日本語道場

Nihongo Dojo — N3 → N2

Grammar

N2

~ないまでも

~nai made mo

even if not... at least

When to use it

Use ~ないまでも in writing or formal speech to concede that a maximal outcome won't be reached, while asserting a lesser but still meaningful one: "even if we can't X, at least Y." It's common in reports, proposals and negotiation where you want to lower expectations without sounding defeatist. The second clause must be a genuinely smaller step than the first — reversing the order sounds broken.

Formation

  • Verb: plain negative ない-form + までも — 合意に至らないまでも、解決しないまでも
  • い-adjective: ~くない + までも — 十分で速くないまでも(more often 十分とは言えないまでも)
  • な-adjective: stem + で(は)ない + までも — 完璧ではないまでも
  • Noun: noun + で(は)ない + までも — 黒字でないまでも
  • Cannot take past tense (×行かなかったまでも); the clause is always non-past.
  • Frequently combined with ~とは言えないまでも/~とまではいかないまでも for a softer hedge.
  • The following clause typically ends in a volitional, request, or evaluative form: ~たい、~てほしい、~べきだ、~ことはできる.

Examples

  • Even if it's not perfect, I want to submit it in some shape.

  • Even if it doesn't lead to a contract, I'd like to keep the connection.

  • While we can't call it profitable, we did avoid a loss.

  • Even if we don't roll it out company-wide, let's try it within the department first.

  • Even if it's not detailed, please at least report the outline.