Here are a few common verbs of change that you’re likely to see when も has this use:
なる
to become
増える
fueru
to increase
減る
heru
to decrease
〜てくる
-te kuru
to come to…
〜ていく
-te iku
to come to…
Japanese Articles
What are some non-parallel uses of も (mo) in Japanese?
By: Mayumi Ito Fri Jun 12 2026
Though the Japanese も[mo] is most often used like “also” or “too,” to express a parallel or similarity between two elements of a sentence, it can sometimes also have other uses. It can be used to express emphasis or surprise, to express emotion, or even to create and derive a range of expressions.
Emphasis:
この森は昔から少しも変わっていない。
Kono mura wa mukashi kara sukoshi mo kawatte inai.
This forest hasn’t changed even a little since long ago.
→ も emphasizes that the extent to which the forest hasn’t changed is surprising.
Emotion:
この車もずいぶん古くなったなあ。
Kono kuruma mo zuibun furuku natta nā.
(Wow!) This car of mine has become pretty old, hasn’t it?!
→ も expresses strong feelings about something changing.
Derived expression:
大丈夫。もうどこも痛くない。
Daijōbu. Mō doko mo itakunai.
I’m OK. It doesn’t hurt anywhere at all now.
→ も is combined with どこ[doko](where) to create an expression that, depending on the context, might mean “everywhere,” “anywhere,” or “nowhere.”
In this post, we’ll talk about some of these other uses of も[mo]. We’ll see how it can be used to add emphasis, express feelings like surprise or nostalgia, and derive set expressions with entirely new meanings and functions. How can such a small word as も do all this? Let’s find out!
Emphasis: When does も (mo) mean “even”?
In Japanese, the particle も[mo] can be used to convey a speaker’s sense of surprise or amazement that something is actually the case. In this use, it is often translated as “even.” You might hear this usage when something goes above and beyond expectations.
サラさんは耳がいい。一度聞いただけで、難しい日本語もすぐ覚える。
Sara san wa mimi ga ii. Ichido kiita dake de, muzukashii Nihongo mo sugu oboeru.
Sarah has a good ear (for language). After listening to them only once, she instantly learns even difficult Japanese (words).
→ The speaker is expressing that the fact she can pronounce difficult words is surprising and goes above and beyond expectations.
Though this is done for emphasis, you can see that there is some connection to parallel structure here if you think of it as an implied “not only [expectation] but even [reality].” So you can think of the sentence above as meaning something like:
She can instantly learn (not only simple words, but) even difficult ones!
Sometimes, whether we translate an instance of も[mo] as providing a parallel (“also”) or providing emphasis (“even”) is really just a matter of interpretation and context. Let’s say we’re talking about my student Chun. I tell you that she is an amazing student. She can speak very well and in grammatically correct sentences. Then I tell you:
チュンさんは難しい漢字もすらすら書ける。
Chun san wa muzukashii kanji mo surasura kakeru.
The sentence has two possible interpretations, depending on how surprising you think this skill is.
If she is a very advanced student, her ability to use kanji might be praiseworthy but not surprising. In that case, the kanji are just part of the list of skills Chun has, so you’d translate it as:
Chun can also write difficult kanji with ease.
If she is a lower-level student, her ability to write kanji might be considered more exceptional. This skill goes above and beyond what we’d expect from even a good student. In this case, you’d translate も[mo] as “even” instead:
Chun can write even difficult kanji with ease.
As you see, whether a particular も is used as a similarity marker or as an emphasis marker depends on the whole context surrounding the sentence. In everyday conversations or in writing, a sentence generally doesn’t exist on its own. Try to understand what you hear or read and see which role fits the best for the particular も!
Emotion: When to use も (mo) with verbs of change?
In sentences that describe some kind of change, we can use も to implicitly communicate our strong feelings about the change. This use is hard to translate into English, but you might use it in a context where you would start your sentence with “Wow!” or “My goodness!” or “It’s hard to believe that…”
Let’s look at an example:
腕白小僧だった弟も、今日から社会人だ。
Wanpaku kozō datta otōto mo, kyō kara shakaijin da.
(Wow,) my younger brother, who was such a naughty little boy, is going to be a working adult starting today.
The sentence above discusses a change in the younger brother: from naughty little boy to working adult. By adding も[mo] after the changing noun (the younger brother), his sister communicates she has strong feelings about this change. Perhaps she is feeling nostalgic, proud, or just amazed.
Tip
Important
One case where you might use も[mo]to express feelings surrounding a change is to soften a suggestion. For example:
夜も更けてまいりましたので、そろそろお開きといたしましょうか。
Yoru mo fukete mairimashita node, sorosoro ohiraki to itashimashō ka.
Well, the night is advancing, shall we call it a night by and by?
→ You might say this to your guests if the event space is about to close and you want to hurry them kindly out the door.
