also: ききつたえ
noun, noun which may take the genitive case particle 'no'
hearsay; secondhand information
Refers to something learned through hearing from others, not from direct experience. Often used in the phrase 聞き伝えに聞く (to hear by hearsay).
その話は聞き伝えに聞いただけなので、本当かどうかわからない。
I only heard that story secondhand, so I don't know if it's true.
聞き伝えの情報だけでは判断できない
You can't judge based solely on hearsay.
伝聞 is a more formal, written term for hearsay, often used in legal or academic contexts. 聞き伝え is more colloquial and emphasizes the act of hearing from someone.
又聞き specifically means hearing something indirectly through another person, often with a nuance of unreliability. 聞き伝え is broader and can refer to any information passed on by word of mouth.
Compound of 聞き (kiki, 'hearing', the continuative form of 聞く) and 伝え (tsutae, 'transmission', from 伝える). The reading ききづたえ results from rendaku voicing of つたえ to づたえ.