modality N2 common casualpolitewritten
当然だ — it is natural/obvious that ~
当然だ ・ とうぜんだ
Meaning
- it's only natural / of course / no wonder ~ — states that something is the obvious, to-be-expected outcome
Key sentence
あれだけ練習したのだから、勝つのは当然だ。
After all that practice, it's only natural that they won.
Formation
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| Noun, or as 〜て当然だ / 〜のも当然だ / 〜も当然だ with a clause | [N] + は当然だ / [clause] + のも当然だ | 当然の結果 / 怒って当然だ |
Examples
ルールを破れば、罰せられるのは当然だ。
If you break the rules, it's only natural to be punished.
これだけ寒ければ、風邪をひくのも当然だ。
As cold as it is, it's no wonder you caught a cold.
Easily confused with
当たり前だ Near-synonyms for 'obvious / natural'. 当たり前だ is more conversational and can sound blunt or dismissive ('well, obviously'); 当然だ is a touch more formal and reasoned ('it stands to reason'). はずだ はずだ is a logical *expectation* ('it should be ~, by my reasoning'); 当然だ asserts that something is *rightly to be expected* as natural or deserved — a value judgment, not just a deduction.
Notes
- Productive frames all mean 'only natural that ~': 〜て当然だ (te-form), 〜のも当然だ (Vのも), 〜も当然だ (Nも). 当然 also works adverbially ('naturally, of course') and adnominally (当然の権利, 'a natural right').
See 当然だ in real sentences
Jengo shows 当然だ the way you actually meet it: inside real Japanese sentences, so it sticks instead of staying an abstract rule.
Study it in JengoSources Compiled with reference to A Dictionary of Advanced Japanese Grammar.