～によると／～によれば — According to a Source
Cites the source of information being reported. It states where a piece of hearsay or a claim comes from, and is very often paired with a hearsay ending like そうだ, らしい, or ということだ at the end of the sentence.
Structure
[Noun (source)] + によると／によれば … + そうだ／らしい／とのことだ
Examples
天気予報によると、明日は雨だそうだ。
Tenki yohou ni yoru to, ashita wa ame da sou da.
According to the weather forecast, it will rain tomorrow.
天気予報 + によると names the source, and the sentence ends in そうだ (hearsay).
ニュースによれば、事故で三人が負傷したらしい。
Nyuusu ni yoreba, jiko de sannin ga fushou shita rashii.
According to the news, three people were apparently injured in the accident.
ニュース + によれば cites the source, paired with らしい (hearsay/inference).
友達の話によると、あの店は閉店したとのことだ。
Tomodachi no hanashi ni yoru to, ano mise wa heiten shita to no koto da.
According to my friend, that shop has closed down.
話 + によると introduces the source, closed with とのことだ (reported information).
• Register: neutral; によれば is slightly more formal. • Almost always paired with a hearsay ending (そうだ／らしい／とのことだ). • Common mistake: don't use it to state your own opinion — it reports others' information.
Commonly confused with
The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones ～によると／～によれば is tested against.
vs によって
によると specifically introduces the SOURCE of reported information; によって marks agent, means, cause, or variation and is not tied to hearsay.
vs では
によると explicitly cites a source for secondhand information; では merely sets a topic/scope ('as for...') without the reporting nuance.
More hearsay & conjecture
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