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JLPT N2Cause & Effect

～だけに— All the More Because

Expresses that precisely because of a certain fact or situation, the result is all the more so — 'being the case that…, especially / all the more.' It highlights that the cause makes the outcome particularly strong, expected, or fitting.

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Pro lessonUNIT 30 · CAUSE & EFFECT

Structure · 形

[Noun (+ である)] / [Verb/Adj plain] + だけに

Examples · 例文

  • 彼はプロだけに、演奏が素晴らしい。

    Kare wa puro dake ni, ensou ga subarashii.

    Precisely because he's a professional, his performance is superb.

    プロだけに = being a pro, all the more is the performance excellent

  • 期待していただけに、負けたときの失望は大きかった。

    Kitai shite ita dake ni, maketa toki no shitsubou wa ookikatta.

    Precisely because I had high hopes, the disappointment when they lost was great.

    期待していただけに = because of the expectation, the letdown was all the greater

  • 受験生だけに、彼女は毎日必死で勉強している。

    Jukensei dake ni, kanojo wa mainichi hisshi de benkyou shite iru.

    Being an exam candidate, she studies desperately every day.

    受験生だけに = precisely because she's an exam-taker, she studies all the harder

Usage notes · 注意

  • Emphasizes an intensified result that fits the cause 'all the more.'
  • Can express results that exceed expectations (both good and bad).
  • だけあって is similar but tends to state an admirable/fitting result.

Commonly confused with

The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones ～だけに is tested against.

vs～だけあって

だけあって praises a result that lives up to a cause ('as expected of'); だけに more broadly stresses 'all the more so because,' including negative outcomes like greater disappointment.

vs～から

から gives a plain reason; だけに adds the nuance that the outcome is intensified 'all the more' precisely because of that reason.

More cause & effect

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