～てまで／までして — Going So Far As To
Highlights that someone resorts to an extreme, often unreasonable, action to achieve a goal. It usually carries a critical or incredulous tone, suggesting the speaker feels the extreme step went too far. てまで attaches to verbs; までして attaches to nouns.
Structure
[Verb て-form] + まで / [Noun] + までして
Examples
借金してまで、高い車を買う必要はない。
Shakkin shite made, takai kuruma wo kau hitsuyou wa nai.
There's no need to buy an expensive car even going so far as to borrow money.
て-form 借金して + まで stresses the extreme lengths taken.
行列に何時間も並んでまで、その店で食べたいとは思わない。
Gyouretsu ni nanjikan mo narande made, sono mise de tabetai to wa omowanai.
I don't want to eat at that shop so badly that I'd wait in line for hours.
並んで + まで marks queuing for hours as the extreme act.
徹夜までして準備した発表だった。
Tetsuya made shite junbi shita happyou datta.
It was a presentation I prepared for even by pulling all-nighters.
Noun 徹夜 + までして; a noun takes までして.
• Tone: usually critical or expressing disbelief that someone went to such lengths. • てまで takes a verb; までして takes a noun. • Often paired with a negative or 'not worth it' conclusion.
Commonly confused with
The JLPT rarely asks whether you recognise a pattern — it asks which of several similar patterns fits. These are the ones ～てまで／までして is tested against.
vs てでも
てでも expresses the speaker's own determination ('even if it means...'), while てまで typically criticizes an extreme act as excessive.
vs ほど
ほど describes degree/extent neutrally, whereas てまで frames the extent as an extreme, often unreasonable, means to an end.
More emphasis
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