dela eta / -(e)la medio

Because of (Formal)

Level 5

In news and formal writing, a cause can be named with dela eta or dela medio after a plain noun: Ekaitza dela eta, hegaldiak bertan behera geratu dira (Because of the storm, the flights have been cancelled).

How It Works

1. How the phrase is built. Take a noun in its plain form and add the fixed phrase:

  • Ekaitza dela eta: because of the storm
  • Arrazoi horiek direla eta: for those reasons
  • Gaixotasuna zela medio: because of (his) illness, in a past story
  • Hori dela eta: for that reason

The noun never takes -ren or -gatik here, because dela already links it to the sentence.

2. The three jobs of dela eta.

  • Cause: Greba dela eta, ez dago autobusik (Because of the strike, there are no buses).
  • Occasion: Euskararen Eguna dela eta, hainbat ekitaldi antolatu dituzte (For Basque Language Day, they have organized several events).
  • Topic: Zure eskaera dela eta, honako hau jakinarazi nahi dizugu (Regarding your request, we would like to let you know the following). This use is common in official letters.

3. dela medio. Medio adds the idea of a means or a channel: "by way of", "through", as well as "because of". Euskaltzaindia's dictionary glosses it with dela eta, dela bide and bitartez: Teknologia berriak direla medio, asko aldatu da lan egiteko modua (Thanks to new technologies, the way we work has changed a lot).

4. Everyday alternatives. The same cause can be named in a plainer way with -(r)engatik (ekaitzagatik), with -(r)en ondorioz (ekaitzaren ondorioz), or with a whole clause: ekaitza zegoelako. When the cause is a full clause, formal Basque uses -(e)la eta on the verb itself: euria egin duela eta.

Tip: If a formal sentence would begin with "because of", "on the occasion of" or "regarding" in English, dela eta usually fits. In a chat with friends, choose -gatik instead.

Examples (6)

  1. Ekaitza dela eta, hegaldiak bertan behera geratu dira.

    Because of the storm, the flights have been cancelled.

  2. Gaixotasuna zela medio, ez zen bilerara etorri.

    Because of illness, he did not come to the meeting.

    zela is the past form, used when the whole story is in the past.

  3. Arrazoi horiek direla eta, proiektua atzeratu egin da.

    For those reasons, the project has been postponed.

    direla agrees with the plural noun arrazoi horiek.

  4. Euskararen Eguna dela eta, hainbat ekitaldi antolatu dituzte.

    For Basque Language Day, they have organized several events.

    Here dela eta names the occasion, not a cause.

  5. Zure eskaera dela eta, honako hau jakinarazi nahi dizugu.

    Regarding your request, we would like to let you know the following.

  6. Teknologia berriak direla medio, asko aldatu da lan egiteko modua.

    Thanks to new technologies, the way we work has changed a lot.

Common Mistakes

  • Adding a case ending to the noun.

    Ekaitzaren dela eta, hegaldiak bertan behera geratu dira.
    Ekaitza dela eta, hegaldiak bertan behera geratu dira.

    The noun before dela eta stays in its plain form. dela already connects it to the sentence, so -ren or -gatik is not added.

  • Putting dela eta after a finished clause.

    Euria egin du dela eta, ez gara atera.
    Euria egin duela eta, ez gara atera.

    dela eta follows a noun. When the cause is a whole clause, the clause verb itself takes -(e)la and eta follows it: egin duela eta. Two verbs in a row, egin du dela, are not possible.

How It Connects

Tap a pattern to see what it builds on and what it leads to.

dela eta / -(e)la medioLevel 5Because of (Formal)

Learn This First

Formal because follows because of and -(e)la eta.

Words in This Pattern

medio