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
Vocab Coverage
All Bunpro Vocab that appears on this item.
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
Offline
Tae Kim's Japanese Grammar Guide
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ようが～まいが – Grammar Discussion
Most Recent Replies (3 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
ddavo
What’s the difference with “にしても”?