apparently, it seems (based on what one heard)

らしい expresses a conclusion drawn mostly from secondhand information, sitting between hearsay そうだ and observed ようだ. It attaches to plain forms and directly to nouns and na-adjective stems. After a noun it can also mean typical of, as in 男らしい.

Examples

• あの店みせのラーメンはおいしいらしいです。

  Ano mise no raamen wa oishii rashii desu.

  Apparently the ramen at that shop is delicious.

• 山田やまださんは会社かいしゃを辞やめるらしいです。

  Yamada-san wa kaisha o yameru rashii desu.

  It seems Yamada-san is quitting the company.

Vocabulary in these examples

• あの that (+ noun) over there
• 店 shop; store
• 会社 company

Related patterns · Appearance, hearsay, and conjecture

• 〜そうだ（様態） looks like, seems about to
• 〜そうだ（伝聞） I heard that, they say that
• 〜ようだ it seems that, it appears that
• 〜みたいだ seems like, looks like, is like
• 〜がる / 〜がっている to show signs of (another person's feeling)
• 〜かもしれない might, may, possibly