Japanese Grammar In Its Natural Habitat
Wild Nihongo!
~も~も

~も~も

~も~も Japanese Grammar Lesson

Grammar Type: Structure

Essential Meaning: Both X and Y / Neither X nor Y

Construction: 

  • Noun も + Noun も + (Noun も)
    • E.g. 先生せんせいも学生がくせいも [Both the teacher and the student]
  • [Noun + Particle + も] + [Noun + Particle + も] + ([Noun + Particle + も])
    • 先生せんせいにも学生がくせいにも [Both to the teacher and to the student]
  • [い-Adjective Stem + くも] + [い-Adjective Stem + くも] + Negative Verb
    • 大おおきくも小ちいさくもない [Neither large nor small]
  • [な-Adjective Stem / Noun] でも + [な-Adjective Stem / Noun] でも + Negative Verb
    • E.g. 便利べんりでも不便ふべんでもない [Neither convenient nor inconvenient]
    • E.g. 先生せんせいでも学生がくせいでもない [Neither a teacher nor a student]

Notes:

  • XもYも is a structure that translates to “Both X and Y” with a positive predicate or “Neither X nor Y” with a negative predicate. X and Y should be grammatically parallel (i.e. both い-Adjective, both な-Adjectives, both Nouns) for the sake of style.
  • Note that adjectives are only used with ~も~も in a negative context (i.e. “Neither X nor Y“). In positive contexts, the ordinary adjective て-Form can be used instead.
    • E.g. このアパートは狭せまくて不便ふべんです。[This apartment is narrow and inconvenient.]
    • E.g. このアパートは便利べんりでも不便ふべんでもない。[This apartment is neither convenient nor inconvenient.]
  • When using the ~も~も structure negatively with nouns (i.e. Neither Noun 1 nor Noun 2), the structure becomes Noun 1 でも Noun 2 でも + negative verb.
    • E.g. 山川やまかまさんは酒さけでもタバコでもやりません。[Mr. Yamakawa neither drinks nor smokes.]
  • Technically, Noun も Noun も Noun も can be used with an infinitely long string of nouns, but it is stylistically awkward to use more than three nouns.

Example Sentences:

田中たなかさんも中山なかやまさんもデパートに勤つとめている。[Both Tanaka-san and Nakayama-san work at the department store.]

京都きょうとへバスでも電車でんしゃでも行いける。[You can go to Kyoto either by bus or by train.]

このうちは広ひろくも狭せまくもない。[This house is neither spacious nor narrow.]

日本人にほんじんもアメリカ人じんもよく働はたらく。[Both Japanese people and American people work a lot.]

山川やまかわさんは酒さけでもタバコでもやりません。[Mr. Yamakawa neither drinks nor smokes.]

弟おとうとにも妹いもうとにも本ほんを買かってやりました。[I bought books for both my younger brother and my younger sister.]

マギーは美人びじんでも不美人ふびじんでもない。[Maggie is neither beautiful nor ugly.]

この建物たてものはきれいでも立派りっぱでもありません。[This building is neither pretty nor magnificent.]

WILD Examples:

At 0:27, listen for this line: 輝かがやく星ほしも流ながれる雲くもも名前なまえを聞きかれても分わからない [As for the shining stars and the streaming cloud…if I were asked what their names are, I would have no idea.] At 0:45, listen for: 悲かなしい時ときも嬉うれしい時ときもなんども見み上げていた, その空そらを [Both during sad times and happy times, I was always looking up at that sky]

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