6.2 語彙・文法: Grammar in Business Sentences

6.2 語彙・文法: Grammar in Business Sentences

Section 1 of Part 3 also includes grammar items in the same single-sentence fill-in-the-blank format. Vocabulary and grammar items are interleaved; the test does not announce which is which. Grammar items are recognizable because all four options are functional patterns (particles, auxiliary verbs, sentence-ending suffixes) rather than content words. The skill is to identify the connector type the sentence requires — cause, condition, time, concession, restriction, possibility, information source, manner — and then match polarity, register, and verb form.

Grammar Pattern Families Most Often Tested

Causality and Reason

おかげで marks a positive cause (thanks to); the outcome must be desirable. せいで marks a negative cause (because of); the outcome must be undesirable. Polarity reversal is the most common trap in this family. ことから introduces an objective inference (from the fact that…); the second clause is a conclusion the speaker draws, not an evaluation. だけに means 「as might be expected from…」 and the second clause expresses a proportional result. ばかりに expresses regret: 「just because… (an unwanted result happened).」

Conditionals: と, ば, たら, なら

と marks habitual or inevitable sequences (If you do X, Y happens) and cannot be used for the speaker's volitional hypothetical. ば is the general conditional, often paired with なら for 「if it is the case that.」 たら is the most flexible: hypothetical, temporal, and discovery (if/when I did X, Y was the case). なら explicitly takes up someone else's stated premise. In formal written business Japanese, ものに (since) and 以上 (since, given that) carry commitment stronger than から. 以上 in particular implies the speaker's resolve: 「since I have undertaken it, I will see it through.」

Time and Sequence

際に means 「when/in case of」 (formal). 折には means 「on the occasion of」 (more formal, often written). 上で after the た-form means 「after doing X」; after the stem it means 「in the course of doing X.」 〜てからでないと means 「only after doing X.」 〜次第 means 「as soon as X happens.」 〜にあたって means 「on the occasion of, before undertaking.」 〜にかけて means 「over a span」 (今週にかけて). Verb-form mismatch is the most common error here: て以来 needs the て-form; ×するて以来 is ungrammatical.

Concession

ものの means 「although」 (written). ながら means 「while」 (often formal). つつ means 「while」 (written, often with a nuance that the two clauses are in tension). とはいえ means 「although that is so」 (formal written). にもかかわらず means 「despite」 (formal written, stronger than でも). A sentence that uses とはいえ is asking for a formal, written register; choosing でも would be a register mismatch.

Restriction

てまで means 「going so far as to (do something excessive)」 — the sentence expresses the speaker's negative judgment about the action. 〜にかぎる means 「it is best to.」 〜にすぎない means 「merely.」 〜までのこと means 「just to.」 In the second official sample, 「住民運動の反対を押しきって[ ]、工場建設をすすめくるのはいかがなものかと思います」, the speaker is criticizing the excessive action, so まで is correct; the positive alternatives てこそ and てのみ are wrong because the sentence is not a positive evaluation.

Possibility and Inclination

かねる means 「cannot bring oneself to do」 (formal, often used in refusals: 対しかねます). かねない means 「might end up doing」 (always an undesirable possibility). 得る means 「can / is possible」 (formal; 得る not える when used as a suffix). 恐れがある means 「there is a risk of」 (written, used for warnings). The trap is using かねる for 「unable to」 in a casual sentence — register mismatch — or confusing かねる (cannot) with かねない (might undesirably).

Information Source and Manner

によると / によれば means 「according to」 (the second clause is a citation or hearsay). のことだから means 「since it is [a person like X]」 (inference from character). によって means 「by means of / depending on.」 を通じて / を介して means 「through」 (intermediary). をもって means 「by means of」 (formal, often with time: 5時をもって終了). によって cannot replace を通じて when an intermediary person is involved.

Politeness Markers in Written Grammar

Formal business documents use kenjougo verb endings even within compound patterns. いたします (instead of する), 申し上げます (say), ございます (be), 存じます (think or know), 拝見いたします (look). A sentence ending in させていただきます cannot use する in the blank; the register is already humble.

Selection Strategy

1. Identify the connector type the sentence is asking for (cause, condition, time, concession, restriction, possibility, source, manner, focus).
2. Match polarity: positive outcome → おかげで; negative → せいで; negative judgment → てまで.
3. Match register: formal written (ものの, とはいえ, にもかかわらず, かねる) vs casual (でも, だけど, できない).
4. Check the verb form immediately before the blank (て-form, stem, dictionary, た-form) — many patterns are gated on a specific form.

Worked Examples

1. 「みんなががんばってくれた[ ]で、納期に間に合いそうだよ」 → おかげで. The outcome is positive; the cause marker for positive outcomes is おかげで.
2. 「住民運動の反対を押しきって[ ]、工場建設をすすめくるのはいかがなものかと思います」 → てまで. The speaker is criticizing an excessive action; てまで is the only option that carries the excessive nuance with negative judgment.
3. 「このデータも[ ]によっては、何かの役に立つのではないかと思いますが」 → 使いよう. The pattern 〜によっては (depending on) requires a noun that means 「way of using」; 使いよう is the only option that fits.

Grammar Reference Table