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JLPT N2Emphasis

～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.

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Pro lessonUNIT 32 · EMPHASIS

Structure · 形

[Verb て-form] + まで / [Noun] + までして

Examples · 例文

  • 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.

Usage notes · 注意

  • 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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