Nからみると / からすると / からいうと Meaning & Usage: “Judging from N’s standpoint” in Japanese

Introduction

Have you ever wanted to say “From a parent’s point of view…”, “Judging from these symptoms…”, or “In terms of price…” in Japanese? For example:

• From a Japanese person’s perspective, American drink sizes may seem huge.
• Judging from someone’s personality, you may guess what they will do.
• Looking at it from the viewpoint of convenience or the environment, your conclusion may change.

When you want to make a judgment from a certain standpoint, basis, or aspect, Japanese often uses Nからみると, Nからすると, and Nからいうと.

1. Meaning: What do Nからみると / からすると / からいうと mean?

These expressions all make a statement from the standpoint of N. Common English equivalents:

• from N’s point of view
• judging from N
• from the standpoint of N
• in terms of N

However, their usage is not completely identical.

Nからみると

This is often used when N is a person or a group of people, and you are describing something from their point of view. Examples of natural N:

• 日本人にほんじん = Japanese
• 親おや = parent
• 学生がくせい = student
• 私わたしたちの世代せだい = our generation

Nからすると

This is often used when N is the evidence or grounds for making a judgment. Examples of natural N:

• 性格せいかく = Personality
• 症状しょうじょう = Symptoms
• 状況じょうきょう = situation
• データ = data

Nからいうと

This is often used when the speaker chooses one particular aspect or criterion among several possible ways of looking at something. Examples of natural N:

• 値段ねだん = price
• 年齢ねんれい = age
• 使つかいやすさ = Usability

Summary

So, all three can be translated similarly, but:

• からみると = viewpoint of a person/group
• からすると = judgment based on evidence/grounds
• からいうと = judgment from one aspect/criterion among many

A practical point: Nからいうと is generally not used with nouns referring to people in the way Nからみると / Nからすると are.

• 日本人からみると → natural
• 日本人からすると → natural
• 日本人からいうと → generally unnatural

2. Formation

• N + からみると
• N + からすると
• N + からいうと

These are followed by a statement expressing a judgment, opinion, or conclusion.

Grammar breakdown

• から (particle): Means “from” and marks the basis or starting point of the judgment.
• みる (verb): Means “to see / to view.” So Nからみると literally means something like “when viewed from N.”
• する (verb): In Nからすると, it functions as part of a fixed pattern. It is best learned as one chunk meaning “judging from N.”
• いう (verb): Means “to say.” In Nからいうと, the nuance is often “speaking in terms of N” or “from the perspective of N as one criterion.”
• と (particle): Here, it is part of the fixed expression. In practice, memorize the three forms as complete patterns.

Variations: 〜ば (Conditional form)

You will often see these grammar points using the conditional “ば.”

• Nからみれば (kara mireba)
• Nからすれば (kara sureba)
• Nからいえば (kara ieba)

Don’t worry! The meaning is exactly the same as their “と” counterparts.

They are completely interchangeable, though the “ば” form can sometimes sound slightly more hypothetical or formal.

3. Useful Examples

～からみると

日本人にほんじんからみると、玄関げんかんで靴くつを脱ぬぐのはあたりまえです。
From a Japanese perspective, taking off your shoes at the entrance is a given.

私わたしたちの世代せだいからみると、最近さいきんの女子高生じょしこうせいのスカートは短みじかすぎます。
From our generation’s point of view, high school girls’ skirts these days are too short.

～からすると

田中たなかさんの性格せいかくからすると、簡単かんたんにはあきらめないと思おもいます。
Given Mr. Tanaka’s personality, I don’t think he’ll give up easily.

この症状しょうじょうからすると、風邪かぜをひいたようです。
Judging from these symptoms, it seems I have caught a cold.

～からいうと

値段ねだんからいうと、このレストランは手頃てごろです。
In terms of price, this restaurant is reasonable.

割わり箸ばしは便利べんりですが、環境かんきょうの面めんからいうと使つかわない方ほうがいいかもしれません。
Disposable chopsticks are convenient, but from an environmental standpoint, it might be better not to use them.

4. Related grammar (comparison)

Nにとって

Nにとって also means “for N / from N’s standpoint,” but it is mainly used for evaluation.

学生がくせいにとって、この本ほんは役やくに立たつ。= For students, this book is useful.

You can also say: 学生からみると / 学生からすると…

You cannot say: 学生からいうと… (It’s unnatural. Nからいうと is generally not used with nouns referring to people in the way Nからみると / Nからすると are.)

Nにしてみれば / Nにしてみたら

These mean “if you put yourself in N’s shoes.” They often include empathy or emotional understanding.

• 彼かれにしてみれば、とても納得なっとくできないだろう。= If you put yourself in his shoes, he probably cannot accept it at all.

5. Practice

Translate the following English into Japanese using からみると, からすると, or からいうと.

FAQ

Conclusion

In this article, you learned how to use Nからみると, Nからすると, and Nからいうと to make judgments from a certain standpoint, basis, or aspect.

With these grammar patterns, you can now:

• describe things more naturally from someone’s point of view,
• make inferences based on evidence or grounds,
• and compare things from different criteria, such as price, convenience, or environment.