Grammar Info

N3 Lesson 5: 15/22

(こと)からFrom the fact that

Structure

Verb + ことから
[い]Adjective + ことから
[な]Adjective + + ことから
Noun + + ことから

Details

  • Register

    Standard

About ことから

In order to come to a logical conclusion about something in Japanese, sometimes strong expressions like ことから will be used. This is a combination of the noun こと, and the case marking particle から. ことから literally means 'from that which is (A), (B)', but is generally simply translated as 'from the fact that (A), (B)'.

ことから may be connected to the end of any phrase, so long as the word before it is in its attributive form.

Caution

There is a difference between ことから 'from the fact that' and ことだから 'because'. In ことだから, から is a conjunction particle that links the (A) and (B) parts of a sentence. However, in ことから, から is a case marking particle, meaning that it is highlighting the subject.

  • コーヒー(つめ)たいことから、コーヒー()れられた結構(けっこう)(まえ)()かる。
    From the fact that the coffee is cold, you can tell that it was poured quite a while ago.
  • コーヒー(つめ)たいことだから、コーヒー()れられた結構(けっこう)(まえ)()かる。
    Since the coffee is cold, you can tell that it was poured quite a while ago.

Examples

--:--

    以上(いじょう)(こと)から、この結論(けつろん)(いた)りました。

    From (the facts) above, we arrived at this conclusion.

    「お(とお)さん」と()ばれている(こと)から子供(こども)がいるのだと()かった。

    From the fact that he is being called 'dad', I discerned that he has children.

    指輪(ゆびわ)をしている(こと)から既婚者(きこんしゃ)だと()かった。

    I realized that he is married from the fact that he is wearing a ring.

    野球(やきゅう)がとても上手(じょうず)(こと)から将来(しょうらい)有名(ゆうめい)になりそうだ。

    From the fact that he is really good at baseball, it seems like he will be famous one day.

    田代島(たしろじま)(ねこ)(おお)(こと)から(ねこ)(しま)()ばれるようになった。

    From the fact that there are many cats in Tashirojima, it came to be called 'Cat Island'.

  • Get more example sentences!

    Premium users get access to 12 example sentences on all Grammar Points.

Self-Study Sentences

Study your own way!

Add sentences and study them alongside Bunpro sentences.

  • Online

      There are no Online resources listed for 「ことから」.

      You can . Resources are constantly updated, come back later to see new additions!


    • Offline

        There are no Offline resources listed for 「ことから」.

        You can . Resources are constantly updated, come back later to see new additions!

      • Track Resources!

        Bunpro tracks all of the resources you’ve visited, and offers relevant bookmarks of physical books to help with offline tracking.

      ことから – Grammar Discussion

      Most Recent Replies (2 in total)

      • Johnathan-Weir

        Johnathan-Weir

        According to this video

        This grammar is somewhat stiff. Should the 硬 symbol be added to it?

      • Daru

        Daru

        硬 is mostly used when it’s academic grammar, or stuff you would only find in literature or really old stuff. ことから can be found in spoken Japanese, where you never find 硬 grammar.

      Got questions about ことから? Join us to discuss, ask, and learn together!

      Join the Discussion