どうやら

ど

う

や

ら

Common wordJLPTN2Freq.FrequencyTop 5,000

Meanings

adverb

seemingly; apparently; it looks like

Expresses a tentative conclusion based on evidence or impression; often used with ～ようだ, ～らしい, ～みたい, or ～そうだ.

どうやら雨あめが降ふりそうだ。
It looks like it's going to rain.
彼かれはどうやら本ほん当とうのことを知しっているらしい。
He apparently knows the truth.

adverb

somehow; barely; with difficulty

Indicates that something was accomplished after effort or difficulty; often used with past-tense verbs. Similar to どうにか, but どうやら can sound slightly more colloquial.

Usage patterns

どうやら〈事こと〉ようだit seems/looks like ...
どうやら明日あしたは雨あめのようだ。
It looks like it's going to rain tomorrow.
どうやら〈動どう詞し〉ことができたsomehow managed to ...
どうやら約やく束そくの時じ間かんに着つくことができた。
I somehow managed to arrive on time as promised.
どうやら〈事こと〉らしいapparently ...
どうやら駅えき前まえに新あたらしい店みせができたらしい。
Apparently a new shop has opened in front of the station.
どうやら〈動どう詞し〉たsomehow ended up ...(ing), often after a close call
どうやら助たすかったようだ。
It seems he somehow survived.

Related words

どうもN4sense 1
どうも expresses a vague feeling or hunch, while どうやら points more clearly to a conclusion drawn from specific evidence, often with ようだ or らしい.
どうにかN2sense 2
どうにか is the more neutral, common word for managing to do something, while どうやら in this sense is more colloquial and often implies a narrow escape.
恐おそらくN3sense 1
恐らく expresses a more confident, formal probability judgment, while どうやら sounds softer and more tentative, based on outward signs.
なんとかN3sense 2
なんとか emphasizes effort and struggle to achieve something, while どうやら focuses on the relief of having barely pulled it off.
見みたところ
どうやら expresses a guess based on indirect evidence or hearsay, while 見たところ specifically bases the guess on visual observation.

Etymology

Derived from どう (how) + やら (emphatic particle). The exact historical development is uncertain, but it has been used since the Edo period to express uncertainty or inference.