Not only this but also that with 〜だけではなく〜も
Grammar: Addition » 〜だけではなく〜も
〜だけで(は)なく〜も adds a second item, quality, or action by first saying that the first one is not the full limit. It means “not only Ⓐ but also Ⓑ”, “Ⓑ as well as Ⓐ”, or “besides Ⓐ, Ⓑ too”.
The pattern is built from (limit)だけ (“only”), the negative connector ではなく (“not being”), and usually も (“also”) on the added item.
Usage
This is used when the listener might think the statement applies only to Ⓐ, but the speaker wants to widen the scope to include Ⓑ. The two parts should be parallel: two nouns, two qualities, two actions, two places, two reasons, and so on.
だけでなく and だけではなく are both common. The は in では makes the contrast a little more explicit, and the shorter だけでなく often feels smoother in ordinary writing. In casual speech, だけじゃなく or だけじゃなくて may appear instead.
Formation
- Noun + だけで(は)なく + Noun + も
- 顔だけでなく体も
- "not only the face but also the body"
- Particle phrase + だけで(は)なく + matching phrase + も
- 日本からだけでなく海外からも
- "not only from Japan but also from overseas"
- Verb plain form + だけで(は)なく + Verb phrase + も
- 読むだけでなく書くことも
- "not only reading but writing too"
- い-adjective + だけで(は)なく + adjective/phrase + も
- 安いだけでなく使いやすくもある
- "not only cheap but also easy to use"
- な-adjective + なだけで(は)なく + adjective/phrase + も
- 便利なだけでなく安全でもある
- "not only convenient but also safe"
Reading manga examples
When reading the provided manga examples, first find the item before だけでなく. That is the thing being rejected as the only limit. Then scan forward for the item marked by も. That is the added item.
Particle placement
With nouns, any needed particle often stays with the noun before だけでなく, and the matching particle usually appears again with も.
- AからだけでなくⒷからも: not only from Ⓐ, but from Ⓑ too
- AにだけでなくⒷにも: not only to/at Ⓐ, but to/at Ⓑ too
- AとだけでなくⒷとも: not only with Ⓐ, but with Ⓑ too
This pattern can be easier to parse if you look for a matching pair rather than translating word by word.
Similar expressions
〜ばかりで(は)なく〜も is very close in meaning and is often used for the same “not only Ⓐ but also Ⓑ” idea. It can sound a little more emphatic or formal than plain だけでなく.
Do not confuse だけじゃなくて〜も with だけじゃなくても. だけじゃなくて〜も adds a specific Ⓑ item. だけじゃなくても often means that “only Ⓐ” is not required, as in “it does not have to be just Ⓐ.”
Sentence-level adders such as それに, さらに, and しかも also add information, but they connect whole statements. 〜だけで(は)なく〜も works inside a sentence by pairing Ⓐ and Ⓑ directly. Benjamin suggests Louise do push-ups alongside Lou, her “Living Doll”. When Louise tires quickly, he notes that Living Dolls also tire. After infiltrating a Team Rocket hideout, Red, Green, and Blue take on the various Gym Leaders inside, including Machisu, Natsume, and Kyou. A couple of Team Rocket grunts discuss the fallout. After Shin’ichi was forced to take a deadly drug that instead shrank him back to a child, he took on the undercover name Conan and went to stay with his childhood friend Ran and her detective father in the hope of a lead to the black-clad men who drugged him. He later discusses with Professor Agasa about how useless Detective Mouri is. The professor reminds Conan that the poison was supposed to have killed him, so he can’t rush and let others know his true identity.Further Reading
Related Grammar
Examples
Care for not only your face but also your body with 〜だけでなく〜も
Not just Machisu, but also Kyou with 〜だけでなく〜も
They'll target not just me with 〜だけじゃなく〜も
