～らしい

RulePlain form + rashii: inference from heard/read information ("apparently"), or "typical of / -like."

Curiosity

How do you infer from objective, heard information, as in "apparently that shop is closing soon," in Japanese? How does it differ from you da?

Intuition

rashii is a one-step-removed inference: "not that I saw it myself, but from what I heard/read." Its basis is external information, so it is more objective/reportive than you da (direct observation). It also marks typicality, as in gakusei rashii ("student-like").

Visualization

furu → furu rashii (apparently it will rain). rashii attaches straight to the plain form. With nouns/na-adjectives it attaches without da (gakusei rashii, shizuka rashii).

降るdictionary (plain)

Essence

Plain form + rashii (furu rashii, takai rashii). Nouns/na-adjectives drop da (gakusei rashii). Its core use is reportive inference grounded in external evidence. Distinguish it by context from the typicality ~rashii (kodomo rashii, "childlike"). Pure hearsay is sou da; direct observation is you da.

Examples

田中さんは来月結婚するらしいです。

Apparently Mr. Tanaka is getting married next month.

あの店のラーメンはおいしいらしい。

I hear the ramen at that shop is good.

彼はとても学生らしい。

He is very student-like (typical of a student).

Mini-quiz

Which fits "I heard on the news that it will snow tomorrow (apparently)"? (furu)