Meaning & Usage
✨ Basic Meaning
‘Sou da’ is used to express either the appearance of something (‘it looks like’) or information received from another source (‘I heard that’).
🎯 Primary Function
To express conjecture based on appearance or to report hearsay.
📋 Grammar Structure
Appearance: [Verb Stem] + そうだ | Hearsay: [Dictionary/Plain Form] + そうだ
Appearance: [Stem (drop い)] + そうだ | Hearsay: [Dictionary Form] + そうだ
Appearance: [Root] + そうだ | Hearsay: [Root + だ] + そうだ
Appearance: [Stem] + そうにない / [Adj Root] + なさそうだ | Hearsay: [Plain Negative Form] + そうだ
🎭 Usage Contexts
Formal Situations
Used with ‘~desu’ (そうです) to remain polite in business or formal reporting.
Informal Situations
Used as ‘~sou’ or ‘~sou da’ when talking with friends or family.
Written Language
Hearsay form is frequently used in newspaper reports and essays.
Spoken Language
Commonly used to react to things seen in real-time or to share gossip/news.
💡 Common Applications
Visual Conjecture
Expressing a guess based on what you see before you.
Example: おいしそう (Looks delicious)
Predicting Events
Predicting an immediate or likely future event based on current conditions.
Example: 雨が降りそうだ (It looks like it’s going to rain)
Reporting Information (Hearsay)
Passing on information you read in the news or heard from someone else.
Example: 雨が降るそうだ (I heard it will rain)
Frequency
High
Difficulty
JLPT N4
Tag:
Example Sentences
Example #1
今にも雨が降りそうです。
Furigana: いまにもあめがふりそうです。
Romaji: Ima nimo ame ga furisou desu.
English: It looks like it will start raining at any moment.
Example #2
このケーキはおいしそうです。
Furigana: このケーキはおいしそうです。
Romaji: Kono keeki wa oishisou desu.
English: This cake looks delicious.
Example #3
部長は今日、とても忙しそうです。
Furigana: ぶちょうはきょう、とてもいそがしそうです。
Romaji: Buchou wa kyou, totemo isogashisou desu.
English: The manager looks very busy today.
Example #4
ニュースによると、北海道はとても寒かったそうです。
Furigana: ニュースによると、ほっかいどうはとてもさむかったそうです。
Romaji: Nyuusu ni yoru to, Hokkaido wa totemo samukatta sou desu.
English: According to the news, it was very cold in Hokkaido.
Example #5
田中さんは明日の会議を欠席するそうです。
Furigana: たなかさんはあしたのかいぎをけっせきするそうです。
Romaji: Tanaka-san wa ashita no kaigi o kesseki suru sou desu.
English: I heard that Tanaka-san will be absent from tomorrow’s meeting.
Example #6
この本は面白そうなので、買ってみようと思います。
Furigana: このほんはおもしろそうなので、かってみようとおもいます。
Romaji: Kono hon wa omoshirosou na node, katte miyou to omoimasu.
English: This book looks interesting, so I think I’ll buy it.
Example #7
彼女は英語がとても上手だそうです。
Furigana: かのじょはえいごがとてもじょうずだそうです。
Romaji: Kanojo wa eigo ga totemo jouzu da sou desu.
English: I heard that she is very good at English.
Example #8
その荷物は重そうですね。手伝いましょうか。
Furigana: そのにもつはおもそうですね。てつだいましょうか。
Romaji: Sono nimotsu wa omosou desu ne. Tetsudaimashou ka?
English: That luggage looks heavy. Shall I help you?
Example #9
この仕事は今日中には終わりそうにありません。
Furigana: このしごとはきょうじゅうにおわりそうにありません。
Romaji: Kono shigoto wa kyoujuu ni wa owarisou ni arimasen.
English: It seems like this job won’t be finished today.
Example #10
駅前の新しいレストランは高いそうです。
Furigana: えきまえのあたらしいレストランはたかいそうです。
Romaji: Ekimae no atarashii resutoran wa takai sou desu.
English: I heard that the new restaurant in front of the station is expensive.
Notes & Nuances
📌 Important Points
Irregular Adjectives
The adjective ‘ii’ is irregular when using the appearance form.
Example: よさそうです (It looks good)
Difference between Appearance and Hearsay
Stem + sou = looks like; Plain form + sou = I heard. Small changes in conjugation completely change the meaning.
Example: 雨が降りそうだ vs 雨が降るそうだ
⚠️ Common Mistakes
❌ おいしいそうです。 (when meaning ‘it looks delicious’)
✅ おいしそうです。 (Looks delicious)
You cannot use ‘sou da’ for hearsay with a stem. ‘Oishii sou da’ would mean ‘I heard it is delicious’.
❌ 赤そうです。 (It looks red.)
✅ 赤いですね。 (It is red.)
Do not use ‘sou da’ for obvious visual facts like colors. Use it only for things you are not 100% sure of.
🏛️ Cultural Context
Politeness Level: Standard polite (~desu) or plain (~da) depending on the listener.
Social Situations: Essential for sharing news or warning someone about a situation you perceive.
Regional Variations: In some dialects, ‘げ’ (ge) is used instead of ‘sou’ for appearance (e.g., ureshige).
🔍 Subtle Differences
~sou da vs ~mitai da
~sou da is based on immediate visual evidence; ~mitai da is based on more general resemblance or logic.
When to use: Use ~sou da when you see clouds and think it’s about to rain right now.
~sou da vs ~rashii
~sou da (hearsay) is a direct report; ~rashii is a guess based on rumors or secondhand information.
When to use: Use ~sou da when reporting a specific source like the news.
📝 Conjugation Notes
For ‘Appearance’, the adjective ‘ii’ (good) becomes ‘yosasou’, and ‘nai’ (non-existent) becomes ‘nasasou’. For ‘Hearsay’, you must use the plain form of verbs and keep ‘da’ for nouns and na-adjectives.
🔊 Pronunciation Tips
In the appearance form, ‘sou’ is often followed by ‘na’ when modifying a noun (e.g., oishisou na keeki).
🧠 Memory Tips
Think of ‘Stem + Sou’ as ‘Short = Short visual guess’ and ‘Plain + Sou’ as ‘Long = Longer story I heard’.
Other Grammar
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