Practice JLPTHow to tell them apart
らしい conveys a conjecture based on what you have heard, read, or seen, so it works when you are reporting or inferring from external evidence. っぽい attaches to a noun, adjective, or verb to say something has a distinctive characteristic or tendency, giving a -ish or -like feel. Swapping them is unnatural: 安っぽいソファ means cheapish, not apparently cheap, while 難しいらしい means I hear it is difficult, not difficult-ish.
- らしい Use らしい when you are conjecturing or reporting based on something you heard, read, or saw.
- っぽい Use っぽい when you want to say something has a characteristic or tendency, like -ish or -like.
| Grammar point | Meaning | JLPT level |
|---|---|---|
| らしい rashii | Seems/Apparently | N4 |
| っぽい ppoi | Tend to be/-ish | N3 |
らしい rashii
Seems/Apparently
Seem; look like; apparently; I heard | An auxiliary adjective which indicates that the preceding sentence is the speaker’s conjecture based on what he has heard, read or seen.
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あの学校の入学試験は難しいらしい。
That school's entrance exam seems difficult.
-
ここは学校らしい。
This place seems to be a school.
っぽい ppoi
Tend to be/-ish
Apt to; easy to; -ish; -like | A suffix that indicates someone/something has some distinctive characteristic or an attribute identified by a noun, an adjective, or a verb to which the suffix is attached.
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あなた、こんな安っぽいソファを買ってきてどうするの？
What are you going to do with this cheapish sofa that you bought?
-
あの女優は実に女っぽいから好きだ。
I like the actress, because she is so womanish.
らしい and っぽい are JLPT N4–N3 grammar points that Japanese learners often mix up. This page compares them side by side — meanings, usage and example sentences — so you can tell them apart.