Appearance & Inference
Learn how to express appearance, inference, and hearsay in Japanese with そうだ, ようだ, みたいだ, and らしい.
Appearance & Inference
Japanese has several ways to say something 'looks like,' 'seems like,' or 'apparently is' — and the differences matter. Each pattern signals where your information comes from:
- そうだ (stem + そう): visual impression — you're looking at something and making a guess about what will happen or how it is.
- ようだ: reasoned inference — you've gathered evidence and drawn a conclusion.
- みたいだ: same as ようだ but casual.
- らしい: secondhand information — you heard it from someone or it's the general word.
These overlap in translation ('it seems...') but are not interchangeable. Mixing them up can make you sound like you witnessed something you only heard about, or vice versa.
Attach そうだ to the verb stem or adjective stem to express what something looks like based on direct observation.
- Verbs: masu-stem + そうだ (降ります → 降りそうだ)
- い-adjectives: drop い + そうだ (おいしい → おいしそうだ)
- な-adjectives: stem + そうだ (元気 → 元気そうだ)
This expresses an impression about to happen or a quality you can see. You're judging from appearance — not from information someone told you.
そうだ conjugates like a な-adjective: そうな (attributive), そうに (adverbial), そうだった (past).
Special case: いい → よさそうだ (not いそうだ), ない → なさそうだ (not なくそうだ).
Examples
- It looks like it's going to rain.
雨が降りそうです。
- This cake looks delicious, doesn't it?
このケーキはおいしそうだね。
- He looks tired.
彼は疲れていそうだ。
- The luggage almost fell.
荷物が落ちそうになった。
The negative of appearance そうだ has special forms:
- おもしろい → おもしろくなさそうだ (doesn't look interesting)
- 降る → 降らなそうだ (doesn't look like it'll rain)
- 元気 → 元気じゃなさそうだ (doesn't look well)
Note: both ～なそう and ～なさそう are accepted for verbs. ～なさそう is more common in modern usage.
Examples
- This movie doesn't look interesting.
この映画はおもしろくなさそうだ。
- It doesn't look like it'll rain today.
今日は雨が降らなそうだ。
- She didn't look well.
彼女は元気じゃなさそうだった。
- This restaurant doesn't look expensive.
このレストランは高くなさそうです。
ようだ expresses an inference based on evidence you've observed — what you see, hear, feel, or piece together. It's more reasoned than そうだ and more formal than みたいだ.
- Verbs/い-adj: plain form + ようだ (遅れているようだ)
- な-adj: stem + な + ようだ (静かなようだ)
- Nouns: noun + の + ようだ (学生のようだ)
ようだ conjugates like a な-adjective: ような (attributive), ように (adverbial).
Key nuance: ようだ implies you've processed evidence and reached a conclusion. 'The ground is wet, so it seems it rained' is a ようだ situation — you didn't see the rain, but the evidence points to it.
Examples
- It seems the train is delayed.
どうやら電車が遅れているようです。
- It seems he caught a cold.
彼は風邪をひいたようだ。
- This shop seems to be popular.
この店は人気があるようですね。
- It seemed like nobody was there.
誰もいないようだった。
みたいだ is the casual equivalent of ようだ — same meaning, different register. It's very common in everyday conversation.
- Verbs/い-adj: plain form + みたいだ (降ったみたいだ)
- な-adj: stem + みたいだ (静かみたいだ) — no な needed
- Nouns: noun + みたいだ (学生みたいだ) — no の needed
みたいだ conjugates like a な-adjective: みたいな (attributive), みたいに (adverbial).
みたいだ vs ようだ: The meaning is identical. Use ようだ in formal speech, writing, and polite conversation. Use みたいだ in casual speech. In everyday conversation, みたいだ is far more common.
Examples
- Looks like it rained.
雨が降ったみたいだね。
- He seems angry.
彼、怒ってるみたい。
- These clothes seem a bit big.
この服、ちょっと大きいみたいだ。
- It seems like it's already over.
もう終わったみたいです。
らしい reports information you heard from others or gathered indirectly. Unlike そうだ (hearsay), which simply relays what someone said, らしい implies you've absorbed the information and are presenting it as likely true.
- Verbs/い-adj: plain form + らしい (上がるらしい)
- な-adj: stem + らしい (静からしい) — no だ
- Nouns: noun + らしい (歌手らしい) — no だ
らしい conjugates like an い-adjective: らしかった (past), らしくない (negative).
Key nuance: らしい signals that the speaker isn't the direct source — they heard it, read it, or it's common knowledge. It's softer than そうだ (hearsay) and doesn't require a specific source.
Examples
- Apparently prices are going up next month.
来月から値段が上がるらしい。
- I hear that shop closed down.
あの店、閉まったらしいよ。
- She's apparently a famous singer.
彼女は有名な歌手らしいです。
- Yesterday's earthquake was apparently big.
昨日の地震は大きかったらしい。
らしい has a second, distinct meaning: 'typical of,' 'befitting,' '-like.' In this usage, it attaches to nouns and describes something that fits the expected image of that noun.
noun + らしい
- 春らしい (spring-like, typical of spring)
- 男らしい (manly, like a man should be)
- 子供らしい (childlike, typical of a child)
The negative form, らしくない, means 'not like' or 'unbefitting': 先生らしくない (not like a teacher, unbecoming of a teacher).
How to tell the two meanings apart: if らしい follows a plain-form clause (verb/adjective + らしい), it's hearsay. If it follows a bare noun, it's 'typical of.'
Examples
- It's spring-like weather today, isn't it?
今日は春らしい天気ですね。
- He always has a manly attitude.
彼はいつも男らしい態度を取る。
- That's a childlike idea.
子供らしい発想だね。
- That person isn't like a teacher.
あの人は先生らしくない。
All four can translate to 'it seems,' but each signals different information:
- そうだ — source: visual impression, register: neutral, attaches to verb/adj stem
- ようだ — source: evidence + reasoning, register: formal, attaches to plain form
- みたいだ — source: evidence + reasoning, register: casual, attaches to plain form
- らしい — source: heard from others, register: neutral, attaches to plain form
- そうだ: I can see it's about to happen / it looks that way
- ようだ / みたいだ: I've gathered clues and concluded this
- らしい: That's what I heard / that's the word going around
Example with 'delicious': おいしそう (it looks delicious — I can see the food), おいしいようだ/みたいだ (it seems delicious — I see people enjoying it), おいしいらしい (I hear it's delicious — someone told me).
Examples
- It looks delicious. (seeing it) / It seems delicious. (evidence) / It seems delicious. (casual) / I hear it's delicious. (hearsay)
おいしそうだ。
おいしいようだ。
おいしいみたいだ。
おいしいらしい。
- It looks like it'll rain. (seeing clouds) / It seems it rained. (wet ground) / Looks like it rained. (casual) / I hear it'll rain. (hearsay)
降りそうだ。
降ったようだ。
降ったみたいだ。
降るらしい。