[JLPT grammar] だらけ expresses many unpleasant things are visible.

Today I am going to share the homework correction quoted from my JLPT N3 course!
The student’s sentence is not correct. Can you find the mistake?

 

[Student’s sentence]

その店のメニューは好きなものだらけでした。

*そのみせのめにゅーはすきなものだらけでした。

 



 

[My correction]

その店のメニューは好きなものだらけでした。
→その店のメニューは好きなものばかりでした。

I liked everything on the menu at that restaurant.

 

だらけ expresses that many unpleasant things are visible. On the other hand, ばかり can be simply thought of as “only” in a neutral way, where no real preference for more or less is being stated by the speaker.

So, in this sentence, you should use ばかり, not だらけ, because 好きなもの are not unpleasant things.

 

e.g.
娘(むすめ)はピンクの服(ふく)ばかり持(も)っています。
My daughter has all pink clothes.

 

サッカーをしてきた息子(むすこ)の服はどろだらけでした。
My son’s clothes were covered in mud after playing soccer.

 

I hope my explanation helps you. 😊

 

In my JLPT All-in-One Course, all lessons come with homework. If you submit your homework, I will reply with corrections.
I can break down the Japanese grammar and point out mistakes, explaining the structure and nuances of Japanese in an easy-to-understand way.
You can also ask me any questions in as much detail as you want. I will teach you until you get it!