Grammar › Concession & Contrast
にしては — “for…, considering that…”
Judges something against the baseline set by a category or claim, and finds it doesn't quite fit
Noun (or plain-form clause) + にしては sets a baseline expectation from a category or fact, then notes the actual case deviates from what that baseline would predict — “for X, this is surprisingly …”. It's close to わりに, but にしては leans more on a stated category (job, nationality, plan) as the yardstick.
How to form it
| Pattern | Example |
|---|---|
| Noun + にしては | 初心者にしては上手だ — Pretty good, for a beginner |
| Plain form + にしては | 予定していたにしては早く着いた — We arrived early, considering what we'd planned |
Example sentences
| Japanese | Reading | Meaning |
|---|---|---|
| 彼は日本人にしては、背が高い。 | かれはにほんじんにしては、せがたかい。 karehanihonjinnishiteha、segatakai。 | He's tall, for a Japanese person. |
| このカメラは値段にしては性能がいい。 | このかめらはねだんにしてはせいのうがいい。 konokamerahanedannishitehaseinougaii。 | For the price, this camera performs well. |
| 12月にしては暖かい日だ。 | じゅうにがつにしてはあたたかいひだ。 juunigatsunishitehaatatakaihida。 | It's a warm day, for December. |
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Watch out
にしては always compares against a stated category (a job, nationality, month, price) — with no clear baseline category to compare against, わりに (comparing against one fact) is usually the better fit.
