日本語道場

Nihongo Dojo — N3 → N2

Grammar

N3

～反面

~hanmen

on the other hand, while

When to use it

Use ～反面 in written or formal spoken Japanese to present two contrasting aspects of the same thing or person — typically one favorable and one unfavorable. It is the standard choice in reports, proposals, and risk assessments where you want to acknowledge a downside without weakening the main point. Compared with 一方(で), which merely lines up two parallel facts, 反面 stresses that the two sides are in tension with each other.

Formation

  • Verbs: plain present or past form + 反面 (削減できる反面 / 効率化した反面)
  • i-adjectives: plain form + 反面 (強い反面、安かった反面)
  • na-adjectives: 〜な反面 or, more formally, 〜である反面 (柔軟な反面 / 柔軟である反面)
  • Nouns: 〜である反面 (成長事業である反面). Bare noun + 反面 is not used.
  • Both clauses must describe the same subject or topic; 反面 cannot contrast two unrelated items.

Examples

  • While it lets us cut costs, there's a risk of quality declining.

  • Operations became more efficient, but the burden on staff increased.

  • He's strong in negotiations but poor at internal coordination.

  • The new system is flexible, but its administration gets complicated.

  • Overseas expansion is an opportunity, yet it carries exchange-rate risk.