Grammar Info
N3 Lesson 4: 2/21

どんなに~ても
no matter how

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
Register Standard
使用域 一般
Information
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).
  • 今(いま)はお金(かね)無(な)いからどんなに伊豆(いず)に行(い)きたくても行(い)けないんだよ。
    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)話(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.
  • どんなにお金持(かねも)ちでも、働(はたら)かないとお金(かね)無(な)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)’.
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どんな頑張(がんば)っても無理(むり)だと思(おも)う
I think that it is impossible no matter how hard I try.
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どんな綺麗(きれい)でも何百(なんびゃく)万円(まんえん)もかかる絵(え)を買(か)いません。
No matter how beautiful it is, I won't buy a painting that costs millions of yen.
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性格(せいかく)悪(わる)いから、どんなハンサムでも彼(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.
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Books
[AIAIJ] An Integrated Approach to Intermediate Japanese
Page 172