たりとも～ないNot even one
たりとも～ない emphatically excludes even the smallest relevant unit or a single exception. It is a forceful, formal way to say “not even one” or “not for even a moment.”
Starting from the smallest possible exception
The expression before たりとも marks the bottom of a scale: one second, one person, one step, and so on. The following negative then expands that denial across the whole scale: if even the smallest unit is not allowed, there are no exceptions at all.
本番まで、一分たりとも練習時間を無駄にできない。
Until the performance, we cannot waste even one minute of practice time.
AnalyzeThe negative is essential
The construction requires a negative clause after たりとも. That negative may express impossibility, prohibition, refusal, or a firm assertion that something never happens. The overall tone is stronger than an ordinary factual statement.
Rules, resolve, and zero exceptions
The minimum unit changes with the situation, but the message remains the same: zero exceptions are permitted.
Minimum-unit emphasis versus a set with no members
たりとも～ない highlights the smallest imaginable unit and sounds rhetorical and forceful. By contrast, として～ない denies that even one member of a set meets the description, without relying as strongly on a minimum-unit formula.
応募者は一人として必要な条件を満たさなかった。
Not one applicant met the necessary conditions.
AnalyzeThis is an exhaustive statement about the applicant set, rather than a forceful rule or declaration built around the smallest permitted unit.
More examples
この機密情報は、一文字たりとも外部に漏らしてはならない。
Not a single character of this confidential information may be leaked outside.
Analyze救助の可能性がある限り、一秒たりとも捜索を止めることはできない。
As long as there is a chance of rescue, we cannot stop the search for even one second.
Analyze預かった資料は、一枚たりとも紛失してはならない。
Not a single page of the materials entrusted to us may be lost.
Analyze不正な支出には、一円たりとも公金を使わせない。
I will not allow even one yen of public money to be used for improper spending.
Analyze我々は、一人たりとも見捨てない。
We will not abandon a single person.
Analyze規則の適用において、何人たりとも特別扱いされてはならない。
In applying the rules, no person may receive special treatment.
Analyze