Other Uses of ばかり
This page explains some additional usages of ばかり that are a little rarer than the ones from N3.
Fortunately, they aren’t that hard.
ばかり
About/Approximately
Time/Distance/Measurement + ばかり
This meaning of ばかり is in my experience the rarest.
It simply means “about” and is mostly used for time or distance approximations.
ばかり is a particle and goes directly after the counter and before the verb.
You can use 約 before a number to achieve the same meaning. (more common)
Examples
- 1週間ばかり待っていた – I waited about a week.
- 5時間ばかり歩いたら小屋が見えてきた – After we walked about 5 hours, a hut came into view.
- 10分ばかりあればできる – If I have about 10 minutes I can do it.
- 毎日10キロばかりジョギングしている – I’m jogging about 10 kilometers a day.
ばかりに
Just because
Plain form Verb/い Adjective + ばかりに
Noun/な Adjective + な/である + ばかりに
ばかりに means “Just because“.
It typically expresses exasperation at an unexpected negative result of some action.
Examples
- 彼を信じたばかりに首になった – I got fired just because I trusted him.
- 一回遅刻したばかりに首になった – I was fired just because I was late one time.
- お疲れ様を言い忘れたばかりに叱られた – I was yelled at just because I forgot to say お疲れ様.
- 車がないばかりにそのATMを使うことができない – Just because I don’t have a car, I can’t use that ATM.
- 外国人なばかりに警戒されている – Just because I’m a foreigner, people are on guard.
ばかりだ
Continues (Trend)
Intransitive Verb + ばかりだ
This meaning describes a continuing trend.
However in practice, ばかり is only used for bad things.
An important note is this ばかり uses intransitive state verbs; most commonly なる and 増える
With transitive verbs, it is probably “Always” ばかり
This is a key point that many other sites fail to mention or consider, due to how similar the meanings are.
However, “Always” ばかり does not have a restriction to negative things.
*This ばかり is only modified by verbs.
Examples
- 彼の態度が悪くなるばかりだ – Attitude keeps getting worse. (Always getting worse)
- 犠牲者が増えるばかりだ – Victims keep on increasing. (Always increasing)
- 問題が起こるばかりのところ – A place where problems keep on happening. (Always happening)
- 心配が募るばかりだ – Worries keep getting stronger.
vs 一方だ
ばかり – Bad, must be modified by verbs
一方 – good or bad, can be modified by verbs or nouns.
The trend meaning of ばかり is similar to 一方, however:
ばかり:
- Must be used with something bad.
- More emotive
- Must be verb + ばかり
一方だ:
- May be good or bad.
- More objective
- May be modified by nouns. の一方だ
Both:
- Must describe a trend
- Must use intransitive verbs.