Don’t say Oishii when you DIDN’T eat it

Learn how to say “It looks~” in Japanese (そう), and explore both い and な adjectives. You will also learn how to navigate irregular adjective conjugations and seamlessly express ‘looks’ in conversations. Gain practical language tips for a more nuanced Japanese experience.”

What you will learn after reading this article:

Why you need to use ～そう in Japanese

Video example: https://youtube.com/shorts/e0NaXGQywWc

**さやか先生はおかしを食べます。Sayaka is eating a snack**

「おいしい！」

Sayaka looks bothered by Mary saying that in the video! Why is that? 

Adjectives in its dictionary form such as おいしい can only be used alone as a reaction to something you felt by yourself. That is why Sayaka thought that Mary took one without asking. 

To indicate that something looks (insert adjective), you must add そう to the end. This grammar function is often called making assumptions. However, this is still wrong:

おいしいそう

For い adjectives like おいしい, simply adding そう at the end means:

おいしい＋そう＝おいしいそう

“I heard it is good!”

This type of grammar form can be used to refer to something you have heard about.

The function changes when you drop the い from おいしい:

おいし (drop い)＋そう＝おいしそう

“It looks good!”

This phrase is useful for when:

• The server brings food to your table
• When your friend talks about food they had

And more!

The reason you cannot use おいしい is because you cannot share feelings if you have not tried them. You must assume they are delicious by their appearance. In this case, you must drop the い and add the そう.

Of course, there is no obligation for you to share your food, but it would be very thoughtful to do so… Right, Sayaka?

When you cannot use ～そう

Once learners learn this trick for making assumptions, they will surely make more mistakes. Why? Let’s see another situation. 

Sayaka is showing characters on her snack package. “Look at the characters!”

「かわいそう！」

Sayaka once again is shocked. “Oh you can’t say that!”

What’s wrong here?

Sayaka says that “~そう” is only used when you assume something. When you look at the snack, but haven’t tried them, you can assume they’re delicious. In this situation, you can say おいしそう. However, かわいい describes appearance; there is no assuming since you see it with your own eyes. This makes it unnecessary to add そう. Besides, かわいそう means “poor thing”.

The idea that you cannot use そう to describe appearance when you see it applies to these adjectives too:

(unless you are referring to something you heard)

How to use かわいそう

「さいふをなくした！」 I lost my wallet!

「え〜かわいそう」Oh dear…!

「Look, that kid is crying!」

「かわいそうだね～」  Oh poor thing…!

Practice ～そう

Let’s practice. 　

Heavy: おもい

Sleepy: ねむい

Fun: たのしい

Scary: こわい

Check: Did you remember to drop い? 

Learn to use: な adjective + そう

So what we discussed was for い adjectives. What about な adjectives?

Make sure to drop the な in these cases!

Now, notice how I translated them to “seems xyz” rather than “looks xyz”.

This is because assumptions can be made from limited information as well, not just from appearance or looks. Take this example.

Alice: ベンさんはどこに住んでいますか？　Ben san, where do you live?

Ben: 大島に住んでいます。小さい町で、自然がたくさんあります。I live in Oshima. It is a small town with lots of nature.

Alice: 静かそうですね。 (Oshima) must be quiet!

In this example, Alice can assume that the town is quiet, based on the limited information that the town is small and has lots of nature.

Irregular cases: 「いい」「ない」 + そう

When we talk about adjectives in Japanese, we always have to consider some irregular conjugations too. But don’t worry, these will be useful.

In the first case, いい cannot be conjugated as is. This might be a similar situation to when you have to conjugate いい for its past tense or negative. However, the rule completely changes when making assumptions. Let’s take a look at the incorrect conjugations first:

These are grammatically wrong. When something looks or sounds good, you should say よさそう. 

Based on this rule, how should you say something looks cool? 

Cool = かっこいい

Looks cool = ?

Click for answer:　かっこよさそう

The second case deals with negatives of adjectives. Let’s use an い adjective: おいしい as an example again. The negative form, not yummy, is おいしくない. Remember, drop い and add くない. When we want to say something doesn’t look appetizing, we would say:

おいしくなさそう

For な adjectives, remember that we just drop the な and add じゃない to make it negative. Can we use the same rule to make an assumption that something DOES NOT look useful?

便利な→便利じゃない (drop い) ＋そう＝便利じゃなさそう

If you thought 便利じゃなそうabout these irregular cases, you are wrong, because they are totally useful!

Ready to learn more?

Now you know how to say “It looks~” in Japanese (そう). This form of adjectives is very useful and is a great reaction or follow-up when you are in a conversation.  Go comment on Sayaka’s flashy Instagram posts with the correct form of any adjective and impress us! Do it!

Have you…

• Ever thought of learning Japanese, but have no access to classes?
• Learned Japanese, but want to speak more?
• Given up on speaking Japanese before?
• Been tired of your classmates who are unmotivated?
• OR are you UNMOTIVATED to study Japanese?

Then you should check out Sayaka’s Beginners Japanese lessons! With engaging weekly lessons covering task-based conversation practice, kanji, grammar for different situations, and useful phrases, you will for sure fall in love with all the fun and warmth you will experience in Sayaka’s class. Check her 101/102/103 and 104 classes out here!

Follow Sayaka on Instagram

Shopdekita Merch!