少(すこ)しも～ない

Not even a little, Not at all, Not in the least, Never

Structure

すこしも + Verb［ない］
すこしも + ［い］Adjective［ない］
すこしも + ［な］Adjective + ではない⁽¹⁾

⁽¹⁾ じゃない

Details

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About すこしも～ない

Coming from the word 少(すこ)し (a little bit), すこしも～ない is an expression which translates almost exactly to 'not even a little bit (A)' in English. Due to this, it indicates that there is 'no (A)', '(A) never happens', or 'not (A) at all', depending on whether a verb or an adjective is the word that is being negated. すこしも can come at the beginning of the sentence, or directly before the word/statement it is referring to.

今日(きょう)は人(ひと)が多(おお)いからすこしも離(はな)れないでね。
There are a lot of people today, so don't stray off. Not even a little bit.
何(なに)このケーキ、すこしもおいしくない！
What is this cake, it's not even a little good!
彼女(かのじょ)の彼氏(かれし)はすこしもイケメンではない。
Her boyfriend is not even a little handsome.

Fun Fact

This construction is another example of how the も particle expresses that the word before it is surprising in some way, or unexpected. This was briefly discussed in the Number + も grammar point.

今月(こんげつ)もお金(かね)がすこしもない。
I don't have any money this month either.

Here we can see that も is highlighting 少(すこ)し as being 'surprising'. This is where the 'not even!' meaning comes from.

Synonyms

Examples

あなたは子供(こども)の話(はなし)をすこしも聞(き)いてあげてない。
You never listen to what your kid has to say. (Not in the least)
この景色(けしき)はすこしも綺麗(きれい)ではない。
This scenery is not pretty at all.
あの店(みせ)のケーキはすこしも美味(おい)しくない。
That store's cake is not delicious in the least.
少(すこ)しも暑(あつ)くないのに、汗(あせ)をかいている。
It is not in the least bit hot, but I am sweating.
ガソリンの値段(ねだん)が少(すこ)しも下(さ)がらないね。
The price of gasoline has not dropped in the least.
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- Not (even a little)
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すこしも～ない – Grammar Discussion

Most Recent Replies (2 in total)

hergimerc
About 2 years ago
Is this grammar point has the same meaning like 全く…ない ?
Daru
About 1 year ago
They resemble each other a lot as they both express a severe lack of something to make a point.

Going literal, すこしも～ない means ‘not even a bit of x’ whereas まったく～ない means ‘completely NOT x’. It’s more a matter of degree and expression mostly!