Look at these two sentences:
A. あそこにいるのは男らしい。 → The person over there seems to be male. B. 山田さんは男らしい。 → Yamada is very manly.
Both use 「男らしい」, but A means "seems to be male" (auxiliary -- inference), while B means "has a masculine quality" (suffix -- characteristic trait).
Identity 1: Auxiliary Verb -- It seems like...
Based on external information, you judge that "it seems to be the case."
- どうやら部長は海外へ出張したらしい。 → It seems the boss went on an overseas business trip. (You'd heard he was going, and he hasn't been around for a few days.)
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Conjugation | Can attach to verbs, adjectives, and nouns |
| Inflection | らしい → らしかった → らしく |
| Key point | Must have external evidence |
らしかった = Looking back
Adding past tense to らしい = recalling a judgment from the past.
-
山田さんは旅行に出かけたらしい。 → It seems Yamada has gone on a trip. (Your present judgment -- the door is locked, the mailbox is overflowing.)
-
山田さんは旅行に出かけるらしかった。 → Looking back, it seemed like Yamada was going to go on a trip. (A past recollection -- he had borrowed a suitcase before.)
The first sentence: it seems like he's gone now. The second sentence: back then, it seemed like he was planning to go (recalling a past judgment).
Identity 2: Suffix -- Typical trait
Attached to a noun, it means "having the quintessential qualities of that thing."
- 山田さんは男らしい。 → Yamada is very manly.
- これは山田さんらしい。 → This is so typical of Yamada.
Important restriction: The suffix らしい can only be used when the subject matches the noun:
- ✅ この男は男らしい。 → This man is very masculine.
- ❌ この男は女らしい。 → You can't say a man is 女らしい.
To say "this man has feminine qualities," use っぽい instead: この男は女っぽい。
Inflecting the Suffix
The suffix form of らしい has richer inflection than the auxiliary:
| Inflection | Example | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| らしい | 男らしい | Manly |
| らしくない | 男らしくない | Not manly |
| らしさ (nominalized) | 女らしさ | Femininity |
| らしく (adverbial) | 自分らしく | Like oneself |
- 女らしさに欠けている。 → Lacking in femininity.
- 自分らしく生きる。 → Live true to yourself.
- もう自分らしくないね。 → That's not like me anymore.
How to Tell the Two Apart
| Auxiliary (inference) | Suffix (trait) | |
|---|---|---|
| Conjugation | Attaches to all word types | Only attaches to nouns |
| Meaning | It seems like... | Has the quintessential quality of... |
| Nominalization | Not possible | らしさ ✅ |
| Adverbial | らしく in mid-sentence | らしく ✅ |
| Example | 男らしい = seems to be male | 男らしい = manly |
The simplest test: If the subject already is that noun = suffix (Yamada is a man → manly). If the subject is uncertain = auxiliary (that person seems to be male).
Self-Test
Q1. Which type of らしい is used in 「自分らしく生きる」?
Show answer
Suffix. "Live like yourself" = live true to yourself. Here, らしく is the adverbial form of the suffix.
Q2. 「彼は女らしい」 -- if 彼 is male, is this sentence correct?
Show answer
No. The suffix らしい can only be used when the subject matches the noun -- a man can't be described as 女らしい. You should use 女っぽい instead.
Q3. What's the difference between 「山田さんは旅行に出かけたらしい」 and 「出かけるらしかった」?
Show answer
The first is a present judgment (seeing the door locked and the mailbox overflowing, you judge now that he seems to have gone on a trip). The second is a past recollection (looking back, it seemed at the time like he was going to go on a trip).
Summary
- らしい has two identities: auxiliary verb (it seems like) and suffix (quintessential trait)
- Auxiliary: evidence-based inference, attaches to all word types
- Suffix: having the quintessential quality of..., attaches only to nouns
- The suffix can be nominalized (らしさ) and used adverbially (らしく)
- A man can only be 男らしい, not 女らしい (use っぽい for that)
- 自分らしく生きる = live true to yourself