zhège xiāoxi láizì péngyou.

In standard Mandarin, 这 usually needs a measure word before a noun:

• 这 + 个 + 消息
• 这个消息 = this message / this news

So 这个消息 follows a very common pattern: demonstrative + measure word + noun.

In casual speech, native speakers sometimes drop the measure word with certain nouns, but learners should usually keep it and say 这个消息.

Yes, you could say 这条消息, and in fact 条 is often the more specific measure word for 消息.

Compare:

• 这个消息 — common, natural, uses the general measure word 个
• 这条消息 — also very common, and often sounds a bit more precise for a piece of news or a message

So 个 is understandable and very common in everyday Mandarin, but 条 is a very good word to know with 消息.

来自 means to come from or to originate from.

In this sentence:

• 这个消息 = the message / the news
• 来自朋友 = comes from a friend / from friends

So the structure is:

• A 来自 B = A comes from B

It is often used for source or origin:

• 他来自北京。 = He comes from Beijing.
• 这个想法来自老师。 = This idea comes from the teacher.

Because 来自 is already the main verb.

Chinese often works like this:

• Subject + verb + object/source

Here:

• 这个消息 = subject
• 来自 = verb
• 朋友 = source

So you do not need 是.

A common learner mistake is trying to add 是 before every predicate. But 是 is mainly used to link nouns, not before a normal action/state verb.

So:

• 这个消息来自朋友。 ✅
• 这个消息是来自朋友。 possible only in special emphatic contexts, but not the normal neutral version

Because 朋友 is the thing that follows the verb 来自. It is not modifying a noun here; it is completing the verb phrase.

So this is a full sentence:

• 这个消息 来自 朋友。
• This message comes from a friend / friends.

If you use 的, the grammar changes:

• 来自朋友的消息

That means a message that comes from a friend or a message from a friend.

Notice that 来自朋友的消息 is a noun phrase, not a complete sentence by itself.

So:

• 这个消息来自朋友。 = full sentence
• 来自朋友的消息 = noun phrase

By itself, 朋友 can be vague in number and possession.

Chinese nouns often do not show:

• singular vs. plural
• a/an/the
• my/your/his, unless needed

So 朋友 could mean:

• a friend
• friends
• sometimes even my friend if the context already makes that clear

If you want to be specific, you can say:

• 一个朋友 = a friend
• 我的朋友 = my friend
• 几个朋友 = several friends
• 朋友们 = friends (explicit plural, often when addressing or emphasizing the group)

Yes, it is fairly close.

English:

• This message comes from a friend.

Chinese:

• 这个消息 来自 朋友。

So the pattern is:

• subject + verb + source

The main difference is inside 这个消息:

• Chinese puts this before the measure word and noun
• 这 + 个 + 消息

That part has no exact equivalent in English.

It is grammatical, but it can feel a little context-dependent because 朋友 is very bare and general.

In real life, speakers often make the source more specific, for example:

• 这个消息来自一个朋友。 = This message comes from a friend.
• 这个消息来自我的朋友。 = This message comes from my friend.
• 这条消息是朋友发来的。 = This message was sent by a friend.

So the original sentence works as a simple example, but in natural conversation you may often hear a more specific version.

Both usually contain a light, neutral-tone second syllable:

• 这个 → zhège
• 朋友 → péngyou

So learners should pay attention to the first syllable more strongly:

• zhè is 4th tone
• péng is 2nd tone

The second syllables ge and you are often pronounced lightly in normal speech.

You may also notice the same thing in 消息:

• xiāoxi

with the second syllable often lighter.

It can mean either, depending on context.

Common possibilities:

• message
• news
• piece of information

In this sentence, because it comes from a friend, message sounds very natural. But in another context, 消息 could also mean news, as in I heard some news from a friend.

So 消息 is a flexible word, and context tells you which English translation fits best.