Meaning
This pattern uses the volitional form of verbs. It expresses a concessive hypothetical condition — no matter what action is taken, one's strong feelings or an unchangeable fact will not be affected. It is often used with interrogative words such as 「誰」「何」「いつ」「どこ」「どんなに」.
Formation
| Part of speech | Formation |
|---|---|
| Verb (volitional form) | が／と |
| い-adjective (〜よ) | かろう が／と |
| な-adjective | だろう／であろう が／と |
| Noun | だろう／であろう が／と |
Examples
-
今からどんなに急いで家を出しようと、待ち合わせ時間には遅れるだろう。
No matter how much you rush to leave the house now, you'll probably be late for the meeting time. -
どんなに仕事で忙しく疲れていようが、帰宅前の妻への電話は欠かしたことがありません。
No matter how busy or tired I am from work, I've never missed calling my wife before heading home. -
どんなに得意な教科だろうと、試験のときは思わぬミスをするものだ。油断してはならない。
No matter how good you are at a subject, you can make unexpected mistakes during exams. You must not let your guard down. -
使わないものは、いくら安かろうが、買う必要がないよ。
There's no need to buy things you won't use, no matter how cheap they are.
Summary
- 「〜ようが／ようと」 means "no matter..., regardless of..."
- Attaches to Verb (volitional form), い-adjective, な-adjective, or Noun