ばかりに
- 1Simply because of one cause, an unfortunate or regrettable result came about.Ex. 1
- 2Because of a certain quality or state (even a good one), a bad outcome tends to follow.Ex. 2
- 3With 〜たい, out of a strong wish to do something, someone did something extreme or burdensome.
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Used to lament that one particular cause brought about a bad result, often implying 'if only that hadn't been the case'. It appears in both speech and writing, typically in narratives, reflections and accounts of misfortune. Unlike neutral causal expressions such as から or ので, it carries a clear nuance of regret or dissatisfaction about the outcome.
Do not use ばかりに for good outcomes; except with 〜たいばかりに, the result is normally negative or regrettable.
Do not end the main clause with a request, command, invitation, or statement of the speaker's intention.
Learners often forget な, である or だった after な形容詞, and である or だった after 名詞, before ばかりに.
- せいでN3Sense 1 is close to せいで and they are often interchangeable, but せいで focuses on blaming and complaining and lacks the sense of regret, and it works in both spoken and written language; for nouns use のせいで. 〜たいばかりに cannot be replaced with せいで.
- だけにN2だけに means 'precisely because..., all the more so,' emphasizing that the result matches the premise, and it works for both good and bad results; ばかりに only introduces regrettable bad results (except 〜たいばかりに). だけに attaches directly to nouns.
- あまりN3あまり emphasizes that an excessive degree of emotion or state leads to uncontrolled or excessive results. The result is not necessarily bad (e.g., crying tears of joy), and it lacks the regretful tone of ばかりに. Nouns take の, and i-adjectives become 〜さの.
- ものだからN2Both can explain a cause leading to a bad result. ものだから carries an excuse-like tone, is mostly spoken, and can be followed by requests or apologies; ばかりに centers on regret, leans written, and cannot be followed by requests or the like.
- からこそN2からこそ emphasizes 'precisely because of this reason...' and is mostly used to positively assert a reason, so it sounds unnatural when simply stating a bad result; ばかりに mostly describes bringing about a bad result with regret. For nouns use だからこそ; its register is neutral, and the two generally cannot be interchanged.
せいで broadly blames a cause, whereas ばかりに stresses that just one factor led to a regrettable result; だけに means 'precisely because (as one would expect)', often for fitting or positive results. あまり attributes a result to an excessive degree of feeling or state, ものだから gives a personal, colloquial excuse, and からこそ emphasizes a reason, usually for a positive or justified result.
