We use そうです (sou desu) and its variations to confirm or ask about the way things are. Related to the demonstrative pronouns これ (kore)、それ (sore)、あれ (are)、and どれ (dore)、the word そう (sou) means “that.”
The various forms of そうです (sou desu = (things are/in) that way) are used in many ways, in formal and casual registers, with different intonations, and with various endings. It is a VERY useful and common word in Japanese.
Let’s look at some examples to see how the phrases occur in daily usage!
1. そうです (Sou Desu): Yes / Yeah / That’s Right
The basic form of そうです affirms a comment or fact in the polite form. It often follows an explicit “yes” (はい、うん).
田中さん：あなたは学生ですか？
(Tanaka-san: Anata wa gakusei desu ka?)
Tanaka-san: Are you a student?
山本さん：はい、そうです！私は大学生です。
(Yamamoto-san: Hai, sou desu! Watashi wa daigakusei desu)
Yamamoto-san: Yes, that is the case! I am a university student.
そう: Casual/Informal Situations
In casual usage, we can simply say そう to offer an affirmation.
お母さん：花子、あなたマックでバイトしてるの？！
(Okāsan: Hanako, anata Makku de baito shiteru no?!)
Mother: Hanako, are you working part-time at McDonald’s?!
花子：うん、そう。
(Hanako: Un, sou.)
Hanako: Yeah.
We can also use そうだ (informal version of the copula desu).
鬼：お前は・・・桃太郎か！？
(Oni: Omae wa… Momotarō ka!?)
Ogre: Are you… Momotarō!?
桃太郎：そうだ！だから、悪いことはするな！！
(Momotarō: Sou da! Dakara, warui koto wa suru na!!)
Momotarō: That’s right! So, don’t do bad things!!
そうだ can also indicate that the speaker has come up with a brilliant idea.
家来：王子様・・・この国は、お金がありません。
(Kerai: Ōji-sama… kono kuni wa okane ga arimasen.)
Servant: Dear prince… this country has no money.
王子：そうだ！国を売ろう！
(Ōji: Sou da! Kuni o urou!)
Prince: I have an idea! Let’s sell the country!
We can also repeat そう (e.g., そうそう) to express excitement in casual usage.
レイ：アスカが好きなカフェって、ここ？
(Rei: Asuka ga suki na kafe tte, koko?)
Rei: Is this the cafe you like, Asuka?
アスカ：そうそう！カプチーノがすごく美味しいの！
(Asuka: Sou sou! Kapuchīno ga sugoku oishii no!)
Asuka: Yeah! Their cappuccino is delicious!
2. そうですね (Sou Desu Ne): Yes, That’s Right / Let Me See…
When said with a neutral intonation, the ね (ne) at the end of そうですね adds a layer of assurance to the confirmation.
山田さん：寒い日は、ラーメンが一番いいですね。
(Yamada-san: Samui hi wa, rāmen ga ichiban iidesu ne.)
Yamdada-san: On cold days, ramen is the best, isn’t it?
小泉さん：そうですね。私もそう思います。
(Koizumi-san: Sou desu ne. Watashi mo sou omoimasu.)
Koizumi-san: Yes. I think so too.
When said with a long, falling intonation, そうですね indicates that someone is considering how to respond to the interlocutor’s comment.
山口さん：￥５０,０００あったら、世界旅行ができますかね？！
(Yamaguchi-san: Go man’en attara, sekai ryokō ga dekimasu ka ne?!)
Yamaguchi-san: If I have 50,000 yen, would I be able to go on a trip around the world?!
旅行会社の人：そうですね〜・・・難しいかもしれませんね〜・・・
(Ryokou gaisha no hito: Sou desu ne~… Muzukashii kamo shiremasen ne~…)
Travel agency clerk: Let me see… It may be difficult…
In casual speech, そうだね can be used instead of そうですね (whether for added assurance or to indicate uncertainty), such as between friends.
