The present article is concerned with whether a deictic expression such as demonstrative words like are, kore, and sore can occur at A or B in A wa B da (‘A is B’) specificational sentences. First, we discuss Nishigauchi’s (2020, 2023) hypothesis that the focus element B, which is a Value NP, must be free from non-linguistic context, meaning that B cannot be a deictic expression. We point out that his hypothesis is not empirically justified. Then, we discuss Higgins’s (1973) hypothesis that the element A, which is a Variable NP, cannot be a deictic expression. We point out that certain Japanese demonstrative words, particularly the medial so-series can serve as the element A under a certain condition. We argue that allowing for Variable NP type elements in specificational sentences is useful in delineating the grammatical constraints on Japanese deictic expressions.

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