「せいで」- Expressing Negative Causes

Explanation

〜せいで is used to express a cause, meaning "because of..." or "due to...". This grammatical structure is often used to describe an undesirable outcome or in exclamatory sentences.

Grammar Pattern

Grammar Point	Connection	Explanation
Noun + の + せいで	Noun + の + せいで	Used after a noun to indicate that the noun is the cause.
Verb Plain Form + せいで	Verb Plain Form + せいで	Used after a verb to indicate that the action is the cause.
い-Adjective Plain Form + せいで	い-Adjective Plain Form + せいで	Used after an い-adjective to indicate that the state described by the adjective is the cause.
な-Adjective Stem + な + せいで	な-Adjective Stem + な + せいで	Used after a な-adjective to indicate that the state described by the adjective is the cause.

Basic Usage

• 〜せいで is typically used to clearly indicate the cause of something, emphasizing that a specific reason led to a certain result, usually a negative one.

Examples

• 彼かれは病気びょうきのせいで、会社かいしゃを休やすんだ。
• Kare wa byouki no sei de, kaisha o yasunda.
• He took a day off from work because he was sick.
  

• 昨日きのうの雨あめのせいで、道みちが滑すべりやすくなった。
• Kinou no ame no sei de, michi ga suberiyasuku natta.
• Because of yesterday's rain, the road became slippery.
  

• 夜よる眠ねむれないのは、騒音そうおんのせいだ。
• Yoru nemurenai no wa, souon no sei da.
• The reason I can't sleep at night is because of the noise.
  

• 最近さいきん、疲つかれやすいのは仕事しごとのせいかもしれない。
• Saikin, tsukareyasui no wa shigoto no sei ka mo shirenai.
• Lately, I get tired easily, maybe because of work.
  

Deep Dive

〜せいで is used to describe a clear cause that leads to a negative outcome.

Common Mistakes

The main distinction of 〜せいで is that it indicates a clear cause.

Real-Life Scenarios

In everyday conversations, 〜せいで is used to describe undesirable situations. For example:

• A: 昨日きのうのパーティーはどうだった？
• B: 人ひとが多おおすぎたせいで、あまり楽たのしくなかった。
• A: Kinou no paatii wa dou datta?
• B: Hito ga oosugita sei de, amari tanoshikunakatta.
• A: How was the party yesterday?
• B: Because there were too many people, it wasn't very fun.
  

Summary

〜せいで is a commonly used grammatical structure primarily used to describe causes, especially those leading to negative outcomes. By understanding its connection patterns and usage contexts, you can use this grammar point more accurately in everyday conversations and writing.