〜そうだ (Advanced)

JLPT N4 Japanese self-study　·　~15 min　·　Appearance vs hearsay — two totally different そうだ

'It looks like it's going to rain' vs 'I heard Tanaka quit.' Both use そうだ but attach to different forms and mean different things.

What you'll learn

• Appearance-そうだ: attaches to ます-stem / adj stem (looks like it's about to...)
• Hearsay-そうだ: attaches to plain form (I heard that...)
• Tell them apart by what comes before そうだ

How to study “〜そうだ (Advanced)”

“〜そうだ (Advanced)” (Appearance vs hearsay — two totally different そうだ) is a JLPT N4 chapter of our free Japanese self-study course, about 15 min. You learn by doing — flashcard drills and fill-in-the-blank quizzes graded on the spot — completely free, with no sign-up and no ad wall. Once it clicks, read the matching in-depth explainer over in Grammar.