らしい② - Grammar Discussion

Grammar Points
#1

typical of
-ish・like
appropriate for
becoming of
befitting

Structure

  • Noun + らしい
  • Noun 1 + らしい + Noun
  • Noun + らしく + Phrase

[Aらしい is used to express that someone (something) meets the standards of being A or expresses the typical traits of A]

[Unlike みたい or よう, らしい also implies that it belongs to group A (i.e. 子供らしい is used when talking about a child, 夏らしい when talking about summer, etc.]

[when the same noun is used, it expresses a perfect example, apex, real. Like: ‘most radish radish’, ‘manly man’, etc.]
[Very often used with いかにも (indeed, really) for emphasis]

View on Bunpro

らしい① - Seems like; (I) heard

#2

Japanese Ammo has a good explanation of らしい in this sense, which could be added to the readings section.

1 Like
#3

Hey :grin:

I have added the link to the resources section :+1:

Thank you for the feedback!
Cheers,

1 Like
#4

…One of the example sentences to this grammar point is a Konosuba reference? :laughing:

3 Likes
#5

@Daru
:sunglasses::+1:

3 Likes
#6

Not the theme park one, is it? I’ve just been wondering what theme parks have blackjack…

#7

While I get this grammar point I am struggling with the nuance of adding さ to to らし. Would somebody be able to explain this?

「あなたの笑顔の愛らしさに気づいたばかりだわ.」

Thank you! :slight_smile:

1 Like
#8

Hey @dom1911
Adding さ makes らしい into a noun, so you can use it with particles like を、が、に and so on. The difference is as between adjective and a noun.

本物らしさが重要だ
authenticity is important

ダイヤモンドは本物らしい。
The diamond seems to be authentic.

3 Likes
#9

I don’t really get what you mean by phrase in this grammar point

  • Noun + らしく + Phrase
    Could I get a quick explanation or maybe an example because I’m not really sure
#10

I think it’s just a way to say “a bunch of words”. In linguistics, a phrase is a grammatical unit that can consist of multiple words. Not all phrases are valid here, but there isn’t really enough room to put a complete list. But it would be the same one as for い-adjectives in their く-form or for adverbs.

Among the example sentences, there is this one:
カップルらしく 映画えいがを見みに行いこう

I picked it because it’s fairly long compared to the other examples. The entire part after らしく is the “phrase”.

1 Like
#11

Thanks, I wasn’t sure what it meant. I kinda thought it meant what you were saying but I wasn’t sure. I guess I just never thought something like “going to the movies” was considered a phrase I just thought it was a sentence. But I get what they mean by phrase now thanks

1 Like
#12

90% sure that’s a Futurama reference, which, while hilarious, is a bad example without the full quote:

“Yeah, well, I’m gonna go build my own theme park- with blackjack, and hookers! Actually, forget the park.”

1 Like