〜だらけ
Full Of/covered with
Use 〜だらけ when a surface or area is covered in something negative, like mud, mistakes, or debt. It implies a 'scattered abundance' of unpleasant things.
How It Works
〜だらけ is a suffix used to express that something is covered in a specific substance or contains many instances of something.
Key Characteristics:
- Negative Nuance: In the vast majority of cases, it is used for things the speaker finds unpleasant, dirty, or excessive (e.g., 泥（どろ） 'mud', 間違い（まちがい） 'mistakes', ゴミ 'trash'). It is not used for abstract positive qualities like 'kindness' or 'happiness'.
- Scattered State: It suggests many individual items or spots are spread across a surface, rather than a single uniform layer.
- Grammar Structure: It attaches directly to nouns. To modify another noun, use 〜だらけの + Noun. To end a sentence, use 〜だらけだ or 〜だらけです.
The 'Star' Exception:
While usually negative, a common exception is 星（ほし）だらけの空（そら） (a sky full of stars). Because stars appear as scattered points across the sky, this usage is natural despite being a beautiful image.
Examples (5)
- この部屋はゴミだらけで、とても汚いです。
This room is full of trash and is very dirty.
Word by Word: This room / trash / full of / being / very / dirty / is.
Here, 〜だらけ is used with ゴミ (trash) to describe a messy, unpleasant state.
- 彼の部屋は本だらけで、座る場所もありません。
His room is covered in books, and there isn't even a place to sit.
Word by Word: His room / books / full of / being / sit / place / even / not exist.
While books aren't inherently 'dirty', the abundance here is seen as excessive or overwhelming, which fits the nuance of 〜だらけ.
- 泥だらけの靴で家に入らないでください。
Please don't come into the house with mud-covered shoes.
Word by Word: Mud / covered / 's / shoes / with / house / into / don't enter / please.
When modifying a noun like 靴（くつ - shoes）, we use the particle の after 〜だらけ.
- この作文は間違いだらけで、読みづらいです。
This essay is full of mistakes and is hard to read.
Word by Word: This essay / mistakes / full of / being / read-hard / is.
〜だらけ is commonly used for countable negative things like 間違い（まちがい - mistakes）.
- 昨日の夜は、星だらけの空がとても綺麗だった。
Last night, the sky full of stars was very beautiful.
Word by Word: Yesterday / 's / night / as for / stars / full of / 's / sky / subject / very / beautiful / was.
This is a famous exception where the 'scattered' nature of stars makes the pattern appropriate for a positive image.
Common Mistakes
Using it for positive abundance (except for stars).
彼女の顔は笑顔だらけです。彼女の顔は笑顔でいっぱいです。Learners often try to use it for 'full of smiles' (笑顔 - えがお), but since smiles are positive, you should use 〜でいっぱいです or 〜ずくめ instead.
Confusing it with 〜まみれ for sticky substances.
手が油だらけになった。手が油まみれになった。While both mean 'covered,' 〜まみれ is better for sticky or liquid substances (like oil, blood, or sweat) that coat a surface, whereas 〜だらけ is for things scattered across a surface.
How It Connects
Learn This First
To understand 〜だらけ, you need to know how to attach suffixes to nouns and how to use the copula to form complete sentences. It is a specific vocabulary-like grammar point used to express that something is 'covered in' or 'full of' something negative, like mud or mistakes.
Related Patterns
- 〜まみれCovered in
Similar meaning ('covered in'), but specifically used for sticky or messy substances like mud, blood, or oil that smear onto a surface.
Level 5 - 〜ずくめAll/entirely
Used for a uniform state or a series of events, often with a positive or neutral nuance (e.g., 'nothing but good things').
Level 5 - ばかりOnly/nothing but
A neutral way to say 'nothing but' or 'only,' lacking the physical 'covered/scattered' nuance of 〜だらけ.
Level 2 - のPossessive/nominalizer
Used to connect 〜だらけ to a following noun (e.g., 傷だらけの箱 - a box full of scratches).
Level 1 - づらいPainful to Do
Often used in the same context as 〜だらけ to describe how a negative state makes something difficult to do (e.g., 'hard to read' because of mistakes).
Level 2
Words in This Pattern
Practice 〜だらけ in Bubblegum
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