Practice JLPTHow to tell them apart
だけあって comes before the result or evaluation, explaining why an outcome is natural given a known premise (お薦めだけあって美味しかった). だけのことはある comes after the fact, commenting that someone's status or effort is justified by what you observe (飛び回っているだけのことはある). Swapping them is unnatural because だけあって sets up an expectation, while だけのことはある confirms it after the fact.
- だけあって Use だけあって when you state a known reason first, then add the expected result that follows from it.
- だけのことはある Use だけのことはある when you observe a result and judge that the person's title or effort is well deserved.
| Grammar point | Meaning | JLPT level |
|---|---|---|
| だけあって dakeatte | As expected of/Worthy of | N2 |
| だけのことはある dakenokotohaaru | It's no wonder / no surprise | N2 |
だけあって dakeatte
As expected of/Worthy of
And as one would expect; so (naturally); for good reason | A phrase that means “and as one would expect” or “for good reason”.
-
あのうるさい社長が信頼するだけあって、彼の秘書は実に有能だ。
As you can guess from the way that president, who is so critical, relies on his secretary, she is truly capable. (ii) That president, who is so critical, relies on his secretary for good reason: She is truly capable.
-
あのレストランは 笠原さんのお薦めだけあって美味しかったです。
Ms. Kasahara recommended that restaurant, and, as one would expect, the food was delicious. (ii) Ms. Kasahara recommended that restaurant for good reason: The food was delicious. [Ms. Kasahara is known as a gourmet.]
だけのことはある dakenokotohaaru
It's no wonder / no surprise
Don’t do something for nothing; ~ explains it; no wonder; it’s no surprise | A phrase expressing an evaluative comment regarding how something is contributing to an expected, remarkable result.
-
アインシュタインの理論は二十一世紀の現在でも死んでいない。さすがに二十世紀最大の物理学者と言われるだけのことはある。
Einstein's theory is still alive, even in the 21st century. No wonder he is called the greatest physicist of the 20th century.
-
チャンさんは世界の経済状況をよくつかんでいる。経済コンサルタントとして世界を飛び回っているだけのことはある。
Ms. Chang has a firm grip on the world economic situation. She doesn't fly around the world as a finance consultant for nothing.
だけあって and だけのことはある are both JLPT N2 grammar points that Japanese learners often mix up. This page compares them side by side — meanings, usage and example sentences — so you can tell them apart.