Structure
Even if / No matter what
Verb ［おう］ + が(1)
Verb［まい］ + が(1)
Noun + だろう.(2) + が(1)
［な］Adjective + だろう(2) + が(1)
［い］Adjective［い］+ かろう + が(1)
Whether or not
Verb ［おう］ + が(1) + Verb［まい］ + が(1)
Noun (A) + だろう(2) + が(1) + Noun (B) だろう(2) + が(1)
［な］Adjective１ + だろう(2) + が(1) + ［な］Adjective２ + だろう(2) + が(1)
［い］Adjective［い］+ かろう + が(1) + ［い］Adjective［い］+ かろう + が(1)
(1) と
(2) であろう
Details
Formal
About ようが～まいが
When both the positive and negative volitional auxiliary verbs are combined with a verb in Japanese, it has the nuance of 'whether or not (A)', the result will be (B)'. This is quite emphatic, and has a literal meaning similar to 'say it does (A) or say it doesn't (A), it will still be (B)'.
As a reminder, the positive auxiliary verbs of volition are either う or よう, depending on what they are being connected to, while the negative auxiliary verb of volition is まい. Either the case marking particle が or と will appear after both the positive and the negative, with が being slightly more common.
While this structure is primarily seen after verbs, it is important to remember that other auxiliary verbs such as だ can be conjugated in the same way, as can い-Adjectives with the less common かろう structure. This means that nouns, な-Adjectives and い-Adjectives can also appear using a similar grammar pattern. However, because the negative volitional まい cannot pair with these structures, an antonym will usually appear with them instead, with both words using the う or よう positive volitional.
Based primarily on the use of volitionals, this grammar pattern will often indicate the speaker's strong will or opinion that will not change regardless of (A).
Related
Examples
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何年がかかろうと、ドラゴンボールを見つけるつもりだ！
Even if it takes many years, I intend to find the dragon balls!
人が何と言おうが、ずっとあなたを愛しています！
No matter what people say, I will always love you!
商品は上質であろうが悪質であろうが、よく売れるものはよく売れる。
Whether the product is of good quality or low quality, if it sells well, it sells well.
友達が生きていようが生きていまいが、私は彼らのために歌い続ける。
Whether my friends are alive or not, I will still sing songs for them.
生徒が授業に出席しようが出席するまいが、私はきちんと授業を進めていく。
Whether or not students attend, I will proceed with my lecture as planned.
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Breakdown and examples
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Grammar notes and breakdown
JLPT 先生
Volitional (Negative)
Tae Kim
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Tae Kim's Japanese Grammar Guide
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ようが～まいが – Grammar Discussion
Most Recent Replies (2 in total)
Melanthe
Why not split up this grammar point into a ‘even if/no matter what’ and an ‘whether or not’? That way we’d get more opportunities to practise each one. As it is right now, I doubt two sentences is enough to master the ‘even if/no matter what’ version.
wrt7MameLZE33wlmpCAV
Are が・と supposed to be missing from the structure details for 形容詞?
image718×508 26.2 KB
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