JLPT N4
そうだ (appearance)
Looks like / Seems
Structure
Verb stem / Adj stem そうだ
How it works
This grammar point is used to express an intuitive guess based on visual information or a feeling. It describes how something appears to the speaker at that moment. For verbs, it indicates that an action seems about to happen, while for adjectives, it describes a quality or state that the subject appears to have.
Examples
今にも雨が降りそうです。
It looks like it will start raining at any moment.
このケーキはとてもおいしそうです。
This cake looks very delicious.
彼は忙しそうですね。
He looks busy, doesn't he?
Common mistakes
Do not use this for things that are obvious facts or visual certainties (e.g., don't say 'this flower looks red' if it is clearly red). Also, for the adjective 'ii' (good), the form changes to 'yosasou' instead of 'isou'.
Tip
Remember to drop the 'i' from i-adjectives and the 'na' from na-adjectives before adding 'sou da'. If you keep the 'i', it might be mistaken for 'heard that' hearsay grammar.
More JLPT N4 grammar
See そうだ (appearance) in real Japanese
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