seems; apparently (from what one heard)

らしい reports a judgment based on information from outside, often hearsay, with slightly less certainty than ようだ. Attach it to a plain-form verb/adjective or a bare noun. A separate use, noun + らしい, means typically like that noun (男らしい, manly).

Examples

• あの店みせは今日きょう休やすみらしいです。

  Ano mise wa kyou yasumi rashii desu.

  That shop is apparently closed today.

• 彼かれはもう帰かえったらしい。

  Kare wa mou kaetta rashii.

  It seems he already went home.

Vocabulary in these examples

• あの that (+ noun) over there
• 店 shop; store
• 今日 today
• 休む to rest; to take a day off
• 彼 he, him
• もう already; more

Related patterns · Guessing and hearsay

• 〜そうだ（様態） looks like; seems (from appearance)
• 〜そうだ（伝聞） I hear that; they say that
• 〜ようだ it seems; it appears (based on evidence)
• 〜かもしれない might; maybe
• 〜にちがいない must be; I'm sure that