Word
何とも
Meaning in Englishreally, very, extremely, terribly, awfully (not) anything, (not) at all, (not) a bit
Animated kanji stroke order
Sentence
Related sentences
Related sentences
There are no published items in this section yet.
Word context
What it means
What does 何とも mean? It is a Japanese adverb used to express degree or emphasis, typically with negative predicates to indicate 'not at all' or 'not very', and it also appears in exclamations to convey strong surprise or appraisal.
Main meanings
- not at all or not particularly when used with negative predicates
- an exclamatory sense meaning 'how ...!' or 'what a ...!'
- used to hedge or soften statements in casual speech
How to use it
Used as an adverb before adjectives or verbs to indicate degree; appears in formal and casual registers; common with negatives to signal not at all or not very, and in exclamations to heighten emotion; typically used in both spoken and written Japanese.
Variants and close terms
- 全く (mattaku) — not at all
- とても (totemo) — very
Composition
- 何: the interrogative 'what'
- とも: an affix that adds indefiniteness or emphatic degree to the phrase
Word class
Adverb (副詞)
Word
Related words by kanji and components
N1
何気ない
nanigenai
casual, unconcerned
N1
何だか
nandaka
a little, somewhat, somehow
N3
何しろ
nani shiro
anyway, after all, in any case
N3
何々
nani nani
what and what, unspecified items
N3
何分
nanibun
anyway, please understand, how many minutes
N3
何か
nanika
something
N3
何で
nande
Why, What for
N3
何でも
nandemo
by all means, everything
N3
何とか
nantoka
somehow, anyhow, one way or another
Kanji