ゆうじ：もう暗くなっちゃたから、帰ろうか？
(Yūji : Mō kuraku nacchatta kara, kaerō ka?)
Yūji: It’s gotten dark, so shall we go home?
あおい：そうだね。そうしよう。また明日遊ぼう！
(Aoi: Sou da ne. Sou shiyou! Mata ashita asobō!)
Aoi: Yeah, you’re right. Let’s do that. Let’s play again tomorrow!
The combination of そう and ね tends to be used by females (though it doesn’t always mean that the speaker is female).
セバスチャン：お嬢様、眠れないのでしたら、ハーブティーをお飲みになりますか？
(Sebasuchan: Ojō-sama, nemurenai no deshitara, hābu tī o onomi ni narimasu ka?)
Sebastian: My lady, if you are having trouble sleeping, would you like to drink some herbal tea?
お嬢様：そうね・・・そうしようかしら。ありがとう、セバスチャン。
(Ojō-sama: Sou ne… sou shiyō kashira. Arigatō, Sebasuchan.)
Young lady: That’s true… Perhaps I shall do that. Thank you, Sebastian.
3. そうですよ (Sou Desu Yo): That’s Right
Adding よ (yo) to yield そうですよ also adds a layer of affirmation of the fact to the listener (like in そうですね), or it can also give authority to the speaker (e.g., teacher, employer, etc.).
高校生（廊下でのひとり言）」：あっ！明日テストだ！すっかり忘れてた・・・
(Kōkōsei (rōka de no hitorigoto): Ah! Ashita tesuto da! Sukkari wasureteta…)
High school student (talking to themselves in the hallway): Oh! There’s a test tomorrow! I totally forgot…
先生：そうですよ！だから今夜はちゃんと勉強して下さい！
(Sensei: Sou desu yo! Dakara kon’ya wa chanto benkyō shite kudasai!)
Sensei: That’s right! So please study thoroughly tonight!
そうだよ is the casual form of そうですよ and can be used among friends and people of equal status, such as children who are regulating on each other:
桜：あ！太郎くん、チョコレートはたくさん食べちゃいけないのよ！
(Sakura: Ah! Tarō-kun, chokorēto wa takusan tabecha ikenai no yo!)
Sakura: Oh! Tarō-kun, you’re not supposed to eat so much chocolate!
一郎：そうだよ！チョコレートは、一人一個だよ！
(Ichirō : Sou da yo! Chokorēto wa, hitori ikko da yo!)
Ichirō: That’s right! Only one chocolate per person!
太郎：わ、わかったよ・・・！！
(Tarō: Wa, wakatta yo…!!)
Tarō: O, OK, fine…!
The combination of そう and よ also feminizes the speech (though, again, it doesn’t mean that the speaker is female) while still maintaining the sense of affirmation and authority.
セバスチャン：お嬢様、今回のテストはとても良い点でしたね。
(Sebasuchan: Ojō-sama, konkai no tesuto wa totemo ii ten deshita ne.)
Sebastian: My lady, your score on this test was very good.
お嬢様：そうよ！頑張れば私もできるのよ！
(Ojō-sama: Sou yo! Ganbareba watashi mo dekiru no yo!)
Young lady: That’s right! I can do it if I try!
4. そうですか (Sou Desu Ka): Is That Right? / Really? / Is That So?
Adding the question particle か (ka) can yield two meanings. First, a falling intonation indicates an understanding of a certain fact or situation.
歯医者さん：申し訳ありません。水曜日は休診です。
(Haisha-san: Mōshiwake arimasen. Suiyōbi wa kyūshin desu.)
Dentist: I’m sorry. We are closed on Wednesdays.
患者さん：そうですか。では、木曜日にお伺いします。
(Kanja-san: Sou desu ka. Dewa, mokuyōbi ni oukagai shimasu.)
Patient: I understand. Then, I will go on Thursday.
Second, a rising intonation (said like a question) indicates doubt or a continued need for assurance.
