日本語道場
Nihongo Dojo — N3 → N2
N2
~に相違ない
~ ni sōi nai
surely, undoubtedly (formal)
When to use it
Use ~に相違ない when you need to state a conclusion as virtually certain in stiff written Japanese — reports, legal documents, audit findings, investigative summaries, formal correspondence. It is the bookish twin of ~に違いない: identical in meaning but too heavy for ordinary speech, where it sounds theatrical or archaic. In business writing it signals that the writer is committing to an inference drawn from evidence, not merely guessing.
Formation
Examples
The cause of the delivery delay is undoubtedly the lag in parts procurement.
This figure must surely have been confused with last fiscal year's tally.
Our competitors are undoubtedly preparing a similar proposal.
It is beyond doubt that the expenditure in question went unapproved.
The other party will surely press us for concessions on price.