Grammar Info
N3 Lesson 10: 16/20

に代(か)わって
in place of, on behalf of, to succeed

Structure
Noun + 代わって(1)

(1)代わり
Details
Register Standard
使用域 一般
Information
に代(か)わって is an expression that will only appear with nouns, conveying that (B) is doing something ‘in place of (A)’, or ‘on behalf of (A)’. This is a combination of the 格助詞(かくじょし) (case marking particle) , the う - Verb 代(か)わる ‘to substitute’, and the 接続助詞(せつぞくじょし) (conjunction particle) て.
  • 妹(いもうと)代(か)わって、私(わたし)買(か)い物(もに)に行(い)くこと決(き)まった。
    It has been decided that I am going to go shopping in place of my sister.
  • 私(わたし)彼女(かのじょ)に代(か)わって会議(かいぎ)出(で)ます。
    I will be attending the meeting in place of her.
に代わり may also be used, as this is the formal conjunctive. Also known as the 連用形(れんようけい).
  • タナカさんに代(か)わり、今日(きょう)は私(わたし)あなたたち担当(たんとう)します。
    In place of Tanaka-san, today, I am going to be in charge of you guys.
  • 世界中(せかいじゅう)はファックスに代(か)わりメール主流(しゅりゅう)になった、日本(にほん)まだファックスしか使(つか)わないところ多(おお)い。
    All around the world, fax has been replaced by email as the main form of communication, but there still are places in Japan that only use fax.
Fun Fact
In this construction, is acting as a location marker, rather than specifically meaning ‘for (A)’. What this means is that に代(か)わる is the act of removing (A) from its place, and exchanging it for (B). This is why に代(か)わって may also be used in the meaning of ‘to succeed’, or ‘to replace’, as switching (A) to (B) may be permanent.
  • 今日(きょう)は社長(しゃちょう)に代(か)わって、私(わたし)会議(かいぎ)進(すす)めます。
    Today, I will take charge of the meeting in place of the CEO.
  • 父(ちち)に代(か)わって、皆(みんな)挨拶(あいさつ)した。
    In place of my father, I greeted everyone.
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あなた私(わたし)に代(か)わって説明(せつめい)をしてくれてありがとう
Thank you for explaining it on my behalf.
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社長(しゃちょう)に代(か)わって、山田(やまだ)さん乾杯(かんぱい)の挨拶(あいさつ)をします。
On behalf of the CEO, Mr. Yamada will do the toast.
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私(わたし)に代(か)わってあなたが発表(はっぴょう)をすることになった。
It has been decided that you will do the presentation instead of me.
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