べくして (bekushite)

Meaning & usage

べくして attaches to the dictionary form of a verb and repeats the same verb after it, as in 倒産するべくして倒産した. It expresses that something happened exactly as it was naturally bound to happen, given the circumstances, often with a tone of inevitability or expectation.

Example sentences 4

1. あのチームは優勝ゆうしょうするべくして優勝ゆうしょうしたと言いえるだろう。

   You could say that team won the championship exactly as they were destined to.

2. 経営があれだけ甘ければ、倒産するべくして倒産したのだ。

   With management that sloppy, the company went under just as it was bound to.

3. 毎日練習していた彼がオリンピックで勝つべくして勝った。

   Having trained every day, he won at the Olympics just as everyone expected.

4. あの小説は人気が出るべくして出た作品だと思う。

   I think that novel became popular precisely because it was meant to.