とのことだ — I Heard That / They Said That

Meaning & Usage

とのことだ reports information you received from someone else — formal Japanese for "I was told that" or "Apparently." Literally: と (quotation) + の (nominalizer) + こと (matter) + だ (copula), yielding "it is the matter that [someone] said ~."

This grammar point is closely associated with formal and professional Japanese. You will encounter it in business emails, office memos, formal reports, news articles, and announcements. Unlike そうだ — which fits naturally in everyday conversation — とのことだ carries a polite, detached tone. It signals that the speaker is attributing information to an outside source, not claiming it as personal knowledge.

とのことだ implies the speaker received this information through a specific channel — a message, phone call, letter, third-party report, or announcement. It is the grammar pattern of choice when you want to relay what someone else said without personally vouching for its accuracy, similar to the English phrases "I was told that...", "Apparently...", or "According to what I heard..."

In polite speech, the ending is elevated to とのことです. In written documents or formal notices, you may also see the pattern used at the end of longer sentences. The source of information is typically mentioned before the main clause using expressions like 田中たなか様さまより (from Mr. Tanaka), 先方せんぽうより (from the other party), or simply implied by context.

とのことだ positions the speaker as a neutral messenger, not an authority. This makes it especially useful in hierarchical business settings where accurately crediting the source of information is a matter of professional respect and accountability.

Structure & Formation

The pattern attaches to the plain form of verbs, adjectives, and nouns + だ:

In practice, the な-adjective and noun formations sometimes drop the だ in highly formal written Japanese, leaving just とのことだ directly after the noun or adjective stem. In polite speech, replace the final だ with です to get とのことです.

The pattern can also take the て-form to connect to subsequent clauses: とのことで. This version is especially common in business writing when explaining the reason or background for an action.

Example Sentences

Reporting Business Information

Relaying Personal Messages

Using とのことで (Connective Form)

In Written Announcements

Negative and Question Forms

Common Mistakes

Mistake 1: Using とのことだ in Casual Conversation

❌ ねえ、田中くんが来るとのことだよ。

✅ ねえ、田中くんが来るんだって。

とのことだ sounds stiff and out of place in conversation with friends or family. In informal settings, use んだって, らしい, or そうだよ to convey hearsay. Save とのことだ for business emails, formal reports, and professional contexts.

Mistake 2: Forgetting だ Before とのことだ with Nouns and な-Adjectives

❌ 彼かれは部長ぶちょうとのことです。

✅ 彼かれは部長ぶちょうだとのことです。

When connecting a noun or な-adjective to とのことだ, insert だ between them. Learners often drop it here, confusing this with patterns that attach directly to nouns without a copula.

Mistake 3: Confusing とのことだ with らしい

❌ メールによると、会議かいぎは中止ちゅうしだとのことらしいです。

✅ メールによると、会議かいぎは中止ちゅうしだとのことです。

Do not stack とのことだ and らしい together. Both express hearsay, but they serve distinct functions. とのことだ signals relayed spoken or written communication; らしい expresses inference from evidence or hearsay more broadly. Combining them creates redundancy and sounds unnatural.

Mistake 4: Using with Direct First-Person Knowledge

❌ 私わたしが見みた映画えいがはとても面白おもしろかったとのことです。

✅ 私わたしが見みた映画えいがはとても面白おもしろかったです。

とのことだ must only relay someone else's words or information. Applying it to your own direct experiences is logically incorrect — native speakers will hear it as you reporting your own life as if it were hearsay.

Mistake 5: Misusing the Connective とのことで as a Reason Marker

❌ 忙いそがしいとのことで、私わたしは手伝てつだいます。

✅ 忙いそがしいとのことですので、お手伝てつだいします。

When using とのことで as a connective, the second clause should describe the speaker's response to the reported information. Also, polite です is preferred over plain だ in formal written Japanese when the sentence continues.

Cultural Notes

In Japanese professional culture, clearly crediting the source of information is not merely a linguistic convention — it is a form of social accountability. Using とのことだ signals to your listener that you are not personally responsible for the accuracy of the information and that you are faithfully reporting what you received. This matters most in hierarchical organizations where miscommunication can have serious consequences.

Business emails in Japan frequently open with phrases like 先日せんじつご連絡れんらくいただきましたとおり (as per our recent communication) and close with relayed instructions framed by とのことで. Mastering this pattern is a practical milestone for anyone working in a Japanese corporate environment.

Formal journalism and official announcements also rely on とのことだ when reporters or government officials relay statements from individuals or organizations without endorsing the content. It creates a careful journalistic distance — the Japanese equivalent of English phrases like "according to sources."

Even in casual written communication — Slack messages, informal office chats — the shortened form とのこと (no final だ or です) appears regularly. Dropping the copula signals a relaxed but still professional tone.

JLPT Tips

On the JLPT N2 exam, とのことだ typically appears in reading comprehension passages and grammar form selection questions. The key testing point is understanding when this pattern is appropriate versus similar patterns like そうだ, らしい, and ということだ.

In grammar selection questions, pay attention to the register and context. If the sentence involves a formal letter, a business scenario, or a news report, とのことだ is almost certainly the intended answer over casual alternatives. Examiners deliberately present distractor options that are grammatically plausible in everyday speech to test whether you have mastered formality distinctions.

For reading passages, knowing this pattern helps you identify when the author or narrator is reporting someone else's words. Look for source indicators like 〜より (from ~), 〜によると (according to ~), or 〜から連絡れんらくがあり (there was contact from ~) earlier in the sentence. These are reliable signals that とのことだ will follow at the end.

In the sentence reordering (並び替え) section, remember that とのことで frequently appears mid-sentence when a clause explaining a reason precedes a clause describing an action. Practice recognizing the cause-and-effect flow: [reported information] + とのことで + [speaker's response].

One distinction worth drilling: とのことです reports a specific communicated message, while ということです draws a conclusion or summary. The exam tests exactly this nuance, so treat them as related but distinct.