Seems, looks like, I hear: そうだ, ようだ, みたいだ, らしい
Japanese has several endings for "it looks", "it seems", "apparently" and "I hear". Which one you say depends on how you know: from the look of the thing, from signs you have noticed, or from what you were told. Two different endings are spelled そうだ.
| Ending | What it says | Where |
|---|---|---|
| 降りそうだ | "It looks like rain": the sky is dark | Everyday |
| 降ったようだ | "It seems it rained": the road is wet | Polite talk, news, writing |
| 降ったみたいだ | The same as 降ったようだ | Conversation, messages |
| 降るそうだ | "I hear it will rain": the forecast said so | Polite talk, writing |
| 降るらしい | "Apparently it will rain": you heard it somewhere, and aren't vouching for it | Everyday |
| 降りそうにない | "It doesn't look like it will rain": not a cloud in the sky | Everyday |
The verb is 降る, "to fall", said of rain. The two そうだ are 降りそうだ, on the stem 降り, and 降るそうだ, on the whole verb.
Stem + そうだ: how it looks
Full pageそうだN4
そうだ on a stem is how something looks to you before you have checked. The word in front loses its ending: おいしい gives おいしそう. It is also the normal way to talk about how someone else feels, which you only see from outside: うれしそう, 眠そう, 痛そう.
おいしそうlooks delicious
Steam is rising from this soup, and it looks delicious.
お元気そうlooking well
It's been a long time. You're looking well.
よさそうlooks good
This place looks good. Let's go in.
From いい.
On a verb this ending is "looks about to" or "looks likely to".
Sorry, it looks like I'll be about five minutes late.
ようだ and みたいだ: it seems
Full pageようだ・
ようだ says what you have worked out from signs: something you see, hear or feel. みたいだ says the same thing in conversation. Both can follow a past form, which the "looks" そうだ can't, so they are the ones for what has already happened.
My throat hurts. I seem to have caught a cold.
In writing. In polite talk, ひいたようです.
My throat hurts. I seem to have caught a cold.
In conversation.
Looks like Tanaka isn't here yet.
Yeah, seems so.
Excuse me, the change seems to be wrong.
ようです also softens a statement you are fairly sure of.
おいしそう or おいしいみたい?
English can say "looks good" for both.
This place looks good.
You are looking at the dishes in the window.
This place seems to be good.
There is always a line outside. You figure it out.
Plain form + そうだ: I hear
Full pageそうだN4
After a whole plain form, そうだ passes on what you were told or what you read, adding nothing of your own.
This ramen looks delicious.
おいしい has lost its い. You are looking at the bowl.
I hear this ramen is delicious.
おいしい is whole. A friend told you.
I heard from my mother that my grandfather left the hospital yesterday.
English says "I heard", but the past goes on 退院した, not on そうです.
I hear Yamada will arrive around seven.
To a colleague, politely.
I hear Yamada's arriving around seven.
To a friend.
Among friends, "I hear" is mostly らしい or んだって.
らしい: apparently
Full pageらしいN4
らしい is also for what you were told: something a friend said, something you read, talk going around. But you aren't vouching for it.
Apparently the bakery by the station is closing down.
Yeah, apparently.
ようだ or らしい?
ようだ is your own judgment from the signs. らしい mostly goes by what others told you.
Yamada seems to have a cold.
You have seen him coughing.
Apparently Yamada has a cold.
Someone told you so.
So a doctor who has just examined you says 風邪のようですね. 風邪らしいですね would sound as if the doctor had only heard about it.
らしい can also be a guess from signs, as ようだ is, but it sounds as if you were only watching, not involved.
Several umbrellas have been left outside. Apparently there are still people inside.
After a noun: の, だ or nothing
| Ending | After a noun |
|---|---|
| そうだ, "looks" | Not straight after a noun |
| ようだ | 雨のようだ |
| みたいだ | 雨みたいだ |
| そうだ, "I hear" | 雨だそうだ |
| らしい | 雨らしい |
After a noun, のようだ and みたいだ are also "like", for what something only resembles: 夢みたい, "like a dream". And らしい can say that something is everything the noun leads you to expect: 春らしい日, "a real spring day".
Where it goes wrong
Three mistakes come from English "looks" and "looks like".
Not said: この
(This flower looks pretty.)
You can see that it is pretty, so there is nothing to guess: きれいですね.
Not said: あの
(That person looks like a student.)
A noun takes みたいだ or のようだ: 学生みたいです.
Not said: あの
(That cloud looks like a fish.)
魚みたいだ. The の belongs to ようだ: 魚のようだ.
そうにない: it doesn't look like it will
Full pageそうもない・
そうにない is the negative of the "looks" そうだ on a verb, and そうもない means the same. The negative of an adjective ends in なさそうだ.
I'm sorry, it doesn't look like I can come tomorrow.
A softer way to say no than 行けません.
The equation is short, so this problem doesn't look very difficult.
Other ways to say "looks" and "seems"
に見えるN4
How something looks to the eye, whether or not it really is that way.
My mother looks younger than she is.
っぽいN3Spoken, casual
A casual "-ish". Among friends it is also a guess, like みたい; that use is slang.
Looks like Tanaka isn't coming today.
とみえるN2WrittenOld-fashioned
A narrator's "it would seem". In conversation people say みたいだ or らしい.
The road and the roofs are wet. It would seem that it rained in the night.
げN2Written, literary
A storyteller's "-looking": a feeling shows in someone's face or voice. In conversation people mostly say そう: 悲しそう.
She wore a sad look.