Case particles (が, を, に, で...) form the skeleton of a sentence; adverbial particles add tone and attitude. Even for something as simple as "I can do it too," using も, こそ, or さえ produces completely different nuances.
も: Three Faces
1. Listing: A too, B too
The most basic usage — two or more things share the same quality:
足も手も擦り傷だらけだった。 Both my hands and feet were covered in scrapes.
2. Quantity emphasis: a lot / a little
When も follows a quantity word, it can emphasize "a lot" or "a little" — depending on context:
| Example | Nuance |
|---|---|
| 一週間もあればできる。 A whole week is more than enough. | Emphasizes plenty of time |
| 彼は十分も待ってくれない。 He won't even wait ten minutes for me. | Emphasizes unwillingness to give even that much |
Quick tip: If followed by an affirmative → "that much is enough"; if followed by a negative → "not even that much."
3. Total negation: question word + も + negative
| Example | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 誰も来なかった。 | Nobody came. |
| 何も食べていない。 | I haven't eaten anything. |
| どこにも行かなかった。 | I didn't go anywhere. |
こそ: Precisely / none other than
こそ spotlights the focus — "this one, not something else":
| Example | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 私こそ失礼しました。 | I'm the one who was rude. |
| 今度こそ合格する。 | This time I'll definitely pass. |
| これこそ本物だ。 | This is the real thing. |
こそ is far stronger than は — は simply means "as for...", while こそ means "precisely this! none other than this!"
さえ: Even...
さえ presents an extreme example for emphasis — "if even the most unlikely case is true, everything else goes without saying":
| Example | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 学生だけでなく、先生さえ来なかった。 | Not just students — even the teacher didn't come. |
| 名前さえ書けない。 | Can't even write their own name. |
さえ ≈ "even" — citing an extreme case to show how serious the situation is.
でも: Four Faces
でも is the most versatile adverbial particle — with four completely different usages:
1. Suggestive listing: something like...
喫茶店でも彼女を待ちましょう。 Let's wait for her at a cafe or somewhere like that.
Not specifying the cafe specifically, but "a place like a cafe."
2. Universal affirmative: question word + でも = any/every
| Example | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 誰とでもいい友達になれる。 | Can become good friends with anyone. |
| 何でも食べられる。 | Can eat anything. |
3. Extreme example: even...
親でも信じてくれない。 Even my parents don't believe me.
4. Concessive condition (conjunctive usage): even if...
日曜日でも会社に行かなければならない。 Even on Sunday, I have to go to the office.
How to tell them apart: After a noun, it's an adverbial particle (1–3); after a clause, it's a conjunctive particle (4).
ほど: Degree / limit
1. Degree: approximately
これは百年ほど前の出来事だった。 This happened about a hundred years ago.
2. Upper limit
冗談にもほどがあるよ。 There's a limit to joking around.
3. Hyperbolic degree
死ぬほど疲れた。 I'm so tired I could die.
ぐらい: Degree / comparison
ぐらい is similar to ほど but more colloquial, and has a unique "at least / at most" usage:
| Usage | Example |
|---|---|
| Approximately | 一メートルぐらいの深さです。 About one meter deep. |
| Degree | 忙しくて食事をする時間もないぐらいだ。 So busy I don't even have time to eat. |
| At least | 両親にぐらい病気のことを教えてください。 Please at least tell your parents about the illness. |
| This level | これぐらいの本なら読めるよ。 I can read a book of this level. |
ぐらい can mean "at least" or "at most" — it depends on context.
きり: Only this / たきり
きり comes from 「切る」(to cut) — once cut, that's all that's left:
1. Only
財布にはこれきりしかない。 This is all that's left in my wallet.
2. たきり: Did something and then never again...
| Example | Meaning |
|---|---|
| 先月連絡したきり消息がない。 | After contacting them last month, there's been no word since. |
| 寝たきりの人が多い。 | Many people are bedridden (permanently lying in bed). |
たきり = "did it and then it was cut off" — no further development after that point.
など: Listing / belittling
1. Listing: and so on
本や鉛筆など。 Books, pencils, and so on.
2. Belittling: the likes of you
君などわかるもんか。 How could the likes of you possibly understand.
When など is used for people, it carries a belittling tone — "someone of your caliber."
Supplement: やら...やら
やら is used to list uncertain, chaotic multiple things:
あの人は男やら女やら、区別がつかない。 I can't tell whether that person is male or female.
大きいやら小さいやら、ぴったり合うのがなかなか見つからない。 Some are too big, some are too small — hard to find one that fits just right.
The difference between やら and か: か means "A or B (choose one)," while やら means "A and B and... (an uncertain jumble)."
Summary
| Adverbial Particle | Core Function | One-line Memory Aid |
|---|---|---|
| も | Listing / quantity emphasis / total negation | "also, even, none at all" |
| こそ | Spotlight focus | "precisely, none other than" |
| さえ | Extreme example | "even..." |
| でも | Suggestive listing / universal / extreme / concessive | "the four-faced chameleon" |
| ほど | Degree / limit | "to the extent of..., there's a limit" |
| ぐらい | Approximately / at least / at most | "roughly this level" |
| きり | Only this / たきり cut-off | "cut and done" |
| など | Listing / belittling | "and so on, the likes of" |
Self-Check Exercises
Q1. What does さえ mean in 「学生だけでなく、先生さえ来なかった」?
Show Answer
さえ indicates an extreme example — "even the teacher, who is the least likely to be absent, didn't come." The implication is "if even the teacher didn't come, there's no need to even mention the students."
Q2. What's the difference between 「喫茶店でも待ちましょう」 and 「喫茶店で待ちましょう」?
Show Answer
- 喫茶店で待ちましょう → Let's wait at the cafe (specifying the cafe)
- 喫茶店でも待ちましょう → Let's wait at a cafe or somewhere like that (giving an example, not necessarily the cafe)
This is the "suggestive listing" usage of でも — offering one example to represent a category.
Q3. What does たきり mean in 「先月連絡したきり消息がない」?
Show Answer
たきり means "did something and then it was cut off, with no follow-up." This sentence means: after making contact last month, there has been no word since. きり comes from 「切る」 — the action was "cut off" at that point.