～もかまわず — Paying It No Heed
もかまわず means doing something without caring about or regardless of a circumstance that would normally make one hesitate. It carries a nuance that the person ignores something they arguably should mind — often social norms, others' feelings, or their own condition. It frequently describes reckless or single-minded behavior.
Structure
[Noun / plain-form + の] + もかまわず
Examples
彼は人目もかまわず大声で泣き出した。
Kare wa hitome mo kamawazu oogoe de nakidashita.
Paying no heed to others' eyes, he burst out crying loudly.
人目もかまわず shows he ignored the gazes of people around him.
雨に濡れるのもかまわず、子供たちは外で遊んでいた。
Ame ni nureru no mo kamawazu, kodomotachi wa soto de asonde ita.
Not caring that they were getting soaked, the children played outside.
濡れるの nominalizes the clause, and もかまわず marks it as ignored.
彼女は服が汚れるのもかまわず、地面に座り込んだ。
Kanojo wa fuku ga yogoreru no mo kamawazu, jimen ni suwarikonda.
Regardless of her clothes getting dirty, she plopped down on the ground.
汚れるのもかまわず expresses disregard for the clothes getting dirty.
• After a verb/full clause, add の before もかまわず. • Nuance: ignoring something one would ordinarily be concerned about. • Register: written and formal spoken; slightly literary.
Commonly confused with
The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones ～もかまわず is tested against.
vs ～を問わず
を問わず means 'regardless of (which/what)' about categories neutrally, while もかまわず implies actively ignoring a concern one should mind.
vs ～にかかわらず
にかかわらず is neutral ('irrespective of'), whereas もかまわず adds an emotional sense of recklessly not caring.
More expressions
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