だけに

As might be expected, Because, All the more because, It's only natural

Structure

Verb + だけに
［い］Adjective + だけに
［な］Adjective + な + だけに
Noun + だけに

Details

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Standard
使用域
一般

Rare Kanji

丈

About だけに

だけに is a grammar pattern that is often translated as 'as might be expected of (A)', 'it's only natural due to (A)', or simply 'because of (A)'. Being a combination of だけ 'just', and に 'to', the literal meaning is 'just in that it's (A)', and is similar to the counterpart phrase in English.
だけに may be used when highlighting either positive or negative results that came about due to (A), and will appear after verbs, い-Adjectives, な-Adjectives that have been followed by な, or nouns.

トムさんは日本語(にほんご)を8年(ねん)勉強(べんきょう)しているだけに、日本語(にほんご)がペラペラだ。
Tom has been studying Japanese for 8 years and as one might expect, he is fluent in Japanese.
このアパートは東京(とうきょう)駅(えき)に近(ちか)いだけに、家賃(やちん)が高(たか)い。
This apartment is very close to Tokyo station, and as one might expect, the rent is expensive.
このアプリは便利(べんり)なだけに、どんどんとユーザーが増(ふ)えてきています。
This application is becoming more and more popular just because it is so useful.
夏(なつ)休(やす)みであるだけに、海水浴場(かいすいよくじょう)には人(ひと)がたくさんいる。
It is summer vacation and as one might expect, there are a lot of people at the beach.

Also, だけに may be used when highlighting that specifically because of (A), (B) is considered a level above what would usually be expected. This can be in terms of difficulty, emotional reaction, volume, or anything else that is quantifiable.

合格(ごうかく)したと思(おも)っていただけに、不合格(ふごうかく)と知(し)った時(とき)はとてもショックだった。
I was very shocked when I learned that I had been rejected because I thought I had passed.
普段(ふだん)は優(やさ)しいだけに、彼女(かのじょ)が怒(おこ)っている姿(すがた)を見(み)た時(とき)はびっくりしました。
I was surprised to see her angry because she is usually so kind.

Fun-fact - With any of these meanings, the equivalent 'just in that it's (A)' English expression can be utilized as an accurate interpretation, as both it and だけに often just draw the listener's attention to (A), in order to show that (B) is noteworthy because of it.

彼(かれ)は子供(こども)の頃(ころ)からそろばんを習(なら)っているだけに、暗算(あんざん)がとてもうまい。
Just in that he has been learning the abacus since childhood, he is very good at mental math.

Synonyms

Examples

この車(くるま)は最新(さいしん)だけに、椅子(いす)のヒーターもあります。
This is a brand new car and as one might expect, it comes with heated seats.
年(とし)を取(と)ってきただけに、出来(でき)なくなったことが多(おお)い。
As one might expect with aging, there are a lot of things you can no longer do.
彼(かれ)は経験(けいけん)が長(なが)いだけに、自信(じしん)を持(も)って演説(えんぜつ)ができた。
As one might expect from his extensive experience, he confidently gave the speech.
彼(かれ)は有名(ゆうめい)な司会(しかい)者(しゃ)だけに、臨機応変(りんきおうへん)に対応(たいおう)できます。
As one might expect from him being a famous moderator, he can adapt himself to deal with it.
プロ棋士(きし)だけに、将棋(しょうぎ)との向(む)き合(あ)い方(かた)が半端(はんぱ)じゃない。
As one might expect from a professional shogi player, the way he approaches the game is not careless.
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Online
- だけに・as one would expect;
  MyJapaneseGrammar
- All Japanese: 頑張って！
  CraftWomanLife
- Breakdown, comparisons and examples
  毎日のんびり日本語教師
- だけに vs. だけあって
  Japanese StackExchange
- 〜だけに・〜だけあって breakdown and examples
  日本語の里

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だけに – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (6 in total)

Pushindawood
About 3 years ago
@Hadros232232 だけのことはある and だけあって are essentially the same. だけあって is simply the conjunctive version of だけのことはある. So, “このリンゴはおいしい。高かっただけのことはある。” basically means the same thing as “このリンゴは高かっただけあって、おいしい。” Cheers!
onekun
About 1 year ago
Would it be correct to say that the nuance of だけに vs さすが is that だけに functions more as a “because?”
Fuga
About 1 year ago
Hey @onekun !
We apologize for the late response. Yes, だけに functions more like ‘because’, while さすが has the nuance of ‘this is what I expected of…’ or ‘I would expect nothing less than…’. I hope that answers your question!