にかかっている
Expresses that an outcome, marked as the topic with は, depends on or hinges on a decisive factor marked with に: 'X depends on Y.'
Verb (plain form)The plain (non-ます) forms of a verb: affirmative or negative, non-past or past.
行く・行かない・行った・行かなかった
The dictionary form is only one of these: 行く.
i-adj. (plain form)The plain (non-です) forms of an i-adjective: affirmative or negative, non-past or past.
高い・高くない・高かった・高くなかった
The dictionary form is only one of these: 高い. The polite version adds です to the plain form.
na-adj. stemA na-adjective without な, i.e. the form listed in a dictionary.
静か・きれい・好き
Add な before a noun (静かな部屋); as a predicate, follow it with だ／です (静かだ).
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Common in speeches, news commentary, business settings and motivational statements. It stresses that one factor is crucial to the result. It is used in both speech and writing and sounds somewhat weightier than 次第だ.
Note that the outcome is the topic marked with は, while the deciding factor takes に, not を or が.
Do not keep だ before か(どうか) after a noun or な-adjective; say 本物かどうか, not 本物だかどうか.
Do not use に関わる to mean 'depends on'; it means 'affects' or 'concerns' something important.
- 1.次第だ / 次第でN2「次第だ」 also means 'depends on,' and the two are often interchangeable at the end of a sentence. Note, however, that 「次第」 attaches directly after the noun without 「に」; its tone is lighter and more conversational, simply stating the dependency, and 「次第で」 can lead into a following clause describing the result that changes accordingly.
- 2.〜次第ではN2「〜次第では」 is used mid-sentence to introduce a particular outcome that may arise in a given situation (usually an unfavorable one), and is typically followed by 「かもしれない」 or 「こともある」. 「にかかっている」, by contrast, works as a predicate asserting that success or failure hinges on it, so the two cannot be directly interchanged.
- 3.いかんでは / いかんによってはN1「いかんでは」 attaches only to nouns and introduces a specific possible outcome, usually unfavorable, in a formal written style. 「にかかっている」 asserts the key factor for success or failure and can also follow 「か」 or 「かどうか」 clauses with a neutral register, so the two are not interchangeable.
- 4.次第N2「次第」 is close in meaning only in the 'depends on' sense: sentence-final 「次第だ」 is often interchangeable, but the tone is plain and lacks the emphasis on success or failure hinging on it. 「次第」 can also appear mid-sentence as 「次第で／次第では」, and it has a separate sense of 'as soon as ~.'
- 5.いかんによらずN1The meanings are exact opposites: 「にかかっている」 says the outcome depends on the factor, while 「いかんによらず」 says the outcome stays the same no matter what that factor is. The latter attaches only to nouns (usually with 「の」) and sounds stiff and literary, so the two cannot be interchanged.
- 6.に関わるN2「に関わる」 means to involve or affect something major (life, the future, etc.), while 「にかかっている」 means the outcome depends on a factor; the former attaches only to nouns and leans formal. When talking about outcomes the two can sometimes be swapped, but 「に関わる」 only expresses involvement, not determination.
次第だ/次第で/次第では and いかんでは/いかんによっては also express dependence, but they highlight that the result varies with the factor, and いかん is more formal; にかかっている stresses that one factor is decisive. いかんによらず means 'regardless of', and に関わる means 'to affect' something serious (命に関わる), the reverse direction of 'depend on'.
