LEARN + JAPANESE / Note 134 JLPT N4
Apparently, Typical Of (らしい)
らしい attaches to the plain form and does two related jobs. After a whole clause, it reports something you heard, close to そうだ but with a more distanced, “apparently” feel. Attached directly to a noun, it means “typical of,” praising something for perfectly matching its category.
Apparently it's difficult and rough.
I don't know the details, but apparently they've worked there for thirty years.
In Real Life
そうだ reports something you heard directly and fairly recently; らしい carries a slightly vaguer, more secondhand feel, “from what I gather,” often used when you’re not totally sure of the source or the details.
Ah, that's such a Hokkaido-style ramen.
Ah, that's such a Kyoto-style building.
In Real Life
Attached straight to a noun with no verb involved, X らしい means “very X,” embodying everything typical or expected of that category, 北海道らしい, “quintessentially Hokkaido,” a specific compliment about fitting an image perfectly.
Vocabulary
| Japanese | English |
|---|---|
| textbook | |
| to interview | |
| serious, diligent | |
| strict | |
| jogging | |
| Hokkaido | |
| souvenir | |
| fashion | |
| building | |
| typical | |
| characteristic quality, essence | |
| rumor | |
| source of information | |
| vague, ambiguous | |
| characteristic, feature | |
| image | |
| reputation | |
| not certain | |
| local area, hometown | |
| atmosphere |