Structure
(Verb[ば])+ Verb [る](*) + ほど
([い]Adjective[ば])+ [い]Adjective(*) + ほど
([な]Adjective + なら(ば))+ [な]Adjective(*) + な + ほど
([な]Adjective + であれば)+ である + ほど
(Noun + なら(ば))+ Noun(*) + ほど
(Noun + であれば)+ である + ほど
(*) The same Adjective, Verb or Noun has to be repeated
Details
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Standard
使用域
一般
About ば〜ほど
ば~ほど is a combination of the conjunction particle ば, and the noun ほど. It is used in a similar way to 'the more ~ the more' in English. Literally, it just highlights that 'if it is (A), then the limit of (A) will be controlled only by its extent'.
To use ば~ほど, ば will be paired with the hypothetical form of any verb/い-Adjective (or noun/な-Adjective with なら on the end), before the same word will be repeated in its attributive form. After this, a (B) part of the sentence will highlight what the expected result of (A) is.
To use ば~ほど, ば will be paired with the hypothetical form of any verb/い-Adjective (or noun/な-Adjective with なら on the end), before the same word will be repeated in its attributive form. After this, a (B) part of the sentence will highlight what the expected result of (A) is.
- いい肉は噛めば噛むほど味が出る。The more you chew good meat, the more flavorful it gets.
- 公園は広ければ広いほどいい。The bigger the park is, the better it is.
- ビルは丈夫ならば丈夫なほど安心できる。The stronger a building is, the safer you feel.
- プロならばプロほど速く泳げる。The more of a pro you are, the faster you can swim.
- アプリが便利であれば便利であるほどユーザーが増える。The more useful an app is, the more users will increase.
- 職人であれば職人であるほど凄いものが作れる。The more of a craftsman a person is, the more likely that they will be able to make something amazing.
Caution
When this expression is used with する verbs, the noun that する is linked to in the ば part of the sentence does not need to be repeated in the ほど part.- 漢字の勉強をすればするほど色んな本が読めるようになる。The more you study kanji, the more you will be able to read various books.
- 掃除をすればするほど、部屋が綺麗になっていく。The more you clean, the cleaner your room will get.
Fun Fact
Sometimes, the ば 'hypothetical' part of the sentence will be omitted altogether, leaving ほど to perform a similar function by itself.- 身体を鍛えるほど、身体が強くなる。The more you workout, the stronger your body gets.
Synonyms
どんどん
Progressively, Rapidly increasing, More and more
Not studied yet
ば
If… then, (Conditional)
Not studied yet
一方だ
More and more, Continue to, Keep on, -er and -er
Not studied yet
ますます
Increasingly, More and more, Decreasingly, Less and less, Keep -ing
Not studied yet
ほど
The more, About, To the extent that, So much… that
Not studied yet
Examples
この豆を食べれば食べるほど痩せるらしい。
I hear that the more of these beans you eat the thinner you will become.
早ければ早いほどいい。
The sooner the better.
綺麗ならば綺麗なほど見続けたくなる。
The more beautiful it is, the more I want to continue looking at it.
スーパーは近ければ近いほど買い物に行きやすい。
The closer the supermarket, the easier it is to go shopping.
勝てば勝つほど、またやりたくなる。
The more you win, the more you want to play again.
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How does ほど work in the 〜すれば〜するほど construction?
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〜ば〜ほど
Nihongoの森
How to use ほど
Maggie Sensei
Using 「ば」 and 「ほど」 together
Tae Kim
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Tobira
Page 236
Tobira
Page 192
Tae Kim's Japanese Grammar Guide
Page 256
A Dictionary of Intermediate Japanese Grammar
Page 6
[AIAIJ] An Integrated Approach to Intermediate Japanese
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ば〜ほど – Grammar Discussion
Most Recent Replies (19 in total)
focamotivada
Hi everyone! I have a question regarding these two points:
(Noun + であ****れば )+ である + ほど
And:
([な]Adjective + であ****れば )+ である + ほど
Am I missing something or there is no example sentences portraying this format? I don’t fully understand if it should be, for example, something along the lines of: 静かであればである程 OR if I’m missing something and it should be 静かであれば静かである程.
Can someone confirm if I need to repeat the noun/na adjective between であれば and である, please?
nekoyama
You can repeat it in the way that you did, but you don’t have to. If it’s not repeated it should be 静かであればあるほど without the で. The same applies to nouns too.
focamotivada
I see, thank you so much!! This makes more sense to me now.
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