〜に則して|〜にそくして
In accordance with; in conformity with. Indicates that an action is carried out following an established rule, law, regulation, or norm.
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A formal, written-style expression found in legal, administrative, and business contexts. It also appears in polite business speech (e.g. with いたします). The noun is typically a law, regulation, internal rule, or principle.
Learners often confuse 則して with 即して; both are read そくして, but 則 refers to rules while 即 refers to facts or circumstances.
Note that 則して is read そくして, while 則って is read のっとって; the two forms share a kanji but not a reading.
Do not use this pattern with casual or personal standards such as feelings or preferences; it expects formal rules or norms.
- 1.に即してN1「に即して」 shares the reading そくして with 「に則して」, and the two are interchangeable when following laws or rules. It can also take words like 「現実」, 「実態」, or 「生徒一人ひとり」 to mean fitting the actual situation, a usage that cannot be written as 「に則して」.
- 2.に則ってN1「に則って」 is read 「のっとって」 and is close in meaning to 「に則して」; when laws, rules, or conventions serve as the standard, the two are mostly interchangeable, and 「に則って」 is the more common. Use 「に則った」 to modify a noun, and in writing the conjunctive form 「に則り」 is also available.
- 3.に照らしてN1「に照らして」 centers on comparing and measuring something against a standard, and what follows is usually a judgment, evaluation, or punishment; besides laws and rules, it can also take experience, common sense, or facts. 「に則して」, by contrast, centers on acting in accordance with norms, and what follows is usually an action or the handling of a matter.
- 4.に基づいてN2「に基づいて」 can take all sorts of bases—data, facts, experience, laws and regulations, and more—whereas 「に則して」 mostly takes norms such as laws and rules. When the basis is a rule, the two are interchangeable, but with surveys, data, and the like, only 「に基づいて」 works.
- 5.に沿ってN2「に沿って」 overlaps with 「に則して」 only in the sense of acting in accordance with something: 「に則して」 attaches to norms such as laws and rules and sounds formal, while 「に沿って」 mostly goes with plans, policies, or expectations, is neutral in register, and can also mean physically running along a river or road.
- 6.を踏まえてN1「を踏まえて」 means taking facts, circumstances, or existing content into consideration before developing a judgment or action, while 「に則して」 means acting with laws, rules, and the like as one's standard. When the preceding item is a regulation, both are possible: the former takes it into account, while the latter strictly follows it.
に即して (same reading) means conforming to actual facts or circumstances, and に則って is a near-synonym for following rules. に照らして judges something against a standard, に基づいて marks a basis such as data or evidence, に沿って means following a plan or wishes more loosely, and を踏まえて means taking something into account.
