万ばん止やむを得えなければ

Meanings

if necessary; when unavoidable

Formal, set phrase meaning 'if it cannot be helped' or 'if there is no other choice'. Used to introduce a reluctant action or condition.

ばんやむをえなければ、会かい議ぎを延えん期きすることも考かんがえている。
If it's unavoidable, we are considering postponing the meeting.
ばんやむをえなければ、私わたしが直ちょく接せつ交こう渉しょうにあたります。
If necessary, I will handle the negotiations directly.

Kanji

万ten thousand, 10,000
止stop, halt
得gain, get, find
已stop, halt, previously

Related words

やむを得えない
やむを得ない is the more common, shorter form meaning 'unavoidable' or 'cannot be helped'. ばんやむをえなければ is a formal, emphatic conditional version with 万 (ばん) adding a sense of 'by all means' or 'if absolutely necessary'.

Written forms

万ばん止やむを得えなければ
Kanji spelling using 止む; very rare and literary. The phrase is almost always written in kana.
万ばん已やむを得えなければ
Kanji spelling using 已む; very rare and literary. The phrase is almost always written in kana.

Etymology

Derived from やむを得ない (unavoidable) with the prefix 万 (ばん) meaning 'ten thousand' or 'all', intensifying the sense of absolute necessity, and the conditional ば form.