～ばかりに
simply because / just because
～ばかりに attaches to a plain-form clause and pinpoints it as the single cause of an undesirable result. It maps to English “simply because” or “just because”, with a tone of regret or frustration: if only that one thing had been different, the bad outcome would not have happened.
Do not confuse it with plain ～ばかり (just did / nothing but) — adding に turns it into a cause-and-effect connective, and the effect is almost always negative.
1. A single circumstance, an unwanted result
The clause before ばかりに names the one factor; the clause after it states the consequence the speaker is unhappy about.
お金がないばかりに旅行に行けない。
“It's only because I have no money that I can't travel.”
- お金（おかね）= money
- が = subject marker
- ないばかりに = just because (I) don't have
- 旅行（りょこう）= trip, travel
- に = direction marker
- 行けない（いけない）= cannot go
2. Regret over one's own action
With a past-tense clause, ばかりに often expresses regret: one small action or mistake led to a disproportionate consequence.
パスポートを忘れたばかりに、飛行機に乗れませんでした。
“Simply because I forgot my passport, I couldn't board the plane.”
- パスポート = passport
- を = object marker
- 忘れたばかりに（わすれたばかりに）= simply because (I) forgot
- 飛行機（ひこうき）= airplane
- に = direction marker
- 乗れませんでした（のれませんでした）= could not board
How to form it
Verb / い-adjective plain form + ばかりに
- ない = to not have → ないばかりに = just because (I) don't have
- 忘れる（わすれる）= to forget → 忘れたばかりに（わすれたばかりに）= just because (I) forgot
- 知らない（しらない）= to not know → 知らないばかりに（しらないばかりに）= just because (I) don't know
Key idea
～ばかりに puts a spotlight on one cause and sighs: “that alone is why things went wrong.” For neutral reasons with no regret, use から or ので instead.
Built on the same stem
Updated .