This, in a way, implies that other things are advancing as well, and the night is advancing along with everything else.
Derivation: How to use も (mo) to create expressions with new meanings and functions?
Sometimes も[mo] is added to a base word to create a new descriptive expression in ways that aren’t really connected with emphasis or with parallel structure:
Question word + も[mo] → creates words like “everywhere,” “anywhere,” or “nowhere.”
+ も[mo] → often creates that act as
Let’s look at each pattern!
Creating quantifiers: When to use a question word + も (mo)?
When you add も[mo] to a question word like いつ[itsu](when) or どこ[doku](where) it creates an expression with an all or nothing meaning like “everywhere,” “anywhere,” or “nowhere.” The meaning of these words depends on the type of sentence you create:
In an sentence you get the “all” meaning. Usually these are words that begin with “all” or “every,” like “everything,” “always,” “everywhere,” or “everyone.”
ジョンさんはいつも元気だ。
Jon san wa itsumo genki da.
John is always full of energy.
週末はどこも観光客でいっぱいだ。
Shūmatsu wa doko mo kankōkyaku de ippai da.
During the weekend, we see swarms of tourists everywhere.
In a negative sentence we use words like “never” or “nowhere” or phrases like “anywhere at all” or “any time at all.”
negative verb姉はいつも朝ごはんを食べない。
Ane wa itsumo asagohan o tabenai.
My elder sister never eats breakfast.
lit. My elder sister doesn’t eat breakfast any time at all.
大丈夫。もうどこも痛くない。
Daijōbu. Mō doko mo itakunai.
I’m OK. It doesn’t hurt anywhere at all now.
Notice, though, that to achieve negative meanings like “never” or “nowhere,” the question word + も[mo] must always be used with a negative verb. It is the verb that makes the sentence negative!
Check out this table of question word + も[mo] examples for more such combinations!
Exception!
A few of these question words + も[mo] can only be used in negative sentences:
なにも[nanimo](nothing, (not) anything at all)
今朝はなにも食べませんでした。
Kesa wa nani mo tabemasendeshita
I did not eat anything at all this morning.
だれも[daremo](no one, (not) anyone at all)
だれも答えを知らなかった。
Dare mo kotae o shiranakatta.
No one knew the answer.
What if the question word is marked by other particles?
What if you want to use a particle like に[ni], へ[e], で[de], と[to], or から[kara] to mark a word meaning “everyone” or “nowhere”? What should you do?
In a negative sentence, you just place the other particle before も[mo]. For example:
だれとも
dare to mo
(not) with anyone
どこにも
doko ni mo
(not) in any place
However, in an affirmative sentence, you can’t do this. If you want to use a second particle, like と, to mark a word meaning “everyone,” you’ll need to replace も[mo] with another particle: でも[demo].
Unlike も[mo], particle でも[demo] can be used after other particles in a positive sentence, and it produces an expression with the same basic meaning as question word + も[mo]:
だれとでも
dare to demo
with everyone
どこへでも
doko e demo
to everywhere
Creating adverbs: What are some set phrases with adjective + も?
We can also add も[mo] to certain adjectives to create set phrases that act like adverbs in a sentence. Such adverb phrases tend to express personal opinions or communicate how we view a certain fact.
悲しい
kanashii
sad
→悲しくも
kanashiku mo
sadly
畏れ多い
osoreōi
venerable
→畏れ多くも
osore ōku mo
gracious enough to…
幸運（な）
kōun(na)
lucky
→幸運にも
kōun ni mo
luckily
意外（な）
igai(na)
surprising, unexpected
→意外にも
igai ni mo
surprisingly, unexpectedly
Notice that there are generally slight changes to the adjective stem as well, which may or may not be the same changes that are generally required when parallel も[mo] is used after an adjective.
Here’s an example of how one of these adverb phrases is used in a sentence:
駅で財布をなくしたが、幸運にもだれかが拾って交番に届けてくれた。
Eki de saifu o nakushita ga, kōun ni mo dareka ga hirotte kōban ni todokete kureta.
I lost my wallet at the station, but luckily someone picked it up and took it to the police box.
Important
Don’t forget that these are , so most of the time when you use も[mo] with an adjective it will just be a parallel も and mean “[adjective] too”! You can read about this use of も in our post on using も with adjectives and verbs.
To Sum Up
In this post, we’ve covered three cases where も[mo] does not mean “also” or “too”:
When it’s used to express emphasis or surprise → here it means “even”
When it’s used to express emotion about a change → here it means something like “wow” or “I can’t believe…”
When it’s used to derive new expressions, including…
“all” or “nothing” expressions → question word + も
adverbial expressions → certain adjectives + も
Ready to practice these uses of も? Check out these non-parallel uses of も exercises or, continue learning with one of the posts in the box below.
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:
Introduction to も → What are the most basic/common uses of this particle in Japanese?
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 with numbers → When can も be used to mark off quantities?
