How to Express Various Reasons: によって, につき, おかげで, and せいで

Last time, you learned how to express various targets, e.g. “学生がくせいに対たいして厳きびしい質問しつもんをした (I asked students a tough question),” and “教きょう育いくに関かんしての質問しつもんでした (It was a question regarding education).” Compound particles enable you to express detailed nuances with a high level of formality. In this lesson, you will learn ones related to reasons and causation.

Compound Particle Counterparts to the Particle で

In basic grammar, the particle で expresses reasons or causation like “風邪で学校を休みました (I was absent from school due to the fact that I caught a cold).” However, since it has several functions, sentences which include the particle で multiple times sometimes confuse listeners. You can make your speech clearer and more formal by utilizing the following key phrases.

によって: Reasons (Causation)

The function is to express reasons or causation with higher formality than the particle で. によって and で are interchangeable in a lot of cases. However, you cannot use によって if the relation between causation and results is indirect.

With the first example above, the relation is very clear and the typhoon is the major reason for the flight being delayed. However, with the second and the third example, there can be other factors. In that case, the particle で is more suitable than によって.

につき: Reasons in Notification

The function is to indicate reasons, but the nuance is different from によって. につき  is always used in written notifications when you make requests, commands, declarations, etc. Considering the use of the purpose, につき doesn’t make much sense in past tense. You need to use the particle で in past tense (*the third example).

Compound Sentences: おかげで and せいで

These are not compound particles, but we will address them here because of the similarity of the functions. Please be aware of the difference; compound particles connect to nouns and determine their r ole, while compound sentences are formed by two sentences connected by key phrases.

Good Causation: おかげで

おかげで indicates good causation and is the counterpart to “thanks to…” in English. The conjugation is to directly attach おかげで to the plain form or the ta-form. However, when you attach nouns in the plain form, you need to add の instead of だ like 雨のおかげで.

By using おかげでか or just おかげか, you can express uncertainty about good causation.

Bad Causation: せいで

せいで has the reverse function of おかけで which indicates bad causation. The conjugation is the same, i.e. to directly attach せいで to the plain form or the ta-form. When you use nouns in the plain form, you need to add の instead of だ like 雨のせいで.

By using せいでか or just せいか, you can express uncertainty about  bad causation as previously described for おかげか.

Supplementary Learning: Can the Particle から and に Express Reasons?

One of the functions of the particle から is to indicate starting points, and the particle に can indicate sources. The functions somehow enable you to express reasons. However, the usage is narrow when compared with the particle で. Let us explain how it works.

から: Time-lag Causation

The particle から can indicate time-lag causation. With the above example, lack of exercise doesn’t cause you to be fat at once, but if you don’t exercise for a long time, you will eventually become fat. If causation instantaneously results in something, you have to use the particle で (*Look at the comparison between the second and the third example below). Also, you cannot use volitional verbs such as 食べる and 行く as the result.

Another function of  から is to express grounds when giving your opinions or thoughts.

に: Triggering an Immediate Emotion/Reaction

The particle に can express reasons with the nuance of it being an emotional trigger. In general, this function appears with verbs which indicate mental states like “泣く: to cry.” Since triggers should be something extraordinary, nouns are usually used with some modifiers. Here, you can replace the particle に with the particle で.

Summary

1. によって expresses reasons (causation) with higher formality than the particle で.
2. につき expresses reasons in written notifications.
3. おかげで indicates good causation like “thanks to.”
4. せいで indicates bad causation like “due to.”
5. The particle から indicates time-lag causation.
6. The particle に indicates triggers.

As we mentioned earlier, you can basically express reasons or causation by just using the particle で. However, if you would like to express some nuances in detail or in formal speech, you have to master the usages of the compound particles. Also, please be aware of the difference between compound particles and compound sentences. Only compound sentences have a subordinate clause. Next, you will learn expressions related to space and time.