Grammar Info

N3 Lesson 4: 2/21

どんなに~ても

No matter how

Structure Legend

Structure

どんな + () + Verb[ても]
どんな + () + [い]Adjective[ても]
どんな + () + [な]Adjective + でも
どんな + () + Noun + でも

Details

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    Standard

  • 使用域

    一般

About どんなに〜ても

As explained in the そんな grammar point, the こそあど言葉(こと) may occasionally be seen in the forms こんな, そんな, あんな, or どんな. どんな itself is an abbreviation of どのような, meaning 'in what way', or 'what kind of'. When partnered with に (creating an adverb), and ても, どんなに~ても is used express a extent of something that is insufficient. It can be translated as 'no matter how (A), (B)'.
どんなに may be attached to any type of word, so long as that word is then followed by でも (in the case of nouns or な-Adjectives) or ても (in the case of い-Adjectives or verbs).
  • (いま)はお(かね)()いからどんなに伊豆(いず)()たくても()ないんだよ。
    Right now I have no money, so no matter how much I want to go to Izu, I can't.
  • 先輩(せんぱい)(はな)しがどんなにつまらなくてもあくびてはいけない
    No matter how boring your senpai's stories are, you should not yawn.
  • 自分(じぶん)運転(うんてん)どんなに上手(じょうず)でもシートベルトはしなくてはならない
    No matter how good you are at driving, you must wear a seatbelt.
  • どんなに金持(かねも)でも(はたら)ないと(かね)()くなっていく
    No matter how rich you are, if you don't work, money will just continue to disappear.
どんなに~ても can literally be translated as 'even if (A) is in however/whatever (way), (B)'.

Examples

  • どんな頑張(がんば)ても無理(むり)だと(おも)

    I think that it is impossible no matter how hard I try.

  • どんな綺麗(きれい)でも何百(なんびゃく)万円(まんえん)もかかる()()いません。

    No matter how beautiful it is, I won't buy a painting that costs millions of yen.

  • 性格(せいかく)(わる)から、どんなハンサムでも(かれ)みたいになりたくない。

    He is not a good person, so no matter how handsome he is, I don't want to be like him.

  • どんな勉強(べんきょう)ても合格(ごうかく)できないと(おも)

    No matter how much I study, I don't think that I can pass.

  • どんな(ひま)でも掃除(そうじ)するつもりはない。

    No matter how bored I am, I won't even think about cleaning.

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どんなに〜ても – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (5 in total)

  • simias

    simias

    About 5 months ago

    Couldn’t どうして be used to mean a similar thing?

    For instance this example sentence:

    どんなに辛くても、現実を受け入れなくちゃ。

    Couldn’t it also be:

    どうして辛くても、現実を受け入れなくちゃ。

    Or does it just sound weird?

  • Fuga

    Fuga

    About 5 months ago

    Since どうして means ‘why’, it would sound as unnatural as saying ‘Even if why hard it is, you have to accept reality.’ In sentences like this, where the speaker is trying to express ‘even if (A) is in however/whatever (way), (B)’, どんな works better since it has the meaning of ‘in what way’ or ‘what kind of’.

    I hope this clears it up!

  • simias

    simias

    About 5 months ago

    That makes sense, I got confused because of どうしても, I thought “why not break the ても away?”

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