ばかりに

Simply because, Only because, Just because, Simply on account of

ばっかり, ばっか, ばかし, and ばっかし are all fairly common casual variations of ばかり

Structure

Verb［た］+ ばかりに
［い］Adjective + ばかりに
［な］Adjective + な⁽¹⁾ + ばかりに
Noun + な⁽¹⁾ + ばかりに

⁽¹⁾ である

Details

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Standard
使用域
一般

About ばかりに

When paired with the case marking particle に, ばかり regularly conveys the meaning of 'simply because', or 'just because'. Literally, this expression means that 'even with just (A), (B) is/was able to occur'. This phrase is regularly paired with the past form of verbs, indicating that something that has already taken place, led to some other result.
To use ばかりに, simply attach the expression to the end of any word in its attributive form.

ボールをキャッチしたばかりに、肩(かた)が外(はず)れました。
Simply because I caught a ball, I dislocated my shoulders.
体(からだ)が小(ちい)さいばかりに、クラスメイトにいじめられた。
Simply because I am small, my classmates bullied me.
彼(かれ)は練習(れんしゅう)が大変(たいへん)なばかりに、部活(ぶかつ)をやめることにした。
Simply because practice was difficult, he decided to quit.
新人(しんじん)であるばかりに、先輩(せんぱい)たちがやりたくない仕事(しごと)を押(お)し付(つ)けられた。
Simply because I am new, my senpai made me do all the work they didn't want to.

It should be noted that this particular grammar pattern has a strong tendency to be used with results that are negative. However, this is not a requirement. A high level of eagerness/enthusiasm can also be expressed when paired with grammar points like たい, or ほしい.

釣(つ)りに行(い)きたいばかりに、仕事(しごと)を休(やす)んで海(うみ)に行(い)った。
Simply because he wanted to go fish, he took a day off of work and went to the ocean.
新(あたら)しい車(こと)が欲(ほ)しいばかりに、貯金(ちょきん)を全部(ぜんぶ)使(つか)った。
Just because I wanted a new car, I used all my savings.

Fun Fact

As we mention in our ばかり grammar point, one of the more common kanji that ばかり stems from is '許', which means to be 'let off' or 'let through'. It implies a minimum amount of something that is then deemed as 'permissible'. This nuance is kept in ばかりに, as the (A) part of the sentence is being highlighted as that minimum extent of something for which the (often surprising) result of (B) is/was possible. Due to this, translations such as 'even with only/just (A), (B)' are quite similar to ばかりに, so long as it is clear that (A) is surprising.

貰(もら)った肉(にく)を食(た)べたばかりに、お腹(なか)を壊(こわ)してしまった。
Even just with eating the meat that was given to me, I got a stomach ache.

Fun Fact

The kanji that is used most frequently for ばかり is the same kanji that is used for 許(ゆる)す 'to forgive'. In this particular use of 許, it still means 'to let off', or 'to let through', as 'to forgive' quite often has the nuance of letting something through/pass/slide.

今回(こんかい)は許(ゆる)すけど、またやったら許(ゆる)さないからね。
I will forgive you this time, but I will not forgive you if you do it again.

Synonyms

Examples

財布(さいふ)を忘(わす)れたばかりに、お弁当(べんとう)を買(か)えなかった。
Simply because I have forgotten my wallet, I couldn't buy a bento.
病院(びょういん)に行(い)かなくてはいけなかったばかりに、試合(しあい)に参加(さんか)できなかった。
Simply because I had to go to the hospital, I couldn't participate in the game.
おとなしそうに見(み)えた犬(いぬ)の頭(あたま)を撫(な)でたばかりに噛(か)まれたんだ。まだ手(て)が痛(いた)いよ。
Just because I patted the head of a docile looking dog, I got bit. It still hurts.
私(わたし)があんなことを言(い)ってしまったばかりに、彼(かれ)はひどく落(お)ち込(こ)んでしまいました。
Just because I said those things to him, he got extremely depressed.
タコマナローズ橋(はし)は強(つよ)い風(かぜ)だったばかりに、崩壊(ほうかい)した。
Just because of strong winds the Tacoma Narrows Bridge has crumbled.
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- Expressing something done in the past that incurs a bad result
  Learn Japanese Daily
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ばかりに – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (5 in total)

vn888
Does this grammar only use with verb[た]? I’ve seen in question this combined with verb[ない].
dokidokiwakuwaku
Does this grammar point require に? I think I have seen ばかりで used on some occasions.
Triscuit1113
“Noun + な(1) + ばかりに”

Is this a typo? I don’t recall ever using a noun + な in any other grammar. I also don’t see it used in any of the example sentences. の would be correct, right? 例えば、「田中さんの引退のばかりに、仕事場での友達は全然いなくなりませんでした。」ほかのありそうな間違いを除いて、これはわりと正解でしょうか？