も[mo] is a Japanese particle whose basic role is to set off a certain element in a sentence to indicate that is parallel to something else. English equivalents might be “too,” “also,” “as well,” or “either.”
ぼくもラーメンが大好きです。
Boku mo rāmen ga daisuki desu.
I love ramen too.
それに、子どもたちに教えることも好きだ。
Soreni, kodomotachi ni oshieru koto mo suki da.
Besides, I like teaching (tennis) to children too.
It may sound simple, but when it comes to creating your own sentences, learners often have questions about exactly where to put も[mo], how to use it in negative sentences, how can you use it to connect multiple elements, and more. If those questions sound familiar, then this post is just for you!
In this post we’ll introduce you to this particle and how to use it in Japanese sentences, then direct you to some further resources where you can examine it in detail. Let’s get started!
The Japanese particle も[mo] should come directly after the element it marks as being similar to something else. Remember, the element is highlights will be the element that has the similarity, not the similarity itself. Let’s see some examples!
Similarity between :
わたしはラーメンが大好きです。
Watashi wa rāmen ga daisuki desu.
I love ramen.
ぼくもラーメンが大好きです。
Boku mo rāmen ga daisuki desu.
I love ramen too.
Now, in theory, John could have avoided using も in his sentence and said this instead:
ぼくはラーメンが大好きです。
Boku wa rāmen ga daisuki desu.
I love ramen.
However, while this is grammatically correct, it’s odd because he doesn’t acknowledge the connection between his remark and Yoko’s. Using も is more natural!
Similarity between :
僕はラーメンが大好きです。僕はぎょうざも大好きです。
Boku wa rāmen ga daisuki desu. Boku wa gyōza mo daisuki desu.
I love ramen. I also love gyoza.
Let’s see how you’re doing! We’ll give you John’s first sentence. See if you can figure out where to slot も into in the second one!
昼ごはんにラーメンを食べました。
Hirugohan ni rāmen o tabemashita.
I ate ramen for lunch.
[___]昼ごはんに[___]ぎょうざ[___]食べました[___]。
[___] hirugohan ni [___] gyōza [___] tabemashita [___].
I also ate Chinese dumplings for lunch.
Answer: も should follow ぎょうざ[gyoza], since that’s the parallel element between the two sentences. John ate both of them!
A lot like when you use “too” in English, the similarity being highlighted by using も[mo] may not always be as obvious as in the sentences above.
Sometimes using も can be there to relate two things on a more abstract level. For example:
この店のラーメンは、スープがおいしいです。それに、値段も安いです。
Kono mise no rāmen wa sūpu ga oishii desu. Sore ni, nedan mo yasui desu.
As for this place’s ramen, the broth is tasty. Besides that, the price is cheap too.
Along the same lines, the element you’re drawing a parallel to might be implied For example, on a Tokyo street you might hear someone say:
今日も暑いですね。
Kyō mo atsui desu ne.
It’s hot today too.
In Japanese we often use も[mo] in as well, but in this case a better translation will often be be “either” or “neither,” because you’re doubling down on something negative. For example:
ぼくは納豆が好きじゃありません。ぼくはなまこも好きじゃありません。
Boku wa nattō ga suki ja arimasen. Boku wa namako mo suki ja arimasen.
I don’t like fermented soybeans. I don’t like sea cucumbers either.
In Japanese, you’ll often see the particle も[mo] used alongside both of the similar elements, in a situation where you might use “both…and…” or “neither… nor…” in English. For example:
ぼくはラーメンもぎょうざも大好きです。
Boku wa rāmen mo gyōza mo daisuki desu.
I love both ramen and gyoza.
ぼくは納豆もなまこも好きじゃありません。
Boku wa nattō mo namako mo suki ja arimasen
I like neither fermented soybeans nor sea cucumbers.
Theoretically speaking, you can list the infinite number of elements using this pattern, as in AもBもCもDも...(all / none of A, B, C, D…). However, it’s better to limit the number of elements we list to three or four, at most.
Here’s what to remember from this basic introduction to the particle も[mo]:
We use も to draw attention to similar elements, much like you might use “too” or “also” in English. In a negative sentence you might translate it as “either” or “neither” instead.
も always comes directly after the second parallel element.
You can use …も...も after a number of similar elements in a list.
Ready to learn more about how to use も in Japanese? Check out this summary of all the uses of も or read more in one of these posts:
も with noun phrases → What should you do if you want to use も after a noun phrase that already has another particle attached to it?
も with adjectives and verbs → How can you use も to connect parallel elements that aren’t nouns?
も for emphasis and emotion → What are some more abstract uses of も?
も with numbers → How can you use も to indicate your thoughts and feelings about a quantity?
Meanwhile, use our activities practicing も to test your understanding of what we’ve covered in this post. Happy learning!
