Learn the difference between NO NI and -TEMO
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| Hi everybody! Hiroko here. Welcome to Ask a Teacher, where I’ll answer some of your most common Japanese questions. |
| The question for this lesson is…What is the difference between 雨が降っているのに傘をささないの？(Ame ga futte iru no ni kasa o sasanai no?) and 雨が降っていても傘をささないの?(Ame ga futte ite mo kasa o sasanai no?) |
| Both of these expressions are asking why “someone’s not using an umbrella in the rain,” but is there a difference? |
| The meanings of のに(-no ni) and ても(-te mo) are a little bit different.. のに(-no ni) means “despite,” “in spite of” or “although,” while ても(-te mo) means “even if,” “even though” or “even when.” |
| For example, if you and your friend are about to go out on a rainy day, and you see she isn’t carrying an umbrella, you might say, 雨が降っているのに傘をささないの? (Ame ga futte iru no ni kasa o sasanai no?) Literally, this means “You don’t use an umbrella, although it’s raining?” |
| However, if your friend says she often doesn’t use an umbrella in general, you might say, 雨が降っていても傘をささないの?(Ame ga futte ite mo kasa o sasanai no?) “You don’t use an umbrella even when it’s raining?” ても(-te mo) is often used in hypothetical situations. |
| Let’s go through some examples so you can learn how to use のに(-no ni) and ても(-te mo) correctly. |
| Let’s first do an example with のに(-no ni)-- |
| A: どうしたの。(Dō shita no.) |
| B: 旅行に行きたいのに、仕事を休めないの。(Ryokō ni ikitai no ni, shigoto o yasumenai no.) |
| A: “What’s wrong?” |
| B: “Although I want to go on a trip, I can’t take days off from work.” |
| These sentences are not hypothetical; they’re talking about a real situation. In this case, のに(-no ni) is used to express that despite the fact that Person B wants to take a trip, he/she is unable to because of the inability to get off work. |
| Now, let’s do an example with ても(-te mo)-- |
| A: 仕事はそんなに忙しいの。(Shigoto wa sonna ni isogashii no.) |
| B: 旅行に行きたくても、仕事を休めないの。(Ryokō ni ikitakute mo, shigoto o yasumenai no.) |
| A: “Is your job that busy?” |
| B: “Even if I want to go on a trip, I can’t take days off from work.” |
| In this situation, Person A and Person B are talking about how busy Person B is at work. Therefore, Person B uses the hypothetical situation of going on a trip to highlight how busy he/she is. Person B is not talking about actually wanting to go. |
| The best way to practice using のに(-no ni) and ても(-te mo) is by starting with simple sentences and choosing whether you want to say “although” or “even if.” Then, you can pick which one you should use more easily. |
| How was this lesson? Did you get everything? Make sure to go to JapanesePod101.com for more practice! |
| Do you have any more questions? Leave them in the comments below and I’ll try to answer them! |
| またね！[mata ne!] See you! |
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