How common it is
看来 appears often in everyday Chinese, so it is worth practicing early and reviewing often.
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Pronunciation focus
Say kànlái slowly first, then repeat it in a short phrase. Listen for the tone shape.
Usage note
看来是用来表达‘似乎’或‘好像’的意思，通常用于描述观察到的情况。
kànlái shì yòng lái biǎo达 ‘sìgè ’ huò ‘xiǎnggāng ’ de yì思，一通常用 于 miáo释 观察到 的 qíngkuàng 。
看来 is used to express 'seems' or 'appears', typically for describing observed situations.
Context note
看来常用于描述观察或推理后的结论。例如，当看到天色变暗时，可以说‘看来要下雨了’。
kànlái cháng yòng lái miáo释 观察 或 tuīcūn 后 de 结论 。例 如 ， dāng 看到 天色 变暗 时 ， 可以 说 ‘看来要下雨了’。
看来 is often used to describe conclusions drawn from observation or reasoning. For example, when the sky turns dark, you might say 'it seems like it's going to rain'.
5 examples
他穿了一件黑色的衣服，看来是个坏人。
tā chuān le yí jiàn hēi sè de yī fu， kàn lái shì gè huài rén。
He is wearing a black coat; he seems like a bad person.
外面下着雨，看来我们不能去公园了。
wài miàn xià zhe yǔ， kàn lái wǒ men bù néng qù gōng yuán le。
It's raining outside; it seems we can't go to the park.
他跑得很快，看来是个运动员。
tā pǎo dé hěn kuài， kàn lái shì gè yùn dòng yuán。
He runs very fast; he seems like an athlete.
她笑得很开心，看来心情不错。
tā xiào dé hěn kāi xīn， kàn lái xīn qíng bú cuò。
She is laughing happily; she seems to be in a good mood.
他今天没来上课，看来生病了。
tā jīn tiān méi lái shàng kè， kàn lái shēng bìng le。
He didn't come to class today; he seems to be sick.
5 mini stories
妈妈看着窗外的天气，看来要下雨了。她赶紧把衣服收进屋子里。
mā ma kàn zhe chuāng wài de tiān qì， kàn lái yào xià yǔ le。 tā gǎn jǐn bǎ yī fu shōu jìn wū zi lǐ。
Mom looked at the weather outside the window and saw that it seemed like it was going to rain. She quickly brought the clothes inside.
爸爸在看报纸上的新闻，看来有重要的事情发生。他立刻打电话给妈妈。
bà ba zài kàn bào zhǐ shàng de xīn wén， kàn lái yǒu zhòng yào de shì qíng fā shēng。 tā lì kè dǎ diàn huà gěi mā ma。
Dad was reading the news in the newspaper and saw that something important seemed to be happening. He immediately called Mom.
姐姐穿了一双新鞋，看来非常喜欢它们。她整天都穿着它们。
jiě jiě chuān le yì shuāng xīn xié， kàn lái fēi cháng xǐ huan tā men。 tā zhěng tiān dōu chuān zhe tā men。
Sister wore a new pair of shoes; she seems to really like them. She wore them all day long.
弟弟在玩积木，看来他正在建造一座城堡。他的脸上洋溢着笑容。
dì di zài wán jī mù， kàn lái tā zhèng zài jiàn zào yí zuò chéng bǎo。 tā de liǎn shàng yáng yì zhe xiào róng。
Brother was playing with building blocks; he seemed to be constructing a castle. He had a big smile on his face.
老师看着同学们的作业，看来大家都做得很好。她很高兴。
lǎo shī kàn zhe tóng xué men de zuò yè， kàn lái dà jiā dōu zuò dé hěn hǎo。 tā hěn gāo xìng。
The teacher looked at the students' homework and saw that everyone did well; she was very happy.