Meaning & Usage
✨ Basic Meaning
‘It seems that…’ or ‘It appears that…’ based on objective evidence.
🎯 Primary Function
To express a conjecture or inference based on specific grounds or visual observations.
📋 Grammar Structure
Verb (Plain Form/Past Form) + とみえる / とみえて
i-Adjective (Plain Form) + とみえる / とみえて
na-Adjective + (だ) + とみえる / とみえて
Verb/Adjective (ない-form) + とみえる / とみえて
🎭 Usage Contexts
Formal Situations
Used in formal reporting or analysis where an objective tone is required.
Informal Situations
Less common in casual conversation, where ‘mitai’ or ‘rashii’ are preferred.
Written Language
Frequently found in literature, news articles, and descriptive essays.
Spoken Language
Used when the speaker wants to sound slightly more formal or analytical.
💡 Common Applications
Objective Inference
Using visible signs to make a logical conclusion.
Example: 道が濡れている。雨が降ったとみえる。 (The road is wet. It seems it rained.)
Expressing Cause and Effect with ‘Tete’ form
Using ‘to miete’ to link an observation to its resulting behavior.
Example: 忙しいとみえて、電話に出ない。 (He seems busy, [so/which is why] he doesn’t answer the phone.)
Frequency
Common in written news, reports, and formal speech.
Difficulty
N3
Tag:
Example Sentences
Example #1
彼は忙しいとみえて、返事が来ない。
Furigana: かれ(彼)はいそが(忙)しいとみ(見)えて、へんじ(返事)がこ(来)ない。
Romaji: Kare wa isogashii to miete, henji ga konai.
English: He seems busy, as I haven’t received a reply.
Example #2
昨夜は雨が降ったとみえて、道が濡れている。
Furigana: さくや(昨夜)はあめ(雨)がふ(降)ったとみ(見)えて、みち(道)がぬ(濡)れている。
Romaji: Sakuya wa ame ga futta to miete, michi ga nurete iru.
English: It seems it rained last night; the roads are wet.
Example #3
おいしいとみえて、子供たちは全部食べた。
Furigana: おいしいとみ(見)えて、こども(子供)たちはぜんぶ(全部)た(食)べた。
Romaji: Oishii to miete, kodomotachi wa zenbu tabeta.
English: It must have been delicious, as the children ate everything.
Example #4
犯人は窓から逃げたとみえる。
Furigana: はんにん(犯人)はまど(窓)からに(逃)げたとみ(見)える。
Romaji: Hannin wa mado kara nigeta to mieru.
English: It appears the culprit escaped through the window.
Example #5
彼女は合格したとみえて、とても嬉しそうだ。
Furigana: かのじょ(彼女)はごうかく(合格)したとみ(見)えて、とてもうれ(嬉)しそうだ。
Romaji: Kanojo wa goukaku shita to miete, totemo ureshisou da.
English: She seems to have passed the exam, as she looks very happy.
Example #6
隣の家は留守とみえて、電気がついていない。
Furigana: となり(隣)のいえ(家)はるす(留守)とみ(見)えて、でんき(電気)がついていない。
Romaji: Tonari no ie wa rusu to miete, denki ga tsuite inai.
English: The house next door seems to be empty; no lights are on.
Example #7
彼はもう帰宅したとみえて、靴が玄関にある。
Furigana: かれ(彼)はもうきたく(帰宅)したとみ(見)えて、くつ(靴)がげんかん(玄関)にある。
Romaji: Kare wa mou kitaku shita to miete, kutsu ga genkan ni aru.
English: He seems to have returned home already; his shoes are at the entrance.
Example #8
会議は長引いているとみえて、誰も部屋から出てこない。
Furigana: かいぎ(会議)はながび(長引)いているとみ(見)えて、だれ(誰)もへや(部屋)からで(出)てこない。
Romaji: Kaigi wa nagabiite iru to miete, daremo heya kara dete konai.
English: The meeting seems to be dragging on; no one is coming out of the room.
Example #9
この料理は辛いとみえて、みんな水をたくさん飲んでいる。
Furigana: このりょうり(料理)はから(辛)いとみ(見)えて、みんなみず(水)をたくさんの(飲)んでいる。
Romaji: Kono ryouri wa karai to miete, minna mizu o takusan nonde iru.
English: This dish seems spicy; everyone is drinking a lot of water.
Example #10
彼は疲れているとみえて、電車でぐっすり眠っている。
Furigana: かれ(彼)はつか(疲)れているとみ(見)えて、でんしゃ(電車)でぐっすりねむ(眠)っている。
Romaji: Kare wa tsukarete iru to miete, densha de gussuri nemutte iru.
English: He seems very tired; he is sleeping soundly on the train.
Notes & Nuances
📌 Important Points
The ‘to miete’ form is a conjunction.
‘To miete’ acts as a conjunction explaining the reason for the second half of the sentence.
Example: 忙しいとみえて、連絡がない。
Evidence-based conjecture.
The speaker isn’t just guessing; they have a reason to believe so based on behavior.
Example: 彼は何かを隠しているとみえる。
⚠️ Common Mistakes
❌ おいしいとみえる。 (When looking at food without context)
✅ おいしそうに食べている。
‘To mieru’ is for logical inference from evidence, not for simple ‘looks like’ regarding direct sensory experience like taste.
🏛️ Cultural Context
Politeness Level: Neutral to Formal. It sounds more intellectual and objective than ‘~mitai’.
Social Situations: Commonly used by adults or professionals to describe a situation based on evidence rather than feeling.
Regional Variations: Standard Japanese usage.
🔍 Subtle Differences
~とみえる vs. ~らしい
‘To mieru’ is based on objective observation of a current situation; ‘rashii’ is often based on hearsay or general reputation.
When to use: Use ‘to mieru’ when you see evidence with your own eyes and draw a conclusion.
~とみえる vs. ~そうだ (Appearance)
‘Sou da’ is an immediate visual impression (looks like it’s about to rain); ‘to mieru’ is a logical conclusion (it rained already because the ground is wet).
When to use: Use ‘to mieru’ for ‘I conclude that…’ rather than ‘It looks like…’.
📝 Conjugation Notes
It follows the plain form of verbs and adjectives. For nouns and na-adjectives, ‘da’ is optional but often omitted in formal writing.
🔊 Pronunciation Tips
The ‘to’ acts as a quotation particle, so there is a slight, natural pause before ‘mieru’.
🧠 Memory Tips
Think of ‘To mieru’ as ‘One can see that…’ but used for logical deduction rather than physical sight alone.
Other Grammar
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