Structure
Verb[た]+ ばかりに
[い]Adjective + ばかりに
[な]Adjective + な(1) + ばかりに
Noun + な(1) + ばかりに
(1) である
Details
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Standard
使用域
一般
About ばかりに
When paired with the case marking particle に, ばかり regularly conveys the meaning of 'simply because', or 'just because'. Literally, this expression means that 'even with just (A), (B) is/was able to occur'. This phrase is regularly paired with the past form of verbs, indicating that something that has already taken place, led to some other result.
To use ばかりに, simply attach the expression to the end of any word in its attributive form.
To use ばかりに, simply attach the expression to the end of any word in its attributive form.
- ボールをキャッチしたばかりに、肩が外れました。Simply because I caught a ball, I dislocated my shoulders.
- 体が小さいばかりに、クラスメイトにいじめられた。Simply because I am small, my classmates bullied me.
- 彼は練習が大変なばかりに、部活をやめることにした。Simply because practice was difficult, he decided to quit.
- 新人であるばかりに、先輩たちがやりたくない仕事を押し付けられた。Simply because I am new, my senpai made me do all the work they didn't want to.
- 釣りに行きたいばかりに、仕事を休んで海に行った。Simply because he wanted to go fish, he took a day off of work and went to the ocean.
- 新しい車が欲しいばかりに、貯金を全部使った。Just because I wanted a new car, I used all my savings.
Fun Fact
As we mention in our ばかり grammar point, one of the more common kanji that ばかり stems from is '許', which means to be 'let off' or 'let through'. It implies a minimum amount of something that is then deemed as 'permissible'. This nuance is kept in ばかりに, as the (A) part of the sentence is being highlighted as that minimum extent of something for which the (often surprising) result of (B) is/was possible. Due to this, translations such as 'even with only/just (A), (B)' are quite similar to ばかりに, so long as it is clear that (A) is surprising.- 貰った肉を食べたばかりに、お腹を壊してしまった。Even just with eating the meat that was given to me, I got a stomach ache.
Fun Fact
The kanji that is used most frequently for ばかり is the same kanji that is used for 許す 'to forgive'. In this particular use of 許, it still means 'to let off', or 'to let through', as 'to forgive' quite often has the nuance of letting something through/pass/slide.- 今回は許すけど、またやったら許さないからね。I will forgive you this time, but I will not forgive you if you do it again.
Synonyms
Examples
財布を忘れたばかりに、お弁当を買えなかった。
Simply because I have forgotten my wallet, I couldn't buy a bento.
病院に行かなくてはいけなかったばかりに、試合に参加できなかった。
Simply because I had to go to the hospital, I couldn't participate in the game.
おとなしそうに見えた犬の頭を撫でたばかりに噛まれたんだ。まだ手が痛いよ。
Just because I patted the head of a docile looking dog, I got bit. It still hurts.
私があんなことを言ってしまったばかりに、彼はひどく落ち込んでしまいました。
Just because I said those things to him, he got extremely depressed.
タコマナローズ橋は強い風だったばかりに、崩壊した。
Just because of strong winds the Tacoma Narrows Bridge has crumbled.
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Expressing something done in the past that incurs a bad result
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Further breakdown of ばかりに
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ばかりに – Grammar Discussion
Most Recent Replies (5 in total)
vn888
Does this grammar only use with verb[た]? I’ve seen in question this combined with verb[ない].
dokidokiwakuwaku
Does this grammar point require に? I think I have seen ばかりで used on some occasions.
Triscuit1113
“Noun + な(1) + ばかりに”
Is this a typo? I don’t recall ever using a noun + な in any other grammar. I also don’t see it used in any of the example sentences. の would be correct, right? 例えば、「田中さんの引退のばかりに、仕事場での友達は全然いなくなりませんでした。」ほかのありそうな間違いを除いて、これはわりと正解でしょうか?
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