Structure
Noun + も
Details
Part of Speech
Particle
Word Type
Linking Particle
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Standard
About も
も can mean 'too/also', or 'even', or 'neither/either', depending on if the sentence is affirmative or negative. Multiple meanings like this are quite common for Japanese particles, as there is no need to use different words simply to agree with other statements in the sentence (unlike English).
As you can see here, English requires 'either/neither (when negative)', or 'too/also', but Japanese only requires も. You can think of it as simply meaning 'Whatever is true for (A), is also true for (B)'.
も is part of many other compound grammar structures in which it keeps its original meaning, but shifts the nuance a little bit. Some of these include でも, にも~ない, とも. As we can see, it is frequently paired with other particles!
Here, も can be seen pairing with で. This suggests that 'With (A), (B) also'. This is regularly translated simply as 'but' in English, despite the nuance being closer to 'and also'.
Related
Examples
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あなたもトムです。
You are also Tom.
私も。
Me too.
彼も先生です。
He is also a teacher.
服も古い。
The clothes, too, are old.
君も、忙しい。
You are also busy.
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も – Grammar Discussion
Most Recent Replies (12 in total)
Jake
also・too, as well
Structure
- Noun + も
View on Bunpro
HeyDuda32
Can も also be used somewhat like と for joining nouns in a string but also still adding the “as well/also” connotation? I guess my example sentence would be-- 私の目も頭も痛い。
I imagine it’s saying- “My eyes as well as my head both hurt”.
But can you use it in a fashion like you would と? Or would it be better to phrase the sentence like – 私の目と頭も痛い? But I’m imagining this is more like saying - “My eyes and head also hurt”.
To me, the first is saying you have two things that are both hurting you at that moment. The second seems like you are implying your head and eyes hurt in addition to something already implied.
Is this right, or am I reading into it too much?
camytang
ぼくもきみも、大人とよばれる年齢になった。
I came across this line from a light novel I’m trying to read. The も〜もabove means “both”, right? I couldn’t find the exact grammar point in Bunpro so I wanted to check.
“Both you and I have reached the age where we can be called adults.”Fuga
Hey @camytang ! We apologize for the late reply.
Yes, it could be translated as ‘both’, but a more direct translation is ‘also’, and the same grammar point as this grammar point. A direct translation of the sentence ぼくもきみも、大人とよばれる年齢になった。would be ‘Also you as well as me have reached the age where we can be called adults’. Since that is an unnatural way of saying it in English, translating it as, ‘Both you and I…’ is correct and would not change the nuance of the sentence.
We hope that answers your question!
camytang
Thank you very much! I appreciate the answer!
Davidf
Just started. Not sure how reviews work. My first one, I got right but doesn’t seem to be way to log that or move on to next review.???
Fach
Not directly related to も particle, but in one of the examples 彼女 was referred to as “she”. Doesn’t it mean girlfriend or a friend who’s a girl?
Scyamntic
Both, it’s dependent on context
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あの彼女は何をしているかな | “What is she doing I wonder”
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彼女からプレゼントをもらった! | “I got a present from my girlfriend!”
- if the previous sentence had included someone’s name or other context that specified a person, and that person was not your girlfriend, the 彼女 would then refer to that previously mentioned person and take on the definition “she”
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メアリーは優しいい人だ。彼女がよく保健所で手伝うらしい。| “Mary is a nice person. It seems she often helps at the animal shelter”
Etc.
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Gambarre
I’m a bit confused by this example sentence, 車ははやい、でも危ない。I thought でも meant “but” so read this as cars are fast but dangerous. The translation given is cars are fast and also dangerous. How can I distinguish between the two uses of demo?
Scyamntic
The translation
is wrongcould stand to be clearer, and you are correct.車が早い、でも危ない
“The car is fast but dangerous”車が早くて危ない
“The car is fast and dangerous”車が早い、も危ない
“The car is fast, and also dangerous”車が早くても危ない
“It is dangerous even if the car is fast”IcyIceBear
I wouldn’t say it’s outright wrong.
“The car is fast, but dangerous” the car is still both fast and also dangerous. The difference is that one implies a negative attribute.
Scyamntic
Yeah good callout, I was just about to update to mention that technically you can make the case that “but” and “and” are pretty similar in function in this case. But it seemed a little too “extra”
Gambarre
Thank you so much both! Language can be so subtle. It was the implied negativity with “but” vs additional statement of “also” that threw me. So interesting. Thank you for the examples, gives me a better overall understanding of the sentence construction and your responses are much appreciated!
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