松本さん：あの俳優さん、演技が下手ですよね。
(Matsumoto-san: Ano haiyū-san, engi ga heta desu yo ne.)
Matsumoto-san. That actor is not good at acting.
二宮さん：そうですか〜？私は好きですけど・・・
(Ninomiya-san: Sou desu ka~? Watashi wa suki desu kedo…)
Ninomiya-san: Do you think that’s so? I like his acting…
そうか is the casual form of そうですか、appropriate for use among friends, for example.
ケン：そうか！寝坊したくなければ、寝なければいいんだ！
(Ken: Sou ka! Nebou shitaku nakereba, nenakereba iin da!)
Ken: I get it! If I don’t want to oversleep, I just shouldn’t sleep!
シン：そうか〜？それも無理じゃないか〜？
(Shin: Sou ka~? Sore mo muri ja nai ka~?)
Shin: Do you think that’s the case? Isn’t that impossible too?
5. Using そう with Verbs
We can also precede verbs with そう to indicate that an action is done in that particular way (or that an action is done, period).
1. サキちゃん：この学校にアイドルが転校して来るって聞いたわ。
(Saki-chan: Kono gakkō ni aidoru ga tenkō shite kurutte kiita wa.)
Saki-chan: I heard that an idol was transferring into this school.
アリサちゃん：私もそう聞いた！それ、本当だと思う？
(Arisa-chan: Watashi mo sou kiita! Sore, hontō da to omou?)
Arisa-chan: I heard that too! Do you think that’s true?
2. カウンセラー：ストレスが溜まっているみたいだから、時間を作ってリラックスして下さいね。
Kaunserā : Sutoresu ga tamatte iru mitai dakara, jikan wo tsukutte rirakkusu shite kudasai.)
Counselor: It seems like you are stressed, so please make time to relax.
ミナさん：はい、そうします。
(Mina-san: Hai, sou shimasu.)
Mina-san: Yes, I will do that.
6. Other Uses of そう
〜そう can also be attached to verbs and adjectives to express two different sentiments. Let’s take a quick look at both.
1. そう”It Looks (Like)…”:
To make this form, you add そう to:
- the masu-stem form of verbs:
- 食べます (masu form) —> 食べ ( masu stem) + そう = 食べそう (tabesou = Looks like someone/something will eat)
- the stem form of adjectives: Take the “い” off the end of い-adjectives or use な-adjectives unchanged:
- い-adjective: あつい —> あつ (stem form) + そう = あつそう (atsusou atsusou= Looks hot)
- な-adjective: 複雑 (fukuzatsu) + そう = 複雑そう (fukuzatsusou= Looks complicated)
Examples:
1. 今日は雨が降りそうですね。
(Kyō wa ame ga furisou desu ne.)
It looks like it will rain today.
2. 外は寒そうだな〜。
(Soto wa samusou da na~.)
It looks cold outside.
2. そう “I Hear (That)…”
To create this form, you just need to add そう to the end of verbs or い-adjectives in the plain form.
- Plain-Form Verbs: 食べる + そう = 食べるそう (taberusou= (I) hear someone/something will eat)
- い-adjective: あつい + そう = あついそう (atsuisou = (I) hear it’s hot)
To use this form with な-adjectives or nouns, you need to use the copula だ.
- な-adjective: 複雑 (fukuzatsu) + だそう = 複雑だそう (fukuzatsu dasou= (I) heard it’s complicated)
- Nouns: 交通事故 (kōtsū jiko) + だそう = 交通事故だそう (kōtsū jiko dasou = (I) hear it is a traffic accident)
Examples:
1. 今日は雨が降るそうですよ。
(Kyō wa ame ga furusou desu yo.)
I hear that it will rain today.
2. 青森の冬は寒いそうだ。
(Aomori no fuyu wa samuisou desu.)
I hear winter in Aomori is cold.
Conclusion
We can use forms of そうです to fit whatever situation we’re in. 本当にそうなんです！Try it out to see what some of your favorite uses are!
