人はだれですか。
Who is the person in front of the station?
明日のパーティーで、だれがケーキを作りますか。
Who will make the cake at tomorrow's party?
この