At a glance
～ことに comes before a statement and shows the speaker's feeling about it: "to my surprise", "unfortunately", "happily". It attaches to words of emotion.
[Emotion word] ことに、[statement of fact]。
残念なことに、旅行は中止になりました。 Unfortunately, the trip was canceled.
How to form it
| Attaches to | Form | Example |
|---|---|---|
| い-adjective | dictionary form + ことに | 嬉しいことに "happily" |
| な-adjective | adjective + な + ことに | 残念なことに "unfortunately" |
| Verb | た-form + ことに (usually) | 驚いたことに "to my surprise", 困ったことに "unfortunately (troublingly)" |
With verbs the た-form is the usual textbook form. 驚くことに is also used.