Lesson 16
Emphasis & Strong Negation
- 1 〜として〜ない ~toshite ~nai not a single ~ / not even one ~ The stronger, more formal 「一人も・一つも」— 'not even a single one'.
- 2 〜てでも ~te demo even if it means ~ing / by any means 'I'll do it, even if it takes that extreme step' — the 「〜ても」of determination.
- 3 〜までして ~made shite going as far as (doing) ~ 'You went that far?' — surprise and criticism: 借金までして (going as far as borrowing).
- 4 〜まで ~made even (someone / something unexpected) Even someone or something you never expected — 店長まで怒っていた (even the manager was angry).
- 5 〜てまで ~te made going as far as ~ing 'Even doing that?' — 家族にうそをついてまで (even lying to my family).
- 6 〜ものか ~mono ka never! / as if! Hot-blooded refusal — 'never!' muttered to yourself, 'as if!' thrown at a friend.
- 7 〜というものではない ~to iu mono de wa nai it's not (necessarily) the case that… Knocking down the common belief 'if X, then Y' — it's not that simple.
- 8 〜のなんのって ~no nan no tte so ~ I can't even describe it Chatting with a friend: 'it was so hot, I have no words!' — the language of exaggeration.
- 9 〜ったら ~ttara honestly, (name)! (exasperated address) After a familiar person's name — 'honestly, you!' — affectionate exasperation.
Lesson check
All 9 forms of this lesson together — pick the right one from its look-alikes, the way the exam does. 6/8 completes the lesson.
🔒
「借金＿、弟を日本に呼びたい。」— which shows the speaker's own firm resolve?
💡 Hint:It ends in 〜たい — the speaker's wish.
Vて + でも = own resolve 'even if it means ~', followed by 〜たい. までして／てまで criticise someone else's going too far, never state your own resolve.
「借金＿、新しいスマホを買うんですか。」— which expresses surprise/objection 'you'd go that far?!'
💡 Hint:The 'seriously?!' feeling at someone else's action.
N + までして = surprise/criticism 'going so far as to'. してでも is the speaker's own resolve, not an objection to someone else.
「店長の新しいルールに、だれ一人＿反対しなかった。」— fill the blank.
💡 Hint:一 + counter before, a negative after.
一人 + として + negative = an emphatic 'not a single person'. まで means 'even X'; it does not pair with 一人 to mean 'not even one'.
「給料が高いからといって、いい会社だ＿。」— fill the blank.
💡 Hint:〜からといって comes first — refuting a common assumption.
N + だ + というものでもない = 'not necessarily so', the partner of 〜からといって. ものか is an emotional 'never!' and needs な after a noun, not だ.
Which sentence is unnatural?
💡 Hint:Where is ものか said — and where is it never written?
ものか is emotional spoken language only; it cannot appear in formal writing like a report, which would use 失敗しない／失敗するはずがない.
「親知らずを抜いたら、痛い＿、何も食べられなかった。」— telling a friend 'it hurt so much…' — fill the blank.
💡 Hint:What follows is the result of that 'so much' (何も食べられなかった).
い-adj + のなんのって = 'so painful I can't describe it', followed by the result. 痛いものか would deny the pain ('as if it hurts!'), clashing with 何も食べられなかった.
Which sentence is unnatural?
💡 Hint:What must follow てでも?
てでも must be followed by a wish or resolve (〜たい・〜つもりだ・〜なければならない); it cannot state a completed fact (買った) — that would be 借金までして買った.
Your friend Ram always forgets something; today he forgot his wallet again. Laughing but exasperated, how do you say 'honestly, Ram!'?
💡 Hint:A close person's name + exasperation.
N + ったら = fond exasperation at a close person, 'honestly, you!'. まで would mean 'even Ram' (unexpectedly), but Ram always forgets — that is surprise, not exasperation.
Your score: /8