By ProDev Teach | Updated May 2025
📘 Meaning & Usage
そうだ is used to report what someone else has said or to express hearsay, meaning “I heard that” or “it seems that.” It is often used when the speaker is relaying information that they have learned from another person or source.
Structure:
- Verb (plain form) + そうだ
- Adjective (plain form) + そうだ
- Noun + だ + そうだ
Note that そうだ can also be used to express something that seems to be the case based on the speaker’s observations or intuition. It’s an indirect way of expressing information, often in a less certain or more casual way.
💡 Example Sentences
- 明日、雨が降るそうだ。
I heard that it will rain tomorrow. - 彼は日本に行くそうだ。
I heard that he is going to Japan. - この映画は面白いそうだ。
I heard that this movie is interesting. - 彼女は先生だそうだ。
I heard that she is a teacher. - 明日、試験があるそうだ。
I heard that there is an exam tomorrow.
📝 Grammar Notes
- そうだ is used to report something you have heard from someone else or to convey information indirectly.
- In more formal speech, 〜そうです is often used instead of そうだ. The form そうだ is slightly more casual and typically used in everyday conversations.
- When used with adjectives or nouns, the plain form of the adjective or noun is used before そうだ.
- そうだ can also be used with verbs in the plain form to report what someone said.
- It can express the speaker’s inference or judgment, especially when used with adjectives like 楽しいそうだ (It seems fun) or 難しそうだ (It seems difficult).
📝 Practice Exercises
1. Fill in the blanks with the correct form of そうだ
- 今日は忙しい________。
- 彼は会社に行く________。
- このレストランはおいしい________。
✔ Sample Answers:
- 今日は忙しいそうだ。
- 彼は会社に行くそうだ。
- このレストランはおいしいそうだ。
2. Translate into Japanese
- I heard that the meeting was postponed.
- I heard that he is moving to a new house.
- I think it’s going to be a cold winter this year.
✔ Sample Answers:
- 会議が延期されたそうだ。
- 彼は新しい家に引っ越すそうだ。
- 今年の冬は寒くなるそうだ。
📚 Vocabulary List
- 雨（あめ） – rain
- 行く（いく） – to go
- 映画（えいが） – movie
- 先生（せんせい） – teacher
- 試験（しけん） – exam
- 忙しい（いそがしい） – busy
- 楽しい（たのしい） – fun
- 引っ越す（ひっこす） – to move (to a new house)
🈷 Kanji List
- 雨（あめ） – rain
- 行（い） – go
- 映画（えいが） – movie
- 試（し） – test, exam
- 楽（たの） – fun
- 引（ひ） – to pull, move
🔗 Related Grammar
- 〜ようだ – it seems that / it looks like (based on the speaker’s observation)
- 〜らしい – it seems that / apparently (based on information from others)
- 〜と思う – I think (to express the speaker’s own thoughts)
🧠 Summary
- Meaning: I heard that / it seems that (used to report hearsay or information from another source)
- Usage: Used to express information learned from others or to convey an impression about a situation.
- Level: JLPT N5
I’m a software engineer based in Japan, with experience in developing web and mobile applications. I’m passionate about technology, especially in DevOps, AI, and app development using platforms like AWS, Flutter, and Node.js. My goal is to build a website that shares knowledge about the Japanese language and IT, helping everyone learn and grow more easily in the digital